2011 WGU Summer Commencement Salt Lake City, Utah Guidebook

www.wgu.edu/commencement
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2011 WGU Summer Mixer

Friday, July 22, 2011 7:00 p.m.- 9:00 p.m. Grand America Hotel
555 South Main Street, Salt Lake City WGU students and graduates are invited to attend the 2011 WGU Summer Mixer, which is held on the Friday evening before commencement. This is a great opportunity to meet and mingle with your mentor and fellow students and graduates. Guests are welcome.

This is a business dress event (business attire or evening dress) Live music Refreshments Cash bar WGU merchandise for sale

Downtown Transportation Options: The Salt Lake City TRAX Line stops right in front of Grand America. Check out the routes at: http://www.rideuta.com/mc/?page=UTA-Home-TRAX

Check with your hotel. Some of WGUs partner hotels for graduates provide courtesy shuttle service within downtown. Please visit www.wgu.edu/ commencement for more information.

RSVP: http://alumni.wgu.edu/summermixer2011
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Ceremony Protocol Information for Graduates and Guests

Commencement creates a special and memorable threshold experience for graduates that not only celebrates your achievement, but commemorates the new directions of your dreams. We want your day to be filled with shared joys at a ceremony that truly reflects your hard work and often the sacrifices youve made. WGU believes mutually respectful participation by graduates and their guests is the best way to set the stage. This guide will help ensure that your commencement experience is a day youll hold in your heart and remember with pridealong with the shared smiles of family and friends, mentors and staff, and fellow graduates. Academic Attire for Graduates All graduating students will wear approved academic attire that includes a cap, gown, and tassel. The official regalia color is NAVY, which can be purchased from Jostens. Master-degree graduates will need a hood specific to your degree. We strongly encourage you to wear comfortable, yet professional business attire beneath your gown rather than casual clothing. WGU graduates affiliated with an honor society may wear society pins or honor cords on their gowns. Guest Seating Limited seating in Kingsbury Hall allows for a maximum of 5 guests per student/graduate; graduates will receive by mail the number of tickets (max of 5) requested in their RSVP to distribute to guests. Only ticketholders will be admitted to Kingsbury Hall, so guests must have their tickets at the door. No replacement tickets are available. Overflow Seating: For graduates with more than 5 guests, overflow seating is available first-come, first-served in the Gardner Building, which is the building next door (directly west) to Kingsbury Hall. Overflow guests will view the ceremony on screen in a live broadcast in Thompson Hall on the main level of the Gardner Building. This also may be a more comfortable venue for guests with small children. No tickets are required for overflow seating. We ask that guests please be seated and silence their cell phones before the graduate procession begins to promote an uninterrupted flow. Guests should remain in their seats during the ceremony as a courtesy to graduates, and you may take photos from your seat. Guests may not stand in aisles to take photos due to fire and safety regulations. WGU has hired a professional photographer for this event, and images of each graduate and the ceremony will be available online for purchase. Babies and Young Children Commencement will be broadcast live and recorded. We also know that many graduates want young family members to be a part of this special event. Thus, for your childs comfort and as a courtesy to graduates, we encourage you to bring favorite toys, snacks or other necessary items to keep young ones quietly entertained over several hours. Caretakers are kindly encouraged to bring restless young children or crying babies to the lobby area on the main floor of Kingsbury Hall to avoid disrupting the ceremony or the broadcast. To promote safety in close quarters, no babies or children will be allowed on stage or to sit with graduates. Special Needs Accommodations Kingsbury Hall has a limited number of seats and parking spaces designated for graduates and guests who require special accommodations during the commencement ceremony. Graduates must request special seating and parking when completing the Commencement RSVP form. Guests requiring special seating will be allowed only one additional seat for an attendant. All special seating and parking not arranged in advance will be on a first-come, first-served basis. Kingsbury Hall does not provide wheelchairs, so guests who require wheelchairs will need to bring their own. For questions regarding special seating and parking requests, please email commencement@wgu.edu. Thanks for supporting these guidelines for a safe and enjoyable commencement. We look forward to greeting and meeting you at the upcoming commencement ceremony!
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Commencement Schedule for Graduates Saturday, July 23, 2011

IMPORTANT NOTE: We are using two locations for the commencement: John Park Building (Location A, graduate registration and class photo) and Kingsbury Hall (Location B, ceremony). The buildings are within 5 minutes walking distance from each other. Please encourage your guests with tickets to go directly to Kingsbury Hall. A ticket is required for entry into Kingsbury Hall; seating is general admission (first-come, first-served).

