The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, will welcome approximately 6,200 graduates into its alumni family across eight spring commencement ceremonies May 15-17.
“Commencement is a special time to pause and celebrate our students and show our gratitude to their families, friends and mentors who have been there to support them every step of the way to this joyous day,” said Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor John Zomchick. “As our graduates walk across the stage, they carry with them all that their dedication and hard work have enabled them to accomplish during their time here on Rocky Top. For all present, commencement is a proud and gratifying moment as our newly minted alumni leave UT to carry the Volunteer spirit into the world beyond our campus boundaries.”
Graduating students will participate in college-based ceremonies in Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center, with dates and times for each ceremony available on the commencement website. All ceremonies will be webcast live for those who are unable to attend in person.
Additionally, 36 Army ROTC cadets and 17 Air Force ROTC cadets will be commissioned as second lieutenants, recognizing their transition from student to military officer. The Army ROTC commissioning ceremony will take place at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 16, in the Alumni Memorial Building’s James R. Cox Auditorium. The Air Force ROTC commissioning ceremony will be held at 5 p.m. the same day in the Student Union Pilot Company Ballroom.
Geier to receive honorary degree
Alongside the commencement celebrations, Rita Geier will be awarded an honorary Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from the College of Law during its ceremony.
Originally from Memphis but having lived in several towns across Tennessee and Arkansas, Geier earned her bachelor’s degree at Fisk University and her master’s at the University of Chicago. She returned to Tennessee in 1966 to teach history at Tennessee State University and continued part time while attending Vanderbilt Law School. In 1968, Geier and four other plaintiffs filed a lawsuit against the State of Tennessee requesting that the dual system of higher education be dismantled. In 2006, the consent decree, which followed the lawsuit, was dismissed.
She married fellow Vanderbilt law student Paul Geier, and the couple had two children. She was admitted to the bar in Tennessee and the District of Columbia and practiced in a variety of federal courts. Upon moving to the Washington, D.C., area, she served as a regional director for the Legal Service Corporation before joining the Department of Justice as general counsel for the Appalachian Regional Commission in 1979. She moved to the Social Security Administration in 1992 as deputy associate commissioner for hearings and appeals before becoming associate commissioner and later executive counselor on interagency adjudication.
She retired from the Social Security Administration and in September 2007 joined UT as associate to the chancellor and senior fellow in the Howard H. Baker Jr. Center for Public Policy (now the Baker School of Public Policy and Public Affairs). She retired from the university in 2011.
Parking and security information
Graduates and their guests can park free of charge in student parking areas throughout campus but should avoid parking in staff parking areas during weekday ceremonies. A park-and-ride shuttle will be available from Garage B at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum on Friday, and the G5 garage and other staff lots will be open to the public on Saturday. The G10 garage next to the arena will be open on all commencement dates, with the top level reserved for accessible parking. Guests parking in G10 must enter and exit the garage from Neyland Drive. Visit the Parking and Transportation website for more information.
The university’s clear bag policy will be enforced. Guests will be screened on entry by event security staff. Binoculars, cameras and video cameras are permissible without cases. Smoking and vaping are prohibited in and on all university property, including in private vehicles parked or in operation on university property.
For more information on which items are allowed and prohibited as well as security policies, visit the commencement website.
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MEDIA CONTACT:
Maggie Palmer (865-974-3993, mpalme19@utk.edu)