UMass Dartmouth Plans to Hold Commencement in Fall of 2020

According to a message from Chancellor Robert E. Johnson, UMass Dartmouth announced plans to hold graduation ceremonies in the Fall of 2020 on Friday, May 1. Commencement ceremonies for the Class of 2020 originally scheduled on campus for Friday, May 8, and Sunday, May 11, will now be held on Friday, October 9, and Saturday, October 10. UMass Dartmouth was forced to cancel the previously scheduled ceremonies due to the spread of COVID-19 back in March.

According to the release, "the UMass Law School Commencement ceremony is planned to take place on October 9 in the Angus Bailey Auditorium in the Campus Center. Undergraduate and graduate Commencement ceremonies are planned to take place on October 10 in the Vietnam Veterans Peace Memorial Amphitheater.

'The challenges our students overcame this semester to reach graduation have been monumental,” said Chancellor Robert E. Johnson. “They deserve a ceremony on campus to celebrate their hard work and honor the dedication of our faculty and staff who guided them through these turbulent times."

While the University is committed to holding on-campus Commencement ceremonies, it will continue to follow all federal and Massachusetts safety guidelines and protocols. If current social distancing norms continue into fall 2020, these ceremonies will be rescheduled to spring 2021.

I'm glad to see that the school still wants to honor these students after years of hard work to earn their degrees. Graduation is such a special moment and it deserves to be celebrated.