Related Web sitehttp://dos.web.arizona.edu/commencement/
Newswise — University of Arizona students who have completed graduation requirements as of December 2004 will receive degrees Saturday, Dec. 18 at McKale Center during the UA's 131st Commencement. UA President Peter Likins will confer degrees upon 2,959 undergraduates; 755 masters and 304 doctoral candidates. Additionally, four medical degrees, one pharmacy degree and 10 juris doctor degrees will be conferred. Seven master of laws degrees in international trade law will be awarded at this ceremony as well.
The academic procession into McKale begins at 9 a.m. and the ceremony should begin at 9:30 a.m.
U.S. Rep. Raúl M. Grijalva, D-Ariz., a UA alumnus, will deliver the commencement address.
Press photographers please note: Platforms will be located on the floor of McKale to facilitate video and still photographers. You may photograph from anywhere inside McKale until the ceremonies begin. Photographers shall then clear the floor aisles and use the platforms or remain in the corners of the arena.
An academic tradition added to the UA's commencement ceremony a year ago is that of the ceremonial or academic mace. The mace reflects the unique character, mission and values of the UA. During academic ceremonies, such as commencement, the mace is carried by the chair of the faculty and signifies the order and authority of the academic procession. The placing of the mace in its stand marks the beginning of the ceremony and its removal signifies the end of the platform ceremony.
In medieval times, maces were used in combat. By the 16th century, elegant ceremonial maces made with silver, gold and precious stones were incorporated into academic and civil ceremonies. The UA mace features a crown of sterling silver surrounding the seal of the University, which is accented with 22K gold. Underlying the crown are 24 acrylic strips in the school colors of red and blue which add a jewel-like sparkle. The main shaft is made of local mesquite with a sterling silver band inscribed with "The University of Arizona," accented with 22K gold. The tailpiece repeats the motif of the crown and surrounds a medallion with an image of a wildcat, the UA mascot.
Awards:The Alumni Achievement Award, the UA Alumni Association's oldest and highest honor, will be presented to Paul R. Gray. Gray earned a doctorate in electrical engineering from the UA and began a career in integrated-circuits in 1969. In 1971, he joined the staff of the University of California, Berkeley, as a visiting lecturer and seven years later was promoted to professor. Gray has held several key administrative positions at Berkeley, including director of the electronics research laboratory, chair of the department of electrical engineering and computer sciences and dean of the College of Engineering. In 2000, Gray was named the executive vice chancellor and provost, a position he holds today.
Distinguished Faculty Outreach Awards will be presented at commencement to Charles "Corky" Poster and Jeanette Conover McCray. This is the first time these awards will be given to faculty whose scholarship-based outreach to the state, nation and world demonstrates sustained excellence in the UA's outreach mission. Award winners are nominated by faculty, staff, students and alumni as well as external constituents. A university-wide committee makes the final selection.
Poster, a professor in the UA College of Architecture and Landscape Architecture, is a registered architect and planner who specializes in the design and planning of housing and community facilities for low-income and special-needs residents. For the past 30 years he has worked closely with inner-city neighborhoods and human service agencies in Tucson and Southern Arizona. Poster has planned, designed and built more than 2,800 units of affordable public housing for 55 different projects. A 1969 magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College, Poster earned a master's degree at the Harvard Graduate School of Design.
McCray is the deputy director of the Arizona Health Sciences Library with an appointment in the College of Medicine. During her 30 years at the UA, she has envisioned and implemented outreach programs that have had a profound effect on the health of the citizens of Arizona. McCray has been the driving force behind projects that have reached out to reservations, into public libraries and small rural clinics. Among her accomplishments are her successful grant-writing that has brought training to public librarians and consumer health information to the public. More than 90 librarians from the Tucson-Pima Public Library have been trained in handling sensitive health-related questions. They also have been introduced to reliable sources of health information. Honorary Degrees:
Raúl Castro will be presented for a Honorary Doctorate of Laws. A graduate of the UA, Castro's former posts include Pima County attorney, governor of Arizona and U.S. ambassador to three countries. Castro grew up in Pirtleville, Ariz., and graduated with honors from Douglas High School. Although he graduated from the Arizona State Teachers College, he could not get a teaching job because he was "Mexican." He went on to earn a law degree from the UA in 1949. Subsequently, he was elected Pima Country attorney and a Pima County Superior Court judge. In 1974, he became the first Mexican American to be elected governor of Arizona.
Judith A. Gignac will be presented for a Honorary Doctorate of Letters. Gignac was elected to the Cochise County Board of Supervisors in 1977 and served for 12 years. The first woman ever elected to the board, she laid the foundation for other women who desire to serve their communities in elected positions in rural Arizona. In 1988, Gignac help found the University Foundation of Sierra Vista, Inc. The foundation, in partnership with the UA and then-president, Henry Koffler, established the Sierra Vista Off-Campus Center which developed into UA South in 1995. Gignac was appointed to an eight-year term on the Arizona Board of Regents where she served as president in 1998-99. Presently, she is a member of the Arizona Town Hall and served as chair in 2001-2003.
Student Awards:The UA Centennial Awards for undergraduates were established in December 1984 by the UA Division of Student Affairs. These awards are to seniors who will graduate within the academic year and who have demonstrated integrity; who have overcome enormous challenges to achieve a college education; and who have made a contribution to self, community and family. Preference is given to students who are the first in their families to graduate from college and who are members of traditionally under-represented groups. In 1987, the Graduate College and the Division of Campus Life established the Centennial awards to recognize outstanding achievement and contributions of graduate students at the UA. Both awards are presented at the winter commencement ceremonies.
Shaun Brown and Raysenia James are this year's undergraduate Centennial Award recipients. Brown will graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree in geography and James with a Bachelor of Science degree in molecular and cellular biology.
Brown has dedicated much of his time away from academics to work as a peer adviser in the UA's Student Support Services to help students who are first-generation, low-income or have disabilities. Presently, he assists new traditional students and tutors them on how to use the latest technology available in classrooms.
James, a Navajo, has focused her energy on helping Indian students complete college. In May 2005, she will become the first in her family to graduate from college. Her goal is to help improve access to quality health care for all Native people and plans to pursue a career in Indian health policy.
The recipients of the master's level Centennial Awards are Carol Goldtooth-Begay and Sandra Guillen. Goldtooth-Begay will complete a master's degree in public health in May 2005. She also currently serves as a mentor to students in the Native American Cancer Research Partnership program at the UA.
Guillen will complete the requirements for a master's of arts degree in higher education. Guillen is committed to helping to provide educational opportunities for all students, especially under-served populations. She has worked as both an admissions counselor and as an academic adviser for the UA.
Mohamud Haji Farah and Kimberly Adilia Helmer are the doctoral students who will receive Centennial Awards. Farah will receive his doctorate in arid land resource sciences. He was awarded a Fulbright Program student grant to support his dissertation research in Oman. The contributions he made as a Fulbright scholar will help ensure the sustainable use of limited natural resources indigenous to the Middle East and the rest of the world.
Helmer will complete her doctorate in second language acquisition and teaching. Her dissertation research is an ethnographic study of Latino high school students with an emphasis on language, ideology, identity and resistance. Helmer has presented her research at eight major national conferences, including some of the most prestigious in her field.
More information on Winter Commencement is available online at http://dos.web.arizona.edu/commencement/.
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