Newswise — In keeping with tradition at Davidson College, Commencement weekend activities will focus on members of the Class of 2004 rather than a prominent speaker.
President Robert Vagt will offer brief remarks to the 400 or so graduating seniors during Commencement ceremonies on Sunday, May 16. The name of each graduate will then be called, and President Vagt will present each degree with a handshake as graduates cross the stage in front of family and classmates.
Commencement activities begin on Saturday, May 15, with commissioning of senior class ROTC cadets at 1:30 p.m. in Tyler-Tallman Hall of the Sloan Music Center. That occasion will feature an address by Lt. Gen. Colby Broadwater III, father of a graduating senior.
The annual baccalaureate service, which begins at 4:45 p.m. in the Davidson College Presbyterian Church, will feature an address by Rev. Beth Luton Cook, director of the office of church ministries education at Candler School of Theology at Emory University. Rev. Cook is also the parent of a 2004 graduate.
As twilight falls, visitors are invited to take a candlelight promenade and tour of the historic buildings on Davidson's front campus. At 8:15 p.m. the Davidson College Concert Choir and Chamber Singers will perform in the Davidson College Presbyterian Church.
On Sunday, May 16, the faculty in full academic regalia and the Class of 2004 will process from Chambers Building at 9:50 a.m. Commencement exercises will begin at 10 a.m. In addition to presentation of degrees, the college will present Algernon Sydney Sullivan Awards to a student and a community member, Hunter-Hamilton Love of Teaching Award to two faculty members, and First Honor and Second Honor to the two graduates with the highest grade point average.
Davidson is a highly selective independent liberal arts college for 1,600 students. Since its establishment in 1837, the college has graduated 23 Rhodes Scholars and is consistently ranked in the top ten liberal arts colleges in the country by U.S. News and World Report magazine. Davidson is engaged in "Let Learning Be Cherished," a $250 million campaign in support of student financial assistance, academic resources, and community life.
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