The University of the South's 2022-23 academic year comes to a close May 12, 13, and 14 with commencement exercises marking graduation weekend on the Mountain.
ALL COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES ARE BEING LIVESTREAMED HERE.
The 166th Convocation for Conferring of Degrees for the School of Theology will be held Friday, May 12; the University Baccalaureate will take place on Saturday, May 13; and a Convocation for Conferring of Degrees for the College of Arts and Sciences will be held on Sunday, May 14. Each of these ceremonies will begin at 10 a.m. in All Saints’ Chapel and will be livestreamed for those who are unable to attend.
The School of Theology
The seminary will graduate 34 students receiving varying degrees from Acting Vice-Chancellor Nancy Berner. The Rev. Gay Clark Jennings, former president of the Episcopal Church’s House of Deputies, will deliver the sermon and receive an honorary doctor of divinity degree. Read More.
University Baccalaureate
On Saturday, writer Margaret E. Renkl will receive an honorary doctor of letters degree and deliver the baccalaureate address. The Rt. Rev. Dr. Jake Owensby, bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Western Louisiana, who was elected by the Board of Trustees in December 2022, will be installed as the University's 26th chancellor. Finally, Reid Funston, C’86, will be the inaugural recipient of the Sewanee Medal, an award given by the Board of Regents to individuals demonstrating extraordinary service to the University. Read More
The College of Arts and Sciences
Sunday’s Commencement ceremony for the College of Arts and Science will be held in All Saints’ Chapel and on the Quad. More than 375 students will graduate from the College. A luncheon honoring the graduates will follow.
As is tradition, the sound of bells will mark the start of the ceremony as the procession of faculty walk into All Saints’ Chapel. Read more.
Awards and honors for graduating students will be announced, including the Dean’s Award and the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award for character, leadership, and service to the University and the Sewanee community—the University’s highest award for students.
The salutatory and valedictory address will be followed by the conferral of degrees, and Acting Vice-Chancellor Nancy Berner will deliver the University’s charge to the graduates. The traditional Sewanee recessional takes the new graduates through a line of faculty members on the University Avenue sidewalk outside the chapel—and takes them into an outpouring of applause and cheers. The graduates, families, and guests will be able to continue their celebration at a luncheon for family and friends honoring the Class of 2023. Read More.
