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Syracuse University will hold three commencement ceremonies on one weekend in May, a university official announced Thursday. 

The university decided to hold three ceremonies due to the number of student responses to a survey on commencement participation, said Steve Bennett, senior vice president for international programs and academic operations, in a news release. All graduating students who registered to participate in a commencement ceremony will be allowed to bring up to two guests.

The ceremonies will take place on May 22-23. Students in different SU schools and colleges will take part in different ceremonies.

The first ceremony will be held on Saturday, May 22 at 4 p.m. It will include all undergraduate students from the School of Architecture, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Falk College, the School of Education and University College.

The second ceremony will be held Sunday, May 23 at 9 a.m. It will include all undergraduate students from the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the School of Information Studies, the Martin J. Whitman School of Management, the Newhouse School of Public Communications and the College of Visual and Performing Arts.

The final ceremony, taking place on May 23 at 3:30 p.m., will include all graduate students.

Guests will be assigned a specific gate and entry time to arrive at the ceremony to maintain social distancing, the announcement reads. During the ceremony, students will sit in three-person pods on the field while guests will sit in two-person pods in the audience. All seating pods will be spaced 6 feet apart.

Individual school and college convocations will be held virtually on Saturday, May 22 at 11 a.m. The convocations will be recorded and posted online, Bennett said.

Tickets will be available beginning May 6 at 10 a.m. Graduating students will receive an email with instructions to claim the tickets, Bennett said.

To participate in commencement, graduating students and guests must provide proof that at least 14 days have passed since they received their second dose of the Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, or since they received the one-dose Johnson & Johnson vaccine. Unvaccinated students or guests will have to submit proof of a negative COVID-19 test administered within 72 hours of the ceremony.

SU plans to open a pre-event compliance station on campus starting May 20. Students and guests can visit the station in advance of commencement weekend to verify their negative COVID-19 tests or vaccine documentation. Individuals who verify their ability to attend in advance will have expedited access to the Dome on the day of commencement.

Published on April 29, 2021 at 4:47 pm

Contact Kailey: kmnorusi@syr.edu