Saturday, December 20, 2008

Recent article I wrote for a Class


Graduation Tomorrow


Oklahoma Christian University will hold their fall graduation ceremonies at 2:00 pm Friday Dec. 19th in the Payne Activity Center but most non-graduating students will not be there to support their peers.

Guests attending the ceremonies are advised to wear Sunday dress or business casual, but if your not attending you could wear just about whatever you want.

  • Many students at OC who are not graduating do not attend the ceremonies. When asked if he will attend the ceremonies, Andrew Bedford simply said, “no, I will go when I graduate.” Leila Keihani does not plan to attend but has in the past. One student who was interviewed is going, “I’m going because I club sisters, friends and roommates that are graduating,” said Daleena Burton. “If you’re not graduating or know anyone who is why would you want to go?” said Bedford later in his interview.

Some students have other issues with the ceremonies.

  • At OC the graduate students are included in the same ceremony as the undergrads. “Instead of graduating with the undergrads they should have their own private ceremonies,” said Burton who believed that OC should make the graduation ceremony feel more prestigious for graduate students. Bedford believed the graduate students should not have a separate ceremony, “they should be differentiated but not highlighted,” said Bedford. Other students were not sure. “I don’t know, maybe there should,” said Keihani.
  • The second issue is the graduation hoods. OC students have mixed feelings on the OC tradition. “Waste of money,” said Bedford, “but the ones without the hoods are ugly.” “With my family the hood is not something we would probably appreciate as much but for some families that is more important,” said Keihani.

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