Newswise — Mike Judge, an alumnus of the University of California, San Diego and creator behind cult films and TV shows such as "Office Space," and "King of the Hill," will serve as keynote speaker at the university's 2009 All Campus Graduation Celebration. The second-annual All Campus Graduation Celebration on June 12 will give graduating students at UC San Diego's six colleges and alumni an opportunity to commemorate graduation in a large-scale celebration.
Judge's new film "Extract," starring Ben Affleck and Jason Bateman, is expected to be released this fall. The physics major started his animation career after attending UC San Diego from 1980 to 1985. Judge won an Emmy for "King of the Hill" in 1999, the second longest running animated show in television history. He first gained recognition for creating the animated series, "Beavis and Butthead," one of the most popular series in the history of MTV.
The graduation celebration is the final event of Senior Spring, a celebratory quarter of fun activities, networking events and career-building opportunities designed especially for seniors during the 10 weeks before graduation.
"Senior Spring is an opportunity for graduating seniors to celebrate their accomplishments with classmates at events such as Grad Nite at the Bookstore and the downtown Padres baseball game," said Penny Rue, the university's vice chancellor of Student Affairs. "The quarter of events will allow them to connect with their fellow classmates and will support their transition into alumni."
The All Campus Graduation Celebration is open to graduating undergraduate and graduate students and alumni of UC San Diego. The event will kick off with a wine and cheese mixer, followed by a ceremony where speakers will include Chancellor Marye Anne Fox; Vice Chancellor Penny Rue; Alumni Association Executive Director Armin Afsahi '90; Student Foundation President Sarah Chang, '09; and Mike Judge, '85.
"We look forward to having a UC San Diego alumnus as speaker who is so well-known and multi-talented," said Chang, co-chair of All Campus Graduation Celebration. "Mike Judge represents how diversely creative and successful UC San Diego alumni and students are."
Outstanding senior and graduate student awards will be announced at the ceremony. The awards will be given to a graduating senior and graduate student who have earned the admiration of the UC San Diego community for exceptional contributions to university life and who have generously served the university. The winners will be awarded $1000 each and a lifetime membership to the UC San Diego Alumni Association. The All Campus Graduation Ceremony will culminate with a picnic-style dinner and fireworks at RIMAC field. Local music group Lady Dottie and the Diamonds will perform during the post-reception.
Senior Spring officially kicked off on April 20 with the first annual Grad Nite at the Bookstore where more than 800 students celebrated with a night of dancing, food and merchandise discounts.
Other Senior Spring events include more than 20 career workshops, seminars and programs for seniors offered by the Career Services Center.
On May 20, seniors are invited to cheer on the San Diego Padres as they take on the San Francisco Giants.
Each of the campuses' six colleges will hold special events for seniors during May and June, and the Alumni Association will sponsor the annual Senior Salute and class plaque signing May 19.
For more information about Senior Spring and the All Campus Graduation Celebration, go to seniors.ucsd.edu.
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