Three ceremonies award 8,829 degrees to students, honorary doctorate to musican Booker T. Jones

For their last time, thousands of IU students piled onto the floor or sat in rows of seating at Assembly Hall on Saturday. About an hour and a half later, the same students joined the global network of more than 560,000 IU alumni.

Divided into three ceremonies, 8,829 degrees were awarded during IU’s 183rd Commencement Ceremony.

“Your IU education has allowed you to develop the skills of argument and reasoning, of analysis and discernment, of leadership and cooperation,” IU President Michael McRobbie said to the graduating class during the undergraduate ceremony. “It has given you time to explore many different worlds of knowledge that will lead you towards your passion and your life’s work.”

Booker T. Jones, a Grammy Award-winning soul artist, songwriter, record producer and arranger, as well as an alumnus of the IU Jacobs School of Music, was selected as the undergraduate ceremony’s commencement speaker.

He is the only IU graduate to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
During his speech, Jones recalled walking to the music school for music theory at 7:15 a.m. during his four years at IU.

He credited his IU education to his success as a musician.

“This commencement ceremony is, indeed, an auspicious occasion,” Jones said. “You finished the greatest school in the world, Indiana University.”

When graduate Tudor Panta of Zionsville, Ind., first came to IU four years ago, he said he was nervous. He said he did not know what to expect as a university student, but that he quickly settled in and had a great time.

Panta received a bachelors degree in psychology with a certificate in neuroscience
Saturday.

“My initial plan was to double major in neuroscience and psychology, but I kind of dropped the major in neuroscience down to a certificate, just so I can go into grad school and proceed that way,” Panta said. “I don’t regret anything because I still got what I wanted to out of it, and I just hope to further my knowledge at grad school.”

Students selected to speak at the undergraduate commencement included Sunjay Gorawara, who received degrees in finance and entrepreneurship, along with a minor in public and environmental affairs; and Lauren Sedam of the IDS, who majored in journalism and English.

For her speech, Sedam interviewed fellow seniors about their experiences at IU.

“These four years have been turning 21 at Nick’s for the game, Hairy Bears and free breadstick day,” Sedam said. “They were Linda Xiong getting on the jumbotron at a football game, something to check off her IU bucket list. It was sitting in the stands at Little Five and getting chills listening to Straight No Chaser sing ‘Back Home Again in Indiana.’ And it was Jackie Cottrell sitting with her sisters on the deck of Kappa Alpha Theta and knowing this is exactly where she was meant to be.”

Kyle Dahl of Indianapolis, who received a bachelor’s degree in informatics, said he first attended IU four years ago because he heard he could do whatever he wanted to do in terms of his education.

“That’s what really intrigued me because I came in, I wasn’t 100 percent sure if I wanted to go into informatics so I spent the first year exploring my options,” Dahl said. “That’s what makes IU so great.”

With his degree, Dahl landed a job within his field for JPMorgan Chase in
Chicago.

“Over the past few days, it’s been really overwhelming,” Dahl said. “It’s really hitting me all at once, but the football games, the basketball games, hanging out with friends, freshman year, moving into all the apartments and houses and everything, it’s all just been great and it’s been a wonderful journey.”

When Sarah Kirk came to IU, Sedam said in her speech, she was looking for a school.But now, it didn’t feel like just a school. It felt like leaving home.
“Today, as a class, we thank what got us here,” Sedam said. “Thank you, IU. Thanks for our story.”