Champ checks out the mirror The Xavierite
Senior students at Saint Xavier University attended the Ticket Distribution Day in the Butler Reception Room on April 3, 2024 as part of their preparations for their upcoming graduation ceremonies.
Students made their way through the Butler Reception Room, starting with an invitation to the Commencement Eucharistic Liturgy. The liturgy will be hosted on Friday, May 3 – the evening before graduation – at Our Lady of St. Germaine Church in Oak Lawn, IL.
“Graduates will receive a Saint Xavier pin and will be blessed by faculty and staff,” states the invitation.
Attendees then made their way to a table designated for the Senior Gift. Director of the Annual Fund Diego Santiaguillo discussed how donations to the Senior Gift “will support academic scholarships and help to keep an SXU education within reach for those who have a passion for bettering their lives and the world in which they live,” with each group of incoming students.
Donations of over $20.24 or higher were matched with a long-sleeved alumni shirt.
Following this, attendees viewed options for their class ring. If they had not yet received their graduation robes, they could also pick them up in the reception hall.
Before making their way to the pronunciation table run by Rola Othman, Ph. D., senior students picked up their envelopes with their tickets. Each graduate gets four initial tickets to the ceremony, but they can enter a lottery starting April 15 to possibly win more tickets according to a sticker placed on the ticket envelopes.
At the pronunciation table, Othman gathered recordings and phonetic notecards of graduates’ properly pronounced names to avoid possible mispronunciations during the ceremonies.
The final table that attendees visited was the graduation photo company, GradImages. Here, senior students donned regalia and posed with a diploma holder as their photos were taken.
The university’s mascot, Champ, even made appearances in some photos.
Photos were later sent to the email address noted on the company’s identification card prior to the shoot.
“The professional photographers will take additional shots on Commencement Day as the students walk across the stage,” said Director of Auxiliary Services Linda Moreno.
Another will be taken on an SXU backdrop as graduates step off the stage, which will then be reviewed and professionally adjusted before being sent to student’s SXU email addresses, added Moreno.
In previous years, this set of festivities was referred to as Gradfest. This year, however, “Alumni Relations wanted the opportunity to offer a more personal, less hectic experience to the graduating seniors and have a special event coming up planned at Gilhooley’s,” said Moreno.
Aside from the location and the mailing of student’s regalia directly to their homes, there were virtually no changes between Gradfest and Ticket Distribution Day according to Moreno. All of the vendors and departments that typically attended Gradfest were also present on April 3.
Among the graduation festivities are annual traditions such as the Senior Toast, which will take place on April 25 at Gilhooley’s Grande Saloon across 103rd St., and the involvement patch pickup.
Senior students who were involved on campus, such as through being members of Registered Student Organizations (RSOs), are eligible to receive patches to place upon their graduation stoles.
In an email sent by Vice President of Student Life Katy Thompson, it is confirmed that students who will receive patches can pick them up on April 25 between 2-4 p.m. in the Wiseman Lounge.
Senior Luz Garcia expressed that while she may be having difficulty feeling proud of graduating, she is reminded that it is a huge privilege to attend college when there are so many people who would like to but cannot.
“It’s truly a time for me to express gratitude and appreciation for this opportunity,” she clarified.
“We can feel the excitement level building as the countdown to commencement” is only four weeks away, concluded Moreno before reminding graduating students to have their guests arrive early to get the best seating and to not forget their tickets, adding that the doors will open one hour before the ceremony.
The graduation ceremonies will be held in the Shannon Center on May 4, 2024.
Students from the College of Nursing, Health Sciences and Business will have their ceremony at 9:30 a.m., with the lineup starting at 9 a.m.
The College of Liberal Arts and Education ceremony will begin at 2:30 p.m., with the lineup starting at 2 p.m.
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