Local television coverage of Commencement 2011 at the State University of New York at Fredonia will begin at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 14, with coverage of both ceremonies combining undergraduate and master’s degree and advanced certificate graduates.
Viewers can watch the broadcast on Time Warner Cable Channels 5 and 17 in Fredonia, Cassadaga, Brocton and Stockton, and Channel 19 in Dunkirk, Silver Creek, Forestville and Hanover.
For the first time, SUNY Fredonia will also have live streaming video of the Commencement ceremonies. There will be a link to connect from the university’s home page at www.fredonia.edu.
The keynote speaker for both Commencement ceremonies is Karl L. Holz, SUNY Fredonia alumnus and president of Disney Cruise Line and New Vacation Operations.
Senior Class President Donald J. Schier will speak at both ceremonies, and the Lanford Presidential Prize from the Oscar and Esther Lanford Endowment of the Fredonia College Foundation will be awarded to Rachel R. Foltz of Baltimore, Ohio, during the afternoon ceremony. Ms. Foltz is graduating with concurrent degrees, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and a Bachelor of Science degree in Interdisciplinary Studies/Music Business, Summa Cum Laude.
Eunice A. Lewin, a member of the SUNY Board of Trustees, will give a welcome at the morning ceremony, and College Council Chair Frank Pagano will offer greetings at both ceremonies.
Music groups performing include the Fredonia Wind Ensemble and Fredonia Concert Band, under the direction of Dr. Paula Holcomb and Erin Meissner, respectively, and the Fredonia College Choir under the direction of Dr. Gerald Gray. The College Choir will perform, “Song on May Morning,” a work written specifically for Commencement by Dr. Robert Deemer of the School of Music. Kristyn M. Christman-McCarty, who will graduate with a Bachelor of Music degree with majors in Music Education and Music Performance, Magna Cum Laude, will sing the national anthem at both ceremonies.
