Merced College set to pass out 1,130 degrees, certificates

Merced College is set to award more than 1,130 degrees and certificates to students who are graduating during a ceremony this month.

Graduates will walk across the stage to receive their awards during Merced College’s 52nd ceremony at 7:30 p.m. May 22 on the college’s Don Odishoo Field in Stadium ’76, 3600 M St.

A total of 891 degrees and 247 certificates of achievement are expected to be handed out during the commencement.

Five students will be recognized with the Superintendent Honors for having completed at least 36 units of study with a 4.0 grade-point average. Ninety others are graduating with honors.

Another 170 students from the Los Banos campus are set to graduate at the ceremony.

The keynote speaker is state Assemblyman Adam Gray, D-Merced, of the 21st Assembly District, who will deliver a commencement address titled “Liberty and Justice.”

Also planned is a student address from Pamela Payne, who is graduating with an associate of arts degree in psychology. Her speech is called “What Does Graduation Really Mean?”

The ceremony will also feature members of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, which will announce the Outstanding Professor of the Year Award. A special recognition is also reserved for graduates who are veterans of the U.S. military.

The ceremonies typically attract a large crowd, and students often mark their mortarboards with messages.

For more on the ceremony, call the college’s Office of Public Affairs at (209) 381-6470.

This story was originally published May 11, 2015 at 11:52 AM with the headline "Merced College set to pass out 1,130 degrees, certificates."