JMU Recognizes December Graduates

James Madison University is pleased to celebrate more than 1,000 graduates at this weekend’s December Commencement ceremonies.

The ceremonies will begin on Friday, Dec. 13, and continue through Saturday, Dec. 14. 

Due to a record number of December graduates, the undergraduate commencement ceremony on Saturday will be a ticketed event. All graduating students have been given the opportunity to secure tickets for their family and friends to attend the ceremony. For those who wish to view the ceremony but do not have a ticket, the Festival Center Ballroom will serve as a satellite viewing location. In addition, both the undergraduate and graduate ceremonies will be live-streamed on JMU’s website at www.jmu.edu.

On Friday, Lincoln Gray, professor of communication sciences and disorders at JMU and adjunct research professor of otolaryngology at the University of Virginia Medical School, will speak during the Graduate School commencement. Gray holds a joint Ph.D. in neuroscience and zoology, and studies hearing in humans and animals.

On Saturday, Theresa Clarke, professor and head of the Department of Marketing, will speak at the undergraduate ceremony. Since 2001, Clarke has taught undergraduate and MBA students at JMU, specializing in experiential and interactive teaching methods with client-based projects.

The top three undergraduate majors are nursing, health sciences and hospitality management. Of the students in graduate programs, 149 will receive master’s degrees and 16 will receive doctoral degrees. The top three programs for graduate students are education, physician assistant studies and occupational therapy. 

General information on all December Commencement ceremonies is available at www.jmu.edu/commencement.

Media contact: Caitlyn Read, readcl@jmu.edu, 540-568-5325.