Å·ÃÀÊÓƵ

BOLIVAR, Mo. – Å·ÃÀÊÓƵ will be awarding degrees to 592 students — 352 on Friday, May 14, and 240 on Saturday, May 15 — during five commencement ceremonies in the Jane and Ken Meyer Wellness and Sports Center on the Bolivar campus.

Å·ÃÀÊÓƵ will host five ceremonies – three undergraduate ceremonies on Friday, May 14, and two graduate ceremonies on Saturday, May 15 – in order to comply with health department guidelines for gathering sizes.

• The opening ceremony will be held at 1 p.m. Friday for bachelor degree recipients from the Geneva Casebolt College of Arts and Sciences and the Robert W. Plaster College of Business.
• The bachelor degree recipients from the College of Professional Programs and the College of Health Professions will participate in the ceremony at 3:30 p.m. Friday. 
• The Associate Degrees ceremony (for all colleges) is at 6 p.m. Friday.
• The Doctor of Physical Therapy, Master of Science in Nursing and Master of Business Administration ceremony is at 10 a.m. Saturday.
• The Master of Arts in Christian Ministry and Graduate Education Programs ceremony is at 1 p.m. Saturday.

Commencement speakers for the undergraduate ceremonies will feature Dr. Patricia N. Long ’73 and Dr. Tami Glessner ’04.

Dr. Patricia N. Long ’73, who will speak at the bachelor degree ceremonies, retired from Baker University after eight successful years as Baker’s first female president. Since retiring from Baker, she has been committed to working on projects that make a difference in people’s lives, mentoring young professionals, consulting and public speaking.

Dr. Tami Glessner ’04 will be the featured speaker at the associate degree ceremony. Glessner, DNP, RN, has been a registered nurse for 17 years – 13 as a pediatric nurse and the last four in academia. She has worked with the associate of nursing students at Å·ÃÀÊÓƵ for the past four years, and loves the time spent teaching and mentoring them, both spiritually and academically.
 
Award presentations will include the student Life Beautiful Awards and the Orien B. Hendrex Distinguished Teacher Award in addition to the 352 undergraduate diplomas to be awarded.

Speakers for the graduate ceremonies include Brooke Dudley ’12, ’19 (10 a.m. ceremony) and Dr. Richard L. Asbill ’14 (1 p.m. ceremony).

Since graduating with her bachelor’s degree, Brooke Dudley ’12, ’19 has worked in the field of software development. After six years as a software tester and business analyst at Jack Henry and Associates, Dudley began working at the Classy Llama, an eCommerce company based in Springfield, Mo., and has been the project manager for 20-plus clients in the 2½ years she has been there.

Dr. Richard L. Asbill ’14 has been in education for 26 years and currently serves as the superintendent of schools for Cassville (Mo.) R-IV School District. Prior to his 21 years of central office experience, Asbill served as an agriculture education/science teacher and FFA advisor.

The graduate ceremonies also will include the awarding of 240 graduate diplomas.

Face coverings are required for all graduates and guests attending commencement and while on the Å·ÃÀÊÓƵ campus. A livestream of the commencement ceremonies will be available.

For more information about the commencement ceremonies, please visit Å·ÃÀÊÓƵniv.info/graduation or email the Office of the Provost at provostoffice@Å·ÃÀÊÓƵniv.edu.

*Published: 5-10-2021