Congratulations to all graduating students in the College of Health and Human Services (CHHS)! In celebration of your achievement, we are pleased to invite you, your family, and friends to attend the CHHS Degree Celebration where you will be individually recognized as you walk across the stage.
The 2018 CHHS Degree Celebration will take place on Thursday, May 17 at 10:00 am in the EagleBank Arena on the Fairfax Campus of George Mason University. Out of respect for all participants and families, please plan to stay for the entire ceremony (approximately two hours).
Below is a useful checklist for graduates planning to participate in the Degree Celebration.
CHHS Degree Celebration Checklist
Before Degree Celebration
- Order your cap and gown, announcements, diploma frame, and other graduation items through the Mason Bookstore.
- Invite your family and friends: Tickets are not required for either Degree Celebration or Commencement.
The Day of Degree Celebration
- Guests: Please park in any surface lot as directed by the parking attendants. Handicap seating is available for guests near the portal entrances, and an usher at a portal entrance can escort family and guests who may need handicapped seating.
- Graduates: Check in at Parking Lot A no later than 9:15 a.m. Please be on time to allow for the approximately 600 graduates to assemble by program and to review final instructions.
- Attire: Degree Celebration attire is the green cap and gown, plus hoods for master’s and doctoral graduates. Please wear proper attire under your cap and gown and shoes that will be safe and comfortable for your walk across the stage.
- Children of Graduates: For safety reasons and the consideration of others, we ask that graduating students arrange to have their children sit with family or guests, not with the graduating students on the floor of the arena.
- Graduates: Pick up a name reader card at the table located between the service loading dock entrance on the east side of the Arena and Parking Lot A. Then line up behind the sign for your degree program in Parking Lot A.
- The Processional: At 9:50 a.m., staff will direct the student lines closer to the EagleBank Arena loading dock doors. Turn off your cell phone when you enter the arena. A seating marshal will seat students with others in their major.
- The Ceremony: You will be cued to stand and walk to the stage by the college staff. On stage, hand your reader card to the marshal at the top of the ramp. When your name is announced, cross the stage to be congratulated by the dean and by your departmental chair at which time you will be given a faux diploma. Walk down the ramp on the far side of the stage, pausing at the bottom to have your photograph taken. Then return to your seat. Remain seated until the end of the ceremony.
- The Recessional: When the Degree Celebration is over, please stand for the recessional. Students will be cued to leave the arena after the platform party, the faculty, and doctoral students have left. Students will be cued when to leave, exiting their rows to the right (facing the stage). Students exit front row to last.
- Inclement Weather: In case of rain, you should enter the EagleBank Arena via the loading dock door on the lower level of the East side. You will be seated by college and by major on the floor. Look for signs indicating your college and major.
- Reception: A reception will be held immediately following the Degree Celebration on the east side of the EagleBank Arena, concourse level.
After Degree Celebration
- Attend University Commencement on Friday, May 18, 2018.
- Share your Degree Celebration photos with us on the CHHS Facebook page.
- Visit the Alumni Association to learn more about your alumni benefits, events, and career networking as a Mason graduate.
Disability Accommodations
If you are a graduating student and would like special accommodations, please contact Pat Tope whose contact information is listed below.
Questions
Have questions or need additional information? Please contact:
Pat Tope, Office Manager
Office of Student Affairs
College of Health and Human Services
Peterson Family Health Sciences Hall, Suite 1000
ptope@gmu.edu