Purdue students to celebrate commencements this weekend and next

Margaret Christopherson, Lafayette Journal & Courier
Updated ·3 min read
A candidate for graduation tries to inform her family where the commencement is being held as she marchs from the Armory to Elliott Hall of Music to begin Purdue University's 2022 Spring Commencement on May 13, 2022.
A candidate for graduation tries to inform her family where the commencement is being held as she marchs from the Armory to Elliott Hall of Music to begin Purdue University's 2022 Spring Commencement on May 13, 2022.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. − The Purdue Class of 2023 will celebrate its commencement throughout nine ceremonies from May 12-14.

Kathleen Howell, Purdue’s Hsu Lo Distinguished Professor of Aeronautics and Astronautics, will provide the keynote for the graduate student ceremony at 7 p.m. May 14, a release stated. She has received national and international acclaim for her orbit mechanics work, as well as for her work in spacecraft dynamics and trajectory optimization, the release stated.

The Purdue 2023 spring class will celebrate 9,710 candidates eligible for graduation.

Commencement dates and times

The following are the commencement division dates and times, verbatim from Purdue:

  • Division I – Friday, May 12, 9:30 a.m. College of Agriculture and College of Engineering (Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Mechanical Engineering)

  • Division II – Friday, May 12, 2:30 p.m. College of Engineering (Aeronautics and Astronautics, Biomedical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Construction Engineering, Environmental and Ecological Engineering, Interdisciplinary Engineering, Nuclear Engineering)

  • Division III – Friday, May 12, 7 p.m. College of Engineering (Electrical and Computer Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Materials Engineering)

  • Division IV – Saturday, May 13, 9:30 a.m. College of Health and Human Sciences (undergraduate and professional)

  • Division V – Saturday, May 13, 2:30 p.m. College of Science

  • Division VI – Saturday, May 13, 7 p.m. Purdue Polytechnic Institute (undergraduate and professional)

  • Division VII – Sunday, May 14, 9:30 a.m. College of Veterinary Medicine (undergraduate and professional), College of Pharmacy (undergraduate and professional) and College of Liberal Arts

  • Division VIII – Sunday, May 14, 2:30 p.m. School of Management and College of Education

  • Division IX – Sunday, May 14, 7 p.m. Master’s and Doctor of Philosophy (all colleges/schools)

Tickets are required to enter all commencement ceremonies. The commencements' venue, Elliot Hall of Music, will open its doors 90 minutes before each ceremony. According to Purdue, only clear bags or small clutch bags will be allowed in Elliot Hall of Music and all bags will be checked.

Learn more on the Spring 2023 Commencement FAQ website. Honorary doctorates, student responders and top student awards will be featured throughout the commencements as well.

Purdue Global commencement

Purdue Global, Purdue's online education option, will celebrate over 1,400 graduates at its commencement this weekend, also in Elliot Hall of Music.

"In-person ceremonies are scheduled for 10:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. ET at Purdue’s Elliott Hall of Music in West Lafayette," a release said. "A special Boilermaker Block Party will be held outside Hovde Hall between the two ceremonies, and a virtual ceremony follows at 7 p.m. ET."

The graduates include 290 Indiana residents and residents from 49 total states, as well as the Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada, China, Guatemala, South Africa and the United Kingdom. 251 of the graduates are affiliated with the military, the release said.

For the Purdue Global commencement, tickets are not required. All bags will be checked at the door, however.

“Many of our graduates have a comeback story to share. I’m glad Purdue Global could be a part of the success associated with it,” Chancellor Frank Dooley said the release. “Balancing school, work and life is not an easy task. Students leaned on family, friends, children and co-workers for encouragement and support throughout their journey.”

Lauren Castrinos Bradford will provide the keynote address. Bradford earned her Master of Arts in psychology with a concentration in applied behavior analysis (ABA) from Purdue Global in November 2020.

Purdue Global will also hold a Black and Gold Celebration for all in-person graduates from 5-6:30 p.m. Friday at Ross-Ade's Shively Club.

More information on how to watch the commencement ceremonies online is available on Purdue Global's website.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue and Purdue Global students to celebrate their commencements