Because of the soft ground and the forecast for more rain this week, Ashland University administrators have decided to move the outdoor location back to Jack Miller Stadium for the May 5 Commencement. The location had been scheduled for the front lawn of Founders Hall as part of the 140th anniversary celebration of the University.
“It has been an unusually wet and cold spring and the ground is still saturated,” said Rick Ewing, vice president of operations and planning. “We are worried that with the wet conditions of the front lawn and the forecast for more rain, the lawn will be too soft to accommodate the ceremony.”
The call whether the ceremony will be indoors or outdoors will be made by 6:30 a.m. on Saturday morning. If outdoors at Miller Stadium in the Schar Athletic Complex off Broad Street, no tickets will be required for the ceremony. The ceremony will start at 10 a.m. with the procession to begin at approximately 9:50 a.m.
Graduating students and faculty who are participating in the outdoor ceremony are to assemble at 9 a.m. at the soccer field and track located just southwest of the football stadium. Handicapped parking for those attending the ceremony will be located in parking lot E, which is lot located next to the John C. Myers Convocation Center and Amstutz Hall.
If the decision that morning is to go indoors, the ceremony for undergraduate students will be held in Kates Gymnasium located in the Physical Education Center while the ceremony for graduate students will be held in Hugo Young Theatre located in the Center for the Arts. Tickets are required for these indoor ceremonies and students received five tickets each with their graduation packets.
The 9 a.m. lineup for undergraduate students and undergraduate faculty will be in the Conard Field House. The lineup for graduate students will be at 9:15 a.m. in the Recital Hall, Room 115, of the Center for the Arts, while lineup for graduate faculty and the platform party will be in Room 101/102 Center for the Arts.
Handicapped parking for those attending the indoor ceremonies will be located in parking lot A, which is along King Road across from the Hawkins-Conard Student Center.
You can watch the commencement ceremony live at www.ashland.edu/commencement and additional seating will be available in the Student Center Eagles’ Nest and the Student Center Auditorium, where the ceremony will be broadcast live at each venue.
A buffet luncheon will be held in Myers Convocation Center following the ceremonies and those attending can buy tickets at the door.