Metro cans grad ceremonies for
summer seniors

By Bill Keran
The Metropolitan

Seniors who finish their courses in summer will have to bust out the champagne and graduation gowns a little early or late.

Thatâs because college officials have canceled summer commencement. Seniors who graduate at the end of the summer semester can participate in the spring or fall ceremony.

ãThe Registrarâs office is going to be sending out a letter to all degree-seeking seniors here in the next couple of weeks to notify them of the fact,ä said Jeff Johnson, the associate registrar and a member of the schoolâs commencement committee.

Johnson said the committee recommended the change in late spring or early summer.

Metro President Sheila Kaplan said in a memo that the summer ceremony outgrew the Auraria Events Center and securing space off campus is difficult.

The summer class is the smallest. About 230 students are candidates for summer graduation, compared to 800-900 in the spring and 550-600 in the fall.

ãEveryone seems to want to go through the spring ceremony,ä Johnson said.

ãI guess thatâs mainly because itâs the traditional time to graduate.

ãLong ago, we didnât have a summer commencement, and summer graduates were usually pretty happy to go through the ceremony in the spring.ä

The fall graduation ceremony will be Dec. 21 at the Denver Convention Center.

The spring ceremony will be May 17 at Currigan Hall.