University of Tampa Fall Commencement Saturday, Dec. 16

The University of Tampa will hold its 145th commencement on Saturday, Dec. 16, at 9:30 a.m. at the Florida State Fairgrounds, Expo Hall. The ceremony will include 502 graduates, including 386 bachelor’s degree candidates and 116 master’s degree candidates. The ceremony is free and open to the public.

The speaker for the ceremony, Gregg Bachman, professor of communication, will share “Four Lessons From Your Future” with the graduates. Bachman was the recipient of the 2016-2017 Louise Loy Hunter Award, which is given annually by its previous recipients to a UT professor for excellence in teaching and cumulative contributions in service and scholarship.

Andrew Arnold, who is graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in film and media arts, will introduce the speaker, and Haley Ward, who is graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in writing, will deliver the challenge to the graduating class.

Missy MacFarlane ’04, co-founder and principal of B2 Communications, is the recipient of the 2017 Alumni Achievement Award, which recognizes UT alumni who have made great accomplishments in their careers or civic involvement.

In the days leading up to the ceremony, several departments will hold hooding ceremonies for their master’s degree candidates:

Thursday, Dec. 14:
- Department of Education hooding ceremony, 6 p.m., Plant Hall, Grand Salon
Friday, Dec. 15:
- Department of Nursing hooding and pinning ceremony, noon, Plant Hall, Grand Salon (by invitation only)
- Department of Health Sciences and Human Performance hooding ceremony, noon, Plant Hall, Music Room
- Sykes College of Business hooding and awards ceremony, 6 p.m., Martinez Athletics Center

To view a live webcast of Saturday’s commencement ceremony, go to www.ut.edu/commencementlive/?terms=streaming. Tweet at #utampa.

UT Graduates by the Numbers:

Total graduates = 502
Countries represented = 49
% of graduates from Florida = 49

Undergraduate Students
Total bachelor’s degree candidates = 386
Summa cum laude (GPA 4.0) = 1
Magna cum laude (GPA 3.75 or higher, but less than 4.0) = 28
Cum laude (GPA 3.5 or higher, but less than 3.75) = 59
Top 3 most popular undergraduate majors in this class = Accounting, Management and Criminology

Graduate Students
Total master’s candidates = 116
With honors (GPA 3.9 or higher, but less than 4.0) = 15
With highest honors (GPA 4.0) = 6
MBAs awarded = 35