JOHN PARK BUILDING Front of the BuildingLook for Balloons [GRAD REGISTRATION & CLASS PHOTO LOCATION] Location A See map on next page

KINGSBURY HALL [CEREMONY LOCATION] Location BSee map on next page

Graduate Attire
All graduates participating in the commencement ceremony must arrive wearing full academic attire: cap with tassel and gown. (If a master grad, bring your hood).

Commencement Schedule
8:00 a.m. Graduate Registration - JOHN PARK BUILDING STEPS (Location A) Graduate registration will be held outside at the John Park Building. WGU staff will usher you to the grad registration booth where you will pick up your name card containing your name and degree. Hold on to this card. As each graduate walks on stage, s/he will hand this card to the reader, who will announce the graduates name. 8:30 a.m. Class Photo - JOHN PARK BUILDING STEPS (Location A) The class photo will be taken outside on the steps in front of the John Park Building. WGU staff will organize graduates for the class photo. The picture will be taken promptly. 9:20 a.m. Student Line Up - JOHN PARK BUILDING STEPS (Location A) After the class photo, graduates will be lined up by program order and then ushered to Kingsbury Hall. 9:40 a.m. Processional March - KINGSBURY HALL (Location B) After the stage platform party marches in, graduates will be led into the auditorium. 10:00 a.m. 12:30 p.m. Ceremony Begins - KINGSBURY HALL (Location B) Commencement Reception - Presidents Circle Lawn (across from Kingsbury Hall) Page 4

Summer Commencement Ceremony Map

See Parking Map on Page 6

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Parking Map for the Ceremony

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Instructions for Graduates

Class Photo Instructions For the class photo at the John Park Building, all graduates will place their tassel on the left side and master-degree graduates will wear their hoods for the picture. After the picture, bachelor graduates should move their tassel back to the right side and master graduates should remove their hoods and drape over left arm. Instructions for Diploma Picture with President Two pictures will be taken of the graduate and the university president. Please maintain handshake for the second picture. Instructions for Master Graduates with Hoods Graduates will proceed onto the stage with their hood draped over the left arm. The associate provost will hood each master graduate. End of Ceremony Commencement staff will lead graduates out of the auditorium at the end of the ceremony. Please report to the Presidents Circle lawn for a reception.

Photographs During the WGU Summer Commencement, Coray Photography & Design will be shooting a group photo, candid shots, speaker photos, and the graduate-receivingdiploma shots. Those images will all be available online for viewing/purchase two weeks after the ceremony. To access the images: 1. Go to the www.corayphoto.com home page. 2. Click on the "View and Order Prints" button. 3. Find the WGU Graduation gallery and click on it. 4. Navigation and ordering should be intuitive from that point on. If you have problems or questions, email steve@corayphoto.com or call 801-541-0635. About Photographer Coray Photography & Design offers customized photo blankets and other woven products. Visit www.corayphoto.com for details. Special Note: Still photography and video is taken at every commencement ceremony. A graduates appearance and participation in the commencement ceremony is recorded on video tape and still photography. WGU may use some of these images in its publications (student newsletter, alumni newsletter, university newsletter, etc.) for informational purposes.

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Guest Seating at Kingsbury Hall Commencement Ceremony Location

Important Reminders

Auditorium doors open at 9:00 a.m. Seating limit: 5 guests per graduate. Must have ticket. Limited seating in Kingsbury Hall allows for a maximum of 5 guests per student/ graduate; graduates will receive their tickets in the mail to distribute to guests. Only ticketholders will be admitted to Kingsbury Hall. No replacement tickets are available. Overflow Seating: For graduates with more than 5 guests, overflow seating is available first-come, first-served in the Gardner Building, which is the building next door (directly west) to Kingsbury Hall. This also may be a more comfortable venue for guests with small children. No tickets are required for overflow seating. First section of rows on the main level is reserved for graduates only. No guest reserved seating. Seating is first-come, first-served. Please keep in mind that aisles must be kept clear at all times to follow fire and safety regulations. Advance arrangements must be made for special needs seating (see page 3). Please silence your cell phones.

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Overflow Seating at Gardner Building West of Kingsbury Hall In Thompson Hall

This location is for overflow seating. Guests who do not have tickets may watch a broadcast of the commencement ceremony inside of Gardner Building. Auditorium doors open at 9:00 a.m. No tickets are required. Seating is first-come, first-served.

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Watch the 2011 Summer Commencement Ceremony on the Internet

Graduates, family, and guests who are not able to attend the 2011 Summer Commencement Ceremony can watch a live broadcast of the ceremony via the Internet. To watch the ceremony live online, go to the following link on July 23, 2011, 10:00 A.M. (Mountain Time): http://www.wgu.edu/wgu/graduation_july2011

Questions
WGU Alumni & Career Services Toll Free: (866) 895-9660 x 2085 commencement@wgu.edu www.wgu.edu/commencement

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