Events
Commencement at a glance
An estimated 11,433 graduates will receive degrees from Rutgers this year. That includes approximately 7,663
baccalaureate degrees, 2,545 master’s degrees and 1,225 doctorates.
The university's 243rd anniversary commencement will be held at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 20, at Voorhees Mall on the College Avenue Campus in New Brunswick. In the event of rain, it will be held at the Louis Brown Athletic Center on the Livingston Campus in Piscataway.
Remarks will be given by Marc Eckō, one of the fashion industry’s most successful designers and entrepreneurs, and founder of Marc Eckō Enterprises. Eckō attended Rutgers’ College of Pharmacy (now the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy). He will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.
The student speaker will be Key Jo Lee, a Willingboro resident and art history major who is graduating from Douglass College as a member of Phi Beta Kappa.
All undergraduate and graduate degrees are conferred at this ceremony. The Graduate School–New Brunswick will award 732 degrees. The Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology in New Brunswick (65 graduate degrees) will not hold a public ceremony. Schools and colleges holding additional convocations are listed in chronological order on the following pages.
An estimated 520 graduates who have formally converted to the degree requirements for the School of Arts and Sciences (SAS) from Douglass, Livingston and Rutgers Colleges or University College–New Brunswick, will attend the joint SAS-Rutgers College convocation.
CAMDEN
SCHOOL OF BUSINESS–CAMDEN
Thursday, May 21, 9 a.m.
205 undergraduate degrees, 75 advanced degrees
Location: Susquehanna Bank Center, 1 Harbor Boulevard
Speaker: Joseph M. Rigby, president and CEO, Pepco Holdings Inc. Class of 1978.
SCHOOL OF LAW–CAMDEN
Thursday, May 21, 1 p.m.
225 graduates
Location: Susquehanna Bank Center, 1 Harbor Boulevard
Speaker: The Honorable Wilma B. Liebman, chair, National Labor Relations Board.
Joint Convocation
CAMDEN COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
Thursday, May 21, 6 p.m.
490 graduates
GRADUATE SCHOOL–CAMDEN
126 graduates
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE–CAMDEN
132 graduates
Location: Susquehanna Bank Center, 1 Harbor Boulevard
Speaker: Dr. Abraham Abuchowski, co-founder, president and CEO, Prolong Pharmaceuticals Inc., Monmouth Junction, N.J. Camden College of Arts and Sciences, Class of 1970, Graduate School New Brunswick, class of 1975.
NEWARK
COLLEGE OF NURSING
Tuesday, May 19, 10 a.m.
505 graduates
Location: Golden Dome Athletic Center, 42 Warren Street
Speaker: P.K. Scheerle, RN, founder, former CEO and chair, American Nursing Services.
Joint Convocation
GRADUATE SCHOOL–NEWARK
Tuesday, May 19, 2 p.m.
229 graduates (including School of Criminal Justice doctoral recipients)
SCHOOL OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS AND ADMINISTRATION
95 graduates
Location: Golden Dome Athletic Center, 42 Warren Street
Speaker: Jayne Anne Phillips, author, professor of English and director of the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program at Rutgers–Newark.
SCHOOL OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Wednesday, May 20, 10 a.m.
24 master’s degrees (150 undergraduate joint degrees are counted in college totals)
Location: Golden Dome Athletic Center, 42 Warren Street
Speaker: Garry F. McCarthy, police director, city of Newark.
RUTGERS BUSINESS SCHOOL–NEWARK AND NEW BRUNSWICK
Thursday, May 21, 10 a.m.
583 graduate degrees and 275 undergraduate degrees
Location: New Jersey Performing Arts Center, One Center Street
Speaker: The Honorable Cory A. Booker, mayor, city of Newark.
Joint Convocation
NEWARK COLLEGE OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
Thursday, May 21, 2 p.m.
505 graduates
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE-NEWARK
100 graduates
Location: New Jersey Performing Arts Center, One Center Street
Speaker: Alfred C. Koeppe, CEO, Newark Alliance. Member, Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni (2003); Rutgers-Newark, Class of 1969.
SCHOOL OF LAW–NEWARK
Friday, May 22, 10 a.m.
242 graduates
Location: New Jersey Performing Arts Center, One Center Street
Speaker: The Honorable Freda L. Wolfson, U.S. District Court judge for the District of New Jersey. Douglass College, Class of 1976, Rutgers School of Law-Newark, Class of 1979.
NEW BRUNSWICK AND PISCATAWAY
EDWARD J. BLOUSTEIN SCHOOL OF PLANNING AND PUBLIC POLICY
Sunday, May 17, 1 p.m.
132 graduate degrees (85 undergraduate joint degrees are counted in their college totals)
Location: Nicholas Music Center, 85 George Street, Douglass Campus, New Brunswick
Speaker: U.S. Rep. Robert E. Andrews (D-Haddon Heights). Former adjunct professor, Rutgers School of Law-Camden.
SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT AND LABOR RELATIONS
Monday, May 18, 7 p.m.
