Mixed emotions mark ceremony

After years of hard work, dedication and commitment a simple turn of a tassel will mark the culmination of the undergraduate careers of thousands of students at Saturday's commencement ceremonies.\n"I have so many mixed emotions (about graduating) but overall I would say I am very sad," said senior Shana Frankel. "I have had the best four years of my life and I cannot imagine not having all of my friends around me next year."\nSince there are 7,222 students at IU-Bloomington that will be eligible to participate in the commencement, Director of University Ceremonies Bill Elliott said there will be two ceremonies on Saturday, one at 10 a.m. and the other at 3 p.m., so that all the students and their guests can fit inside Assembly Hall. Students are assigned to either session based on the school from which they are earning their degree. Both sessions are nearly identical and will follow the same format. \nGraduating students will begin to enter the arena 45 minutes before the ceremony is scheduled to begin, said Elliott. About 15 minutes before the start time, faculty will then process into their assigned seats. \nAfter IU President Adam Herbert introduces Eugene O'Brien, executive associate dean of the Jacob School of Music to lead the national anthem, Elliott said Executive Director of the Hillel Center Rabbi Sue Shifron will lead a prayer. Commencement speaker Michael Uslan will then present the keynote address to the class of 2006 and Herbert will award him with the President's Award following his remarks. \nJoan Hall, IU Alumni Association membership director, said during the ceremony all graduates who are receiving their first degree at IU will be presented with a free one-year membership to the Alumni Association.\n"It's our graduation gift to our graduating students," Hall said. "We hope the students can stay connected to IU ... and we offer career mentoring and student loan consolidation to help them with their transition." \nHall said approximately 18 percent of new alumni choose to renew their membership for the $20 per year fee for the first four years and $40 per year from there on. \nAfter Interim Provost Michael McRobbie presents the class to the president, Herbert will then give the charge, which Elliott said basically is just a series of short remarks to give advice and send off the class. \nNear the end of the ceremony, Elliott said Herbert will confer all degrees by having the students from each school stand together while he accepts that they have completed all necessary courses and requirements to earn their degree. \n"We just can't have all students go up there because there are just too many," Elliott said. "It simply would take too much time." \nThe only exception to this, Elliott said, will be for students who are being awarded doctorate degrees. They will walk across the stage where they will be greeted by their school's dean and the provost. \nWith more than 3,500 students expected to arrive at each session, the number of total audience members including their relatives and friends will probably be around 10,000 to 12,000, Elliott estimated. \n"My family is coming and yes they are excited," Frankel said. "My mother is going to start sobbing the minute she takes her seat."\nElliot said there is a tremendous amount of planning that goes into the event, as the commencement committee has been working since last September coordinating with the IU Alumni Association, creative services, Assembly Hall staff, the IU auditorium and many other organizations and groups. \n"Generally we script everything so we rarely have any problems," Elliott said. "Its a controlled environment -- students can get a little out of control sometimes -- but it's a pretty smooth operation."\nWhile many seniors said they are looking forward to the ceremony, not all were so enthusiastic to attend the event.\n"I can't say I'm that excited about the actual ceremony," senior Maya Frederick said. "I went to my sister's three years ago and it was painfully boring."\nFrederick added that one part of the ceremony she was looking forward to is sitting with her School of Education friends, who she hopes will be able to make the ceremony more interesting. \nMany outgoing seniors said that while they are excited to finally graduate, they still can't but help feel sad leaving the school and their friends. \n"I'm excited to graduate," senior Adam Brand said. "I'm also sad for leaving a town that has been part of me for the last four years, where I have made many great friends and have so many memories"