This weekend, the class of 2008 will walk across the stage and join the ranks of Virginia Tech alumni.
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On Friday at 3 p.m. the graduate commencement will take place in Cassell Coliseum. During this ceremony, approximately 1,286 graduate and professional students are expected to receive their degrees. Guests are encouraged to be seated by 2:30 p.m.
Tae-sik Lee, Republic of Korea Ambassador to the United States, will deliver the keynote address. Lee has been a career diplomat for 40 years, serving all over the world in places such as Liberia, the Philippines, Austria, Yugoslavia and the European Union.
At 7:30 p.m. on Friday, the university ceremony to award all associate and bachelor's degrees will be held at Lane Stadium. Guests are encouraged to be seated by 7 p.m. At the university ceremony, 25 associate degrees and 3,727 bachelor's degrees will be awarded.
In the event of inclement weather, the ceremonies will be moved indoors to Cassell Coliseum and again begin at 7:30 p.m. The decision to move the ceremonies indoor will be made by 3 p.m. on Friday.
Honors students, College of Engineering, Liberal Art and Human Sciences, and Natural Resources students will be seated on Worsham Field West. On Worsham Field East will be the 2008 class officers, faculty, students from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the College of Architecture and Urban Studies, the College of Science, and the Pamplin College of Business.
The keynote address at the university ceremony will be given by Virginia Tech alumna, Hoda Kotb, "Dateline NBC" correspondent and co-anchor of NBC's "Today" show. Kotb's career spans nine years. During that time, she has covered a variety of national and international stories, from the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina to the ongoing conflict in the West Bank and Gaza.
College and Departmental ceremonies will be taking place on Saturday throughout the day at locations specified by the different departments. More information about the different ceremonies and their timing and location is available online.
For the ceremonies, all university parking will be open to the public. Parking near and around Cassell Coliseum and Lane Stadium, however, will be limited. These areas will be available for persons with impaired mobility.
More information about commencement is available through Tech's commencement hotline at (540) 231-3208, or online.