The College of Science’s commencement ceremony is once again scheduled to take place in the Carl Maddox Field House after a relocation to the UREC was met with complaints from students.
The College of Science made its second graduation ceremony relocation Tuesday thanks to an executive decision by LSU President F. King Alexander, said biology senior Tuan Tran, president of the College of Science council within Student Government.
The College of Science was set to hold commencement in the Field House on May 16, but on April 24, students in the college received an email telling them their ceremony would be moved to the UREC, Tran said. Each graduating senior would receive five tickets for friends and family members to attend the ceremony because of the smaller size of the new location, Tran said.
Tran heard from a fellow student that the ceremony was moved out of the Field House because of renovations to the building.
Guillermo Ferreyra, interim dean of the College of Science, said the move to the UREC was a major concern because of the ticket limit placed on students. Ferreyra said the college looked at other venues for the ceremony, but none were larger than the UREC.
Tran said students sent emails to the Registrar’s Office and expressed their concerns about the ticket limit on social media. Tran then received an email on April 28 from an advisor saying Alexander heard about the problem Monday morning and made the call to move commencement back to the Field House by 4 p.m. that same day.
Ferreyra said the cermony is back to its original facility and there will not be a limit on attendance. Tran said the students appreciate Alexander’s actions and his commitment to students.