Commencement 2002 will feature RSU’s first bachelor degree candidates
Stratton Taylor, president pro tempore of the Oklahoma State Senate, will address candidates for degrees at Rogers State University’s annual commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 11.
This year’s commencement will feature the first bachelor degree candidates from the university since it was accredited as a four-year university in August 2000.
A day full of graduation events on the RSU campus will culminate with the university’s commencement ceremony at the Claremore Expo Center.
Commencement 2002 will mark RSU’s 90th graduation ceremony.
At 1 p.m., the RSU Nurse Pinning Ceremony will be held at RSU’s Will Rogers Auditorium.
At 2 p.m., a reception will be held for all graduates and their family and friends on the RSU lawn between Will Rogers Auditorium and Thunderbird Library. Rain location will be Post Hall.
At 3 p.m., graduates will line up on the south side of the Expo Center, which is located just southeast of the RSU campus. Family and friends are encouraged to be seated in the Expo Center at that time.
At 4 p.m., the Commencement ceremony will begin in the Expo Center. Candidates for the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Technology, Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, Associate of Applied Science, and Certificates will receive their diplomas. Several members of the RSU faculty and staff will participate in the ceremony.
Taylor will present his commencement address during the ceremony.
Taylor earned an associate’s degree from RSU in 1976, and a bachelor’s in education and law degree, both from the University of Tulsa. He has represented Rogers and Mayes counties in the Oklahoma State Senate since 1983. He has served as president pro tempore since 1995. He was chairman of the Senate’s appropriations committee from 1990 to 1995.
He also served in the state House of Representatives from 1979 to 1982.
Taylor was named one of the Oklahoma Observer’s Top Ten Legislators, named in Who’s Who in American Politics, and received the Rogers State College Distinguished Alumni Award. He was selected to participate in the American Council of Young Political Leaders. In 2000, he was elected chairman of the Senate Presidents’ Forum, which is comparable to the National Governors’ Association.
For more information on RSU’s commencement activities, call (918) 343-7574.