100 graduate degrees (85 undergraduate joint degrees are counted in their college totals)
Location: College Avenue Gymnasium, 130 College Avenue, New Brunswick
Speakers: Members of the Class of 2009, with their programs and hometowns: Tania Monteiro, Master of Human Resource Management, president of Rutgers Society for Human Resource Management, Princeton; Lauren Dudzak, Master of Labor and Employment Relations, Butler, N.J.; August Schneeberg, Bachelor of Arts in Labor Studies and Employment Relations (Livingston College), Flanders, N.J.; William M. Dwyer, industrial relations manager, PSEG Services Corp., Newark; president, SMLR Alumni and Friends, Class of 1997.
SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK
Monday, May 18, 7 p.m.
350 master’s degrees
Location: Louis Brown Athletic Center, Livingston Campus, Piscataway
Speaker: Ira C. Colby, president, Council on Social Work Education and dean and professor, School of Social Work, University of Houston.
RUTGERS BUSINESS SCHOOL–NEWARK AND NEW BRUNSWICK
Tuesday, May 19, 2 p.m.
330 undergraduate joint degrees (recipients are also counted in their college totals)
Location: Louis Brown Athletic Center, Livingston Campus, Piscataway
Speaker: Gerald H. Lipkin, chair, president and CEO, Valley National Bancorp and Valley National Bank, Wayne. Newark College of Arts and Sciences, Class of 1963.
MASON GROSS SCHOOL OF THE ARTS
Tuesday, May 19, 2:30 p.m.
115 graduating seniors, 65 graduate degrees (20 Doctor of Musical Arts, 20 Master of Music and 25 Master of Fine Arts)
Location: Nicholas Music Center, 85 George Street, Douglass Campus, New Brunswick
Speaker: Kristin Davis, actress, Class of 1987.
ROTC COMMISSIONING CEREMONY
Tuesday, May 19, 3 p.m.
Seven Air Force and eight Army second lieutenants to be commissioned
Location: Rutgers Student Center, Multipurpose Room, 126 College Avenue, New Brunswick
Speaker: Retired Brig. Gen. Bruce B. Bingham, U.S. Army; executive director, Capstone Valuation LLC, New York. Rutgers College, Class of 1968.
SCHOOL OF COMMUNICATION, INFORMATION AND LIBRARY STUDIES
Tuesday, May 19, 5 p.m.
170 graduate degrees (600 undergraduate joint degrees are counted in their college totals)
Location: College Avenue Gymnasium, 130 College Avenue, New Brunswick
Performance (in lieu of speaker): Queen’s Chorale.
GRADUATE SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
Thursday, May 21, 9 a.m.
307 graduates (285 master’s, 22 doctorates)
Location: College Avenue Gymnasium, 130 College Avenue, New Brunswick
Speaker: Dr. Dorothy Strickland, Samuel DeWitt Proctor Professor of Education, Rutgers.
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING
Thursday, May 21, 9:30 a.m.
450 graduates
Location: Louis Brown Athletic Center, Livingston Campus, Piscataway
Speaker: Dr. Joseph A. Miller Jr., executive vice president and chief technical officer, Corning Inc. Class of 1978.
DOUGLASS COLLEGE
Thursday, May 21, 10 a.m.
571 graduates
Location: Antilles Field, Douglass Campus, New Brunswick
Speaker: Gwen Keyes Fleming, district attorney, DeKalb County, Ga. Class of 1990.
LIVINGSTON COLLEGE
Thursday, May 21, 1:30 p.m.
750 graduates
Location: Louis Brown Athletic Center, Livingston Campus, Piscataway
Speaker: Robert Drucker, student general manager, WRLC, Class of 2009.
Joint Convocation
SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
Thursday, May 21, 1:45 p.m.
520 graduates
RUTGERS COLLEGE
2,155 graduates
Location: Voorhees Mall, College Avenue, New Brunswick
Speaker: Mary L. Baglivo, CEO and chair of the Americas, Saatchi & Saatchi, New York. Member, Rutgers University Foundation Board of Overseers; chair, The Rutgers Fund; member, Hall of Distinguished Alumni (2008); Class of 1979.
Rain: Friday, May 22, 1:45 p.m., Voorhees Mall
ERNEST MARIO SCHOOL OF PHARMACY
Friday, May 22, 9:30 a.m.
250 Pharm.D. degrees
Location: College Avenue Gymnasium, 130 College Avenue, New Brunswick
Speaker: Rear Adm. Thomas J. McGinnis, chief, Pharmaceutical Operations Directorate, TRICARE Management Activity; assistant surgeon general, U.S. Public Health Service. Member, Board of Advisory Associates, EMSP; Class of 1977 (College of Pharmacy).
SCHOOL OF ENVIRONMENTAL AND BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
Friday, May 22, 10 a.m.
555 graduates
Location: Lawn near College Pond (“Passion Puddle”), George H. Cook Campus, New Brunswick
Speaker: Dr. Steven J. Mento, president, CEO, chair and co-founder, Conatus Pharmaceuticals Inc., San Diego. Rutgers College (Class of 1974), Graduate School-New Brunswick (1976 and 1978).
Rain: Same day, 10:30 a.m., Louis Brown Athletic Center, Livingston Campus, Piscataway
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE COMMUNITY–NEW BRUNSWICK
Friday, May 22, 7 p.m.
680 graduates
Location: Louis Brown Athletic Center, Livingston Campus, Piscataway
Speaker: Rosalyn A. Metzger, attorney. Recipient, Rutgers University College Medal (2007) for service on the Task Force for Nontraditional Students; member, Dean’s Advisory Committee, University College Community. Class of 1989.