May Commencement 2012

To the family members, friends and graduates of the University of Arizona,

We are all very excited that friends, family members and other loved ones are eager to celebrate the accomplishment of the University of Arizona graduating students.

Each year we plan for excess attendance and set aside overflow seating in satellite locations on campus in case guest attendance exceeds capacity in the McKale Center.  We work to ensure that as the UA grows and the number of graduates increases, we have comfortable locations for family and friends to view the ceremony.

Our RSVP system allows us to anticipate growth and this year, we saw a dramatic increase in the number of students and their guests’ RSVPing to participate—in fact, in the last four days leading up to the Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony, students RSVPed in record numbers.
This spring, overflow to satellite locations became a reality to initiate as we saw a 15 percent increase in attendance.

We applaud the graduates and their loved ones for their willingness to celebrate the day and look forward to our continued efforts to meet our students’ needs to our best capacity.

Thank you and congratulations!