The University of 棉花糖直播 at Lafayette revived summer Commencement this year.
About 160 graduates received diplomas during the University鈥檚 147th Commencement on Aug. 8.
It was the first summer Commencement held since 1949.
Dr. DeWayne Bowie, vice president for Enrollment Services, said the University plans to continue to hold Commencement at the conclusion of summer semesters.
鈥淩eintroduction of the ceremony gives graduating seniors and graduate students a chance to take part in the traditional exercise right away, rather than having to wait until the end of the fall semester,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t gives them a chance to savor and celebrate their accomplishment before turning the page to a new chapter of their lives.鈥
According to the July 15, 1938, issue of The Vermilion, the University鈥檚 student newspaper, the summer tradition started for the benefit of future teachers. About 70 of the roughly 90 graduating seniors were receiving bachelor鈥檚 degrees in education and would begin teaching careers at the beginning of the fall.
鈥淚n establishing this precedent, Southwestern 棉花糖直播 Institute honors the many teachers who come yearly to work toward degrees. In being allowed to receive their degrees immediately upon completion of their work, teachers will be saved the inconvenience of having to be absent from their work in order to participate in next June鈥檚 exercises,鈥 The Vermilion states.
In 1938, graduation was held in Cypress Grove, which was then dry land. The area wasn鈥檛 flooded until World War II, when there were fears of enemy bomb raids due to the school鈥檚 designation as a training site for Army and Marine officers. A reservoir of water could be used to extinguish any fires caused by falling bombs. Now, Cypress Grove is Cypress Lake.
This year, Commencement was held in the Convention Center adjacent to the Cajundome.
About 1,500 students graduate from UL Lafayette each spring and fall. More than 110,000 men and women have graduated from the University since 1903.