Undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees will be conferred during the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Spring 2018 Commencement ceremonies on Friday, May 11, at the Cajundome and Convention Center.
The General Assembly will be held at 11 a.m. at the Cajundome. Doctoral candidates will be hooded at this ceremony. Graduating seniors, faculty members and administrators will attend, wearing full academic regalia.
UL Lafayette alum and CBS News national correspondent David Begnaud will deliver the Commencement address.
His broadcasts from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria battered the U.S. territory last September earned Begnaud the George Polk Award in Public Service. The Polk Award is one of the most prestigious in journalism. Past winners include Walter Cronkite, Peter Jennings and Bob Woodward. The award recognizes “intrepid, bold, and influential work,” according to the Polk website.
Begnaud is a native of Carencro, La., who began his career at local CBS affiliate KLFY-TV 10. He received a bachelor’s degree in general studies from UL Lafayette in 2005.
Master’s and bachelor’s degrees will be conferred at separate ceremonies for each academic college. A schedule and locations are below.
Cajundome
- 8 a.m. College of Liberal Arts
- 2:30 p.m. B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration
Cajundome Convention Center - Festival Ballroom (2nd floor)
- 8 a.m. College of the Arts
- 2:30 p.m. Ray P. Authement College of Sciences
Cajundome Convention Center - Exhibit Hall A & B (1st floor)
- 8 a.m. College of Education
- 2:30 p.m. College of Engineering
Bourgeois Hall
- 8 a.m. College of Nursing and Allied Health Professions
- 2:30 p.m. University College
Security measures will be in place at the Cajundome and Convention Center and at Bourgeois Hall. University Police officers will examine the contents of purses, bags, and packages. Extremely large bags or oversized packages won’t be permitted inside Commencement venues.
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A Snapchat filter will be available from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. throughout the Cajundome and Convention Center and at Bourgeois Hall.
Learn more about Spring 2018 Commencement at commencement.louisiana.edu.