ELMS COLLEGE 90th COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES

Commencement will take place on the Elms College campus on Saturday, May 15, 2021. The processional will start promptly at 9:30 a.m. 

Click here to watch the livestream of Commencement on the Elms College Facebook page.

To keep foot traffic on campus to a minimum, and also allow your loved ones to attend, we are providing large LED screens in the B and C lots for guests to view from their cars. Audio will be provided via car radios. Each graduate may have up to four guests, who must all be in the same vehicle. 

As the event will be livestreamed, guests can also watch the ceremony via their smartphones, iPads, or other small screen devices. More information on where and when to access the livestream will be shared soon. Commencement is closed to the general public, but those interested are encouraged to view the livestream.

Regalia is required.  Please come to campus dressed in your cap, gown, hood and a mask.  At this time you should have already placed your order for your regalia.  If you have any questions regarding that order, please contact bookstore@elms.edu or call 413-265-2273. 

Honor Cords

Honor cords for undergraduate students will be available for pick-up both the week leading up to Commencement, and the morning of the ceremony.  Students who earn honor cords will be notified via email once all spring grades have been posted.  Students will then be able to come into the Registrar’s Office on the 1st floor of Berchman’s Hall on the Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday before Commencement; no appointment is needed.  Honor cords will also be available for pick up on the morning of the Commencement ceremony outside as students are arriving and lining up.  If you have any questions, please email registrar@elms.edu.

Arrival Information

  • Arrive on campus- 291 Springfield Street, Chicopee, MA 01103 by 8:00-8:15 a.m.
  • Parking for students is in the lot of the Blue House, which is located at 147 Grape Street, Chicopee, MA 01013 and in the lot behind the Polish Center, which is located 33 South St, Chicopee, MA 01013. You must park in one of these parking lots and meet in the front of the Maguire Center, behind Berchmans Hall.  
  • Remind your guests to arrive no later than 9:15 a.m., the Processional will begin promptly at 9:30 a.m.   – Guests will remain in their vehicles of the parking lot C and lot B.
B Lot parking for guests.
C Lot parking for guests.

Graduates — Arrival, Lineup, and Processional

  • Meet in the front of the Maguire Center building on campus- located behind Berchmans Hall between 8:00-8:15 a.m. 
  • Here you will check in and receive your name card.  Please have your smart phone ready to complete a Healthy Roster survey using our text to screen option. Information provided at check- in.
  • Please come dressed in your cap, gown and hood.  A face mask will be provided to you at check in. Only approved honor cords and stoles may be worn with regalia.
  • Wear appropriate shoes as the Commencement processional will walk in front of Berchmans Hall and the library around to the quadrangle on campus.    
  • There will not be a spot to leave bags or purses, so do not bring anything with you that you do not plan on carrying.  
  • Turn off your cell phone or set to vibrate once the ceremony begins.
  • Tassels go on the right. (Dr. Breau will tell you when to move the tassel after everyone has received diplomas.
  • Remember to take your name card with you when in line, which you will receive in the staging area.
  • You will be lined up alphabetical single file by degree:

AA-BA-BS-BSN-MAAT-MAT-MBA-MED-MS-MSN-MSN/MBA Dual Degree- CAGS-DNP

(We will line you up in the correct order)

  • A Staff Marshal will direct you to your row under one of the two tents.
  • Remain standing until the President has passed, then turn to face the stage, but remain standing at the beginning of the ceremony.

Getting Your Diploma on Stage

  • A Staff Marshal will release you one row at a time to receive your diploma cover on stage. Please stay in alphabetical order.
  • You will go up the stairs to the right of the stage. Please don’t talk while you are standing in line.  You cannot record with any device on stage or at the bottom of the stage. 
  • Hand your NAME CARD to the Staff Marshal at the top of the stairs.
  • When Dr. Breau calls your name, you will walk across the stage where your diploma will be placed on an easel by President Dumay. You may pick up your diploma cover and then you will pause to have your photo taken with President Dumay.  These photos are taken by a professional photographer from Grad Images Photos, you may purchase them from this organization:  https://www.gradimages.com/  The company will send you each information to your personal addresses about purchasing these photos. 
  • Once you have received your diploma cover, you will continue down the sidewalk in front of the Lyons Center to the Registrar’s table that will be in front of O’Leary Hall.   Here you will receive an envelope containing either your diploma or a letter explaining why you are not receiving your diploma. (Outstanding bill or incomplete course work are the usual reasons.)
  • Staff Marshals will direct you back to your seat.

Recessional (End of Ceremony)

  • PLEASE STAND…The platform party from the stage will be led out of the quad area by the Faculty Marshal.
  • Students will remain standing at their seats until the procession has passed their row and you are dismissed by a Staff Marshal.
  • The recessional will exit the quad to the back of the campus center.  Here you will be able to return to your own vehicle or your family’s vehicle. 

  

Commencement Speaker and Honorary Degree Recipient

Elms College is pleased to announce that this year’s Commencement Speaker is Haitian-American novelist and short story writer Edwidge Danticat, MFA. Danticat, who will deliver her address remotely from her home in Miami, has been praised for her sparse, emotionally evocative prose and for highlighting the stories of the Haitian diaspora. Her first novel, Breath, Eyes, Memory, which deals with questions of racial, linguistic and gender identity in interconnected ways, went on to become an Oprah’s Book Club selection.

