APPROXIMATELY 2,500 GRADUATES AT SPRING COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES
Approximately 2,500 students participated in the three ODU commencement ceremonies the weekend of May 4th.
For the first time, commencement is being split into separate ceremonies over two days. On Saturday, a 9 a.m. commencement hosted the graduates of the Frank Batten College of Engineering and Technology who were joined by graduates from the College of Health Sciences and the College of Sciences. The other ceremonies started with the College of Arts and Letters - the largest graduating class - conducting its exercises at 7 p.m. Friday. A 2 p.m. commencement was held on Saturday for graduates of the Darden College of Education and the College of Business and Public Administration. All of the ceremonies took place at the Ted Constant Convocation Center.
"This schedule change comes as a result of the growth of the university and the Office of University Events' ongoing efforts to improve the commencement experience," said ODU Provost Carol Simpson.
Wendy Bahr, senior vice president of Global and Strategic Partners for the Worldwide Partner Organization for Cisco, addressed our graduates.
An ODU graduate with a bachelor's degree in communication, Bahr is responsible for driving growth and solutions development through Cisco's largest and most strategic systems integrator, service provider and ecosystem partners.
She has spent more than 20 years in sales and technology. Prior to joining Cisco, Bahr was with Verizon for more than 10 years. In her last role there she was the director of enterprise sales, leading a sales and engineering team focused on Fortune 500 companies and the public sector.
Bahr is a member of the Women's Action Network at Cisco and a former member of the Gender Diversity Operations Committee. She is a coach and mentor for Cisco's Women Unlimited program, while also personally mentoring more than a dozen Cisco employees.
ODU also awarded honorary doctorates to five members of the Hampton Roads chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen during the three programs.
For more information about ODU's 116th commencement exercises, visit the commencement website at http://www.odu.edu/ao/commencement/graduates/index.shtml.