The spring 2014 Tarleton State University graduation commencement ceremony for undergraduates and graduates will be held in Wisdom Gym.

In past years, commencement has been held at Memorial Stadium. However, according to Dr. David Drueckhammer, Associate Dean of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, the change in tradition was not only necessary, but was also the result of feedback from former graduates.

“We [the graduation committee) came to this decision after reports of unhappiness from graduates and their families,” Drueckhammer said. “There were issues of families not being able to see the ceremony from the field if they were sitting on a certain side… so we’ve moved graduation to Wisdom Gym because of the response from past grads.”

Drueckhammer also cited the increased student population as a factor.

“The number of graduates is growing every year, so what has worked in the past may not necessarily work again,” Drueckhammer explained. “We looked at increasing the number of ceremonies, but this made the most sense.”

Regardless of the location, Drueckhammer says the graduation committee’s first priority is planning a good day for graduates.

“We know how important this day is to our graduates,” Drueckhammer said. “We want to make it as great as possible. Anyone that would like to talk about this change can always contact me, although I was only one part of the decision making process. We just want to plan a day with the best quality we can.”

Graduation commencement will take place on May 9 and 10, 2014. Information about commencement can be found at Tarleton.edu/graduation.