May 12, 2009

Contact:   Bill Giduz

Four years ago... During their first few days on campus, this year's graduates gathered on Richardson Field for the traditional class picture.

Davidson College’s Class of 2009 will come together one last time before dispersing around the nation and world during the college’s 172nd annual Commencement activities on May 16-17. Thousands of family and friends will converge on campus to honor the graduates before they embark on their post-Davidson careers. Traditionally, about 65% of graduates find full-time employment during their first year out, and 25% enroll immediately in graduate school.

Events begin on Friday evening, May 15, with a "Senior Soiree" concert beginning at 9 p.m. in Duke Family Performance Hall by the Davidson College Chamber Orchestra and Jazz Band.

Saturday, May 16, with ROTC commissioning beginning at 1:30 p.m. in Tyler-Tallman Hall of Sloan Music Building. Special guest Pete Geren, Secretary of the Army, will deliver an address. Geren joined the Department of Defense in 2001 to serve as Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense with responsibilities in the areas of inter-agency initiatives, legislative affairs and special projects. Tickets are no longer available for that ceremony.

 At 4:45 p.m. on Saturday, Pastor Robert Wallace, a 1973 Davidson alumnus, will deliver the sermon “Whom Will You Serve?” during Baccalaureate services in the Davidson College Presbyterian Church. His daughter, Tess, will be among senior students in the audience.

Wallace serves as a senior pastor for Nazareth Evangelical Lutheran Church in Cedar Falls, Iowa. He is currently enrolled in a Doctor of Missiology program in the school of Intercultural Studies at Fuller Theological Seminary, studying development of mission work in various cultural contexts.

A campus-wide supper on the front lawn for seniors and their families will be held when Baccalaureate ends, followed by a candlelight promenade. Luminaries will decorate Davidson’s quadrangle of historic buildings on front campus, and docents will be stationed in the buildings to talk about them. The Davidson College Chorale will perform a concert beginning at 7:15 p.m. in Davidson College Presbyterian Church. Students and their families are also invited to visit with professors at open houses in town hosted by representatives of each academic department.

If the weather is favorable, Davidson's physical plant will set up more than 5,000 chairs for graduates and guests under the oaks on front campus for Sunday's Commencement.

On Sunday, May 17, the faculty in full academic regalia and the Class of 2009 will begin the short procession from Chambers Building to the Commencement site under the front campus trees at 9:50 a.m. Rain location for the event is Baker Sports Complex. 

 In accordance with college tradition, President Tom Ross will be the featured Commencement speaker. There will be presentations of the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Awards to a student and a community member, the Hunter-Hamilton Love of Teaching Award to two faculty members, First Honor and Second Honor to the two graduates with the highest grade point average, and the Class Gift by Senior Class President Richmond Blake. 

Students will then process across the stage individually to receive their diplomas and congratulations from President Tom Ross, Vice President for Academic Affairs Clark Ross, and Board of Trustees Chair Mackey J. McDonald ‘68. 

The most popular majors for this year’s graduates are political science with 69, history with 54, economics and English tied at 49, psychology with 43, biology with 31, and Spanish with 26. Sixteen students earned majors in two disciplines. Among other outstanding achievements, The Class of '09 boasts the college’s first Marshall Scholar since 1990 (Katy Finley), and the first Truman Fellowship since 1991(Richmond Blake).

For more information on Commencement weekend, call 704-894-2202.

Davidson is a highly selective independent liberal arts college for 1,800 students located 20 minutes north of Charlotte in Davidson, N.C. Since its establishment in 1837 by Presbyterians, the college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently regarded as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country. Through The Davidson Trust, the college became the first liberal arts institution in the nation to replace loans with grants in all financial aid packages, giving all students the opportunity to graduate debt-free. Davidson competes in NCAA athletics at the Division I level, and a longstanding Honor Code is central to student life at the college.
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Posted By: Bill Giduz