Danticat earned her master of fine arts degree from Brown University. She is the recipient of numerous honors and awards, including The National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction and Autobiography, The Story Prize, and a MacArthur Fellows Program “genius grant.”

The 90th Commencement ceremonies will also feature the awarding of honorary degrees. In addition to Danticat, another recipient of Doctor of Humane Letters degree will be Hampden County Sheriff Nicholas Cocchi, a 2013 graduate of the Elms College MBA program.

The College of Our Lady of the Elms’ 90th Commencement Ceremony, will be held on Saturday, May 15, 2021.

To make sure you’re ready for commencement, we will be holding Countdown to Commencement on March 25 from 12:15-1:15 am and 5-6 pm.

If you have general commencement inquiries or questions, please email studentaffairs@elms.edu or call 413-265-2210.

Ordering Caps and Gowns

Students can pick up their regalia in the college bookstore.

Bookstore hours:

  • Monday, May 3- Friday May 7- 10 am – 4 pm
  • Monday, May 10- Friday, May 14- 10 am – 5 pm
  • Saturday, May 15- CLOSED

If you have any questions, please contact the bookstore at 413-265-2273.

Information for Students

For detailed information for students click here.

Graduation terms and degree conferral dates have been posted.
Click here to see the schedule and how to apply for graduation

REMINDER:

Information for Family and Guests

To keep foot traffic on campus to a minimum we are providing large LED screens in the B and C lots for guests to view the Commencement ceremony from their cars. Audio will be provided via car radios. Each graduate may have up to four guests, who must all be in the same vehicle. 

As the event will be livestreamed, guests can also watch the ceremony via their smartphones, iPads, or other small screen devices. More information on where and when to access the livestream will be shared soon. Commencement is closed to the general public, but those interested are encouraged to view the livestream.

Graduates and their families are invited to share their social media photos using the hashtag #Elms2021. Be sure to follow @elmscollege on Instagram and Twitter. Photos taken by Elms College staff during these events will be posted on the Elms College Facebook page as soon as they are available.

During Commencement, a professional photographer from Commencement Photos will be taking a picture of each student as they are handed their diploma. In the weeks after commencement, Commencement Photos will be contacting you and your family to be able to purchase these photos.

Rules for Photographs on Campus

In order to reduce the number of people gathering after the Commencement ceremony, graduates are encouraged to take photos with friends and family in small groups prior to Commencement day.  This means the week of Commencement during normal business hours (8:30-4:30 pm.)

  • You must wear masks and follow safety guidelines.
  • You may not take photos prior to the Commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 15.
  • When arriving on campus, graduates must go right to check in, which will be located in front of Maguire Center and remain there ready for the commencement processional
  • If you plan to come to campus on Friday, May 14th for photographs, please complete your visit before 12:00 pm as the college will be preparing for Baccalaureate Mass in the afternoon.

Photography on Saturday, May 15th after Commencement:

From 12:30-1:30 pm, after the Commencement Ceremony, Marketing will be available to take photographs of you and your family in front of Berchmans Hall.  

You may meet near the front gate of the college on Springfield Street where there will be a check in table for the photographs.  Please limit your photos to no more than two so everyone has an opportunity.

You will not be able to take photos on the stage with family or friends and will not be permitted in any of the buildings on campus. 

In the event that inclement weather impacts the Commencement ceremony, please feel free to return to campus at a later time to take photos.

Information for Faculty and Staff

Faculty and Staff should arrive at the MassMutual Center located at 1277 Main Street, Springfield, MA 01103 by 9:00 a.m. Parking is available in the parking garage for a fee or there may be free on street parking.  Faculty and Staff in academic regalia will process into the arena beginning promptly at 9:30 a.m.

Accessibility Arrangements:

  • An interpreter for those who are hearing-impaired will be part of the commencement ceremony.
  • Graduating students attending the commencement ceremony or any other Elms sponsored event that may require accessibility related accommodations should contact Hillary Gregory to discuss the necessary arrangements no later than April 1, 2021.
  • Family and friends attending graduation events that may require accessibility related accommodations should contact Hillary Gregory, Director of Student Accommodations and Support Services, directly at 413-265-2333 or gregoryh@elms.edu.
  • An interpreter for those who are hearing-impaired will be part of the commencement ceremony.
  • Graduating students attending the commencement ceremony or any other Elms sponsored event that may require accessibility related accommodations should contact Hillary Gregory to discuss the necessary arrangements no later than April 1, 2021.
  • Family and friends attending graduation events that may require accessibility related accommodations should contact Hillary Gregory, Director of Student Accommodations and Support Services, directly at 413-265-2333 or gregoryh@elms.edu.
  • The MassMutual Center has reserved seating sections available for individuals who use wheelchairs or who have mobility challenges. The spaces are limited, so please plan accordingly. A MassMutual attendant may be able to assist you in locating these sections and may be able to assist any person in need of mobility support, including escorting guests to accessible seating areas.
  • The MassMutual Center offers drop-off and pick-up areas at the Box Office entrance on the corner of Bruce Landon Way and Main Street for guests requiring mobility assistance. https://www.massmutualcenter.com/accessibility
  • If you have specific accommodation needs not listed above nor on the MassMutual Center Accessibility link, please contact Hillary Gregory at 413-265-2333 or gregoryh@elms.edu.

Class of 2020 Celebration

Watch the livestream of the Class of 2020 celebration here.