SPOKANE, Wash. – The 22nd class of graduates at Washington State University Spokane will be the first in the Spokane area to celebrate commencement on Friday, May 4. Nearly 440 students have successfully completed their degrees and will be honored with baccalaureate, master’s, professional and doctoral degrees in 22 different degree categories.Chancellor Brian Pitcher will preside over the formal ceremony beginning at 2 p.m. in the INB Performing Arts Center at 334 W Spokane Falls Blvd. Doors open at 1:30 p.m. All family, friends, faculty and staff are invited to attend. Tickets are not required.
Paying tribute
Commencement speaker Maxine Hayes, state health officer for the Washington State Department of Health, will pay tribute to graduates’ accomplishments and challenge them to future success as she delivers the keynote address.
As the state’s top public health doctor, Hayes advises the governor and secretary of health on issues ranging from health promotion and chronic disease prevention to emergency response. She works closely with the medical community, local health departments and community groups.
Prior to her appointment as health officer, Hayes was assistant secretary of community and family health. She is a clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine and on the faculty of the School of Public Health’s Maternal and Child Public Health Leadership Training Program.
Reflection
Student reflections will be shared by Faye Mezengie, from the African nation of Eritrea, who was selected by his peers and faculty to serve as student speaker.
A candidate for a bachelor of science in nursing, Mezengie was forced into his home country’s army as a teenager. During his time in the military, he became a leader for his group of soldiers and served wounded soldiers as a medic.
While his military experience took a toll on him emotionally, he found a way to deal with it through poetry. In fact, his winning entry in a national poetry contest awarded him a trip home to visit his family. He used the opportunity to flee the country to Sweden where he became a citizen.
Mezengie’s dreams of healing and bringing hope to desperate areas of the world – like the one in which he grew up – led him to WSU to pursue a career as a nurse. He overcame many challenges in pursuit of his dream, including a language barrier. (He arrived in Washington knowing five languages, not including English).
He speaks publicly about his experiences in war and the need for peace. He hopes to join a relief organization to help rebuild lives and heal both physical and emotional wounds in third world countries.
Notes to photographers and assignment editors
Contact Becki Meehan, 509-358-7528 or rebecca.meehan@wsu.edu, to arrange interviews prior to May 4.
Contact Barb Chamberlain, 509-358-7527, 509-869-2949 (cell) or chamberlain@wsu.edu, to arrange interviews with student and faculty participants at the event between 1 and 1:30 p.m.
Follow us on Twitter @WSUSpokane or join us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/WSUSpokane. We will be posting timely messages throughout the day, and commencement photos will be posted the week of May 7.
Schedule
10 a.m., ASWSU Spokane Commencement Brunch and Awards Ceremony – visual/audio opportunities.
1-1:30 p.m., students arrive for robing, and you may be able to pick up interviews on the fly.
1:30-4 p.m., students are not available for interviews; robing and ceremony in progress.
1:55 p.m., students wearing full regalia will march from the Spokane Convention Center and across the breezeway to the INB Performing Arts Center – this will be a great visual opportunity as they proceed to the stage.
Approximately 4 p.m., students will exit the building and will be greeted by Butch – great photo opportunities as Butch greets students and their families.