Merced College prepares to award degrees, certificates

A total of 891 degrees and 247 certificates of achievement are expected to be handed out during the commencement ceremony Friday at Merced College.

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

Five students are to be recognized with Superintendent Honors, which means they’ve completed at least 36 units of study with a 4.0 grade-point average. Ninety will graduate with honors.

About 170 students from the Los Banos campus are also set to participate in the ceremony.

Assemblyman Adam Gray, D-Merced, of the 21st Assembly District is scheduled to give the keynote address, titled “Liberty and Justice.”

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

The ceremony is set to feature members of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, which every year announces the winner of the Outstanding Professor of the Year Award. The school also offers a special recognition for graduates who are veterans of the armed forces.

The ceremony typically attracts a large crowd, and students often mark their mortarboards with messages. A crew at the college began setting up for the ceremony earlier this week.

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

This story was originally published May 21, 2015 at 2:53 PM with the headline "Merced College prepares to award degrees, certificates."