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| Spring and Summer Commencement Participants:
2020 is a year like no other in recent memory, and Arkansas State University embarks on commencement ceremonies like no other next weekend.
Date, Time, Location
Summer Commencement is set for 7 p.m. on Friday, August 7, and our rescheduled Spring Commencement begins at 9 a.m. on Saturday, August 8.
As a reminder, to allow for physical distancing and COVID-19 protocols, commencement has been moved outdoors to Centennial Bank Stadium. All graduates and faculty members participating in the ceremony will be seated on the field. Please do not move or rearrange seating.
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| COVID-19 Requirements
To allow commencement to happen, special COVID-19 plans are required. Please comply for the safety of everyone involved.
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| - Face coverings are required for entry into Centennial Bank Stadium, and while walking within the stadium. Once you have reached your designated seats, as long as you are maintaining physical distancing, you may remove your mask or face covering.
- All seating is physically distanced at least six feet apart.
- Please physically distance in any lines to enter the stadium. Restrooms have posted occupancy levels. Please walk on the right side of any walkways.
- There is no robing room, processional into the venue or recessional march out of the venue. Please come to the gate in your regalia, and when you have walked across the stage and taken your photos, please depart the stadium.
- Water will be available at no charge, both for graduates on the field and for audience members in the stands. Family in the stands are encouraged to bring their own water containers, and the usual restrictions against outside food or drink at Centennial Bank Stadium are waived for commencement. Water for the graduates is provided by the A-State Alumni Association.
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| Check-In for Graduates
Check-in for all graduates and faculty will be located at the Registrar’s Office tent at Gate 20. Gate 20 is at the southeast corner of Centennial Bank Stadium, near the student entrance for football games. (Check the map at the end of this email.)
Seating assignments will be printed on the walk cards you receive with your cap and gown. Please stop by the Registrar’s Office tent to pick up your walk cards if you did not receive them and to obtain a courtesy face mask.
Commencement staff will hand each graduate bottled water as they reach the field. Remember, while the start times were chosen to reduce the impact of weather, we are outdoors in August and it will be hot.
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| Seating for Your Family
If you are receiving this email, you have responded to the Registrar’s Office that you are participating in the commencement ceremony, and you have requested tickets for your family. As a reminder, due to COVID-19 requirements, each graduate is limited to four seats.
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| - Your four family members must sit together and maintain the six-foot physical spacing assigned. We recognize that you and your family will see a lot of empty seats as a result of the required physical spacing, but for their safety and the safety of others, please do not move from your assigned seats.
- If your family has children that can sit in the lap of an adult (under two years of age), they will not require a ticket and can sit in the adult’s lap.
- Seating is assigned on both sides of Centennial Bank Stadium. Please ask your family to check their tickets prior to arrival, and to enter at the nearest gate to their assigned seats.
- To reduce crowding at the entrances, we encourage your family to depart the stadium when you have crossed the stage and completed your photographs.
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| Picking Up Tickets for Your Family
Ticket pickup begins at 10 a.m. on Monday, Aug. 3. The A-State Ticket Office is located at the lower red entrance of First National Bank Arena. Be sure to bring your student ID, and tell the ticket office personnel whether you are walking in the Friday evening Summer Commencement or the Saturday morning Spring Commencement.
The ticket office will be open during regular hours (8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m.) for ticket pickup on Tuesday, Aug. 4, through Thursday, Aug. 6. On Friday, Aug. 7, the office will close at 3 p.m. to prepare for that evening’s ceremony.
After 3 p.m. on Friday, the ticket office will open at Centennial Bank Stadium two hours prior to the start of each ceremony (5 p.m. for the Friday, Aug. 7, Summer Commencement; 7 a.m. for the Saturday, Aug. 8, Spring Commencement).
To reduce lines at the stadium, please make every effort to pick up your family tickets prior to commencement day.
If you have questions, contact the A-State Ticket Office at (870) 972-2781.
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| Casual Shoes are Highly Encouraged
The seating is on the field turf, and shoes with no heel or athletic shoes are recommended. The entrance ramp to the field level has no railing. High heels and leather-soled shoes present a trip hazard on the ramp and turf. The physical distancing of the graduates necessitates a much longer walk to the stage. Some graduates will have a walk of 50 yards. For all these reasons, please wear shoes made for walking.
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| It Will be Hot
Along with casual shoes, please consider light clothing with your regalia. You may unzip your regalia prior to reaching the stage if you wish. The A-State Alumni Association is providing water for the graduates on the field. Please stay hydrated.
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| Clear Bag Policy and One-Time Exceptions
For those in attendance, please note that university’s clear bag policy will be enforced. However, to help with the heat, the standard prohibition of outside food and drink will be waived. You may bring your own drink containers, but no glass containers. In case of rain and to help with the sun, umbrellas will be allowed.
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| Inclement Weather Policy
In the event of severe storms or lightning, the standard A-State weather protocols for outdoor events will be in place. Just like a football game, commencement will continue unless lightning is within the safety perimeter of the stadium. If it becomes necessary, commencement would be paused until a severe storm passed. If a sustained heavy or severe storm front is forecast, the emergency back-up plan will be to relocate the ceremony to the Student Activity Center. Due to the limited size of the SAC, only graduates will be allowed, but the ceremony will be live streamed for family to watch online.
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| The Ceremony
After remarks from the Chancellor, Provost and our student speaker, graduates will walk to the stage.
Marshalls assisting with the flow of graduates will let your row know when it is time to stand and move forward. Please keep physical distancing by standing next to the chairs as you advance. Move one chair or row at a time until reaching the Red Wolf spacing dots near the stage. Please wear your mask until you reach one of the two ready spots on stage. You may remove your mask as you walk across the stage to receive your diploma cover and your class challenge coin. You may also remove your mask for photos afterwards.
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| Parking
Parking will be available in the lots around Centennial Bank Stadium, as well as at First National Bank Arena. Handicap parking is available in both lots.
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| Open Gates and COVID-19 Spacing
On the east (student section) side, the main gate 18 will be open.
On the west (Allison Tower) side, gate 2 and gates 6 and 7 will be open.
If you are arriving at the stadium and need to claim family tickets, ticket booths will be open on both the east and west sides.
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| Further Questions
Contact the Registrar's Office by phone at 870-972-2031 or by email at registrar@AState.edu.
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