If you plan on participating in the 2013 campuswide Commencement activities, please review participation information on the Campuswide Commencement website. If you plan on participating in the GSLIS Convocation activities, please read below.

You are eligible to participate in both Commencement and Convocation if you have graduated since May '12 or expect to finish your degree requirements by May '13.

M.S. students: If you have 8 or fewer hours remaining and expect to complete your degree requirements in August 2013, you may participate in Commencement, however, your name will not appear in the campuswide Commencement Program. Your name will appear in the GSLIS Convocation Program if you sign up to participate in our ceremony.

Doctoral candidates: Recipients of doctoral degrees must have deposited their dissertations in the Graduate College Thesis Office in order to participate in the campuswide Commencement and/or the GSLIS Convocation ceremonies. Doctoral candidates must indicate participation for campuswide ceremony online at the Graduate College Commencement website or by contacting the Graduate College at (217) 333-0035.

PLEASE NOTE:
Signing up for the Campuswide Commencement and/or the GSLIS Convocation ceremony DOES NOT put your name on the May graduation degree list; likewise, having put your name on the August 2012, December 2012, or May 2013 degree list DOES NOT sign you up for the Campuswide Commencement and/or the GSLIS Convocation ceremonies. These are separate tasks. Information for including your name on the degree list can be found online at the Graduate College Commencement website. Instructions for signing up for the Campuswide Commencement and/or the GSLIS Convocation ceremonies are below. If you would like to participate online in the GSLIS Convocation, see the section entitled “Virtual Participation in the GSLIS Convocation.”

Campuswide Commencement (Assembly Hall)

On May 11-12, 2013, the University of Illinois will celebrate Commencement. You may also visit the Campuswide Commencement website for additional information. Graduates of GSLIS are invited to participate in the campuswide ceremony on Sunday, May 12, at 10:30 a.m. at the Assembly Hall. This ceremony will last approximately 1½ hours, and a cap and gown are required. More information about regalia can be found on the Campuswide Commencement website. Please take notice of the ordering deadline dates.

Ticket Information

As a graduate, you do not need a ticket; however, all guests, except infants being held, must have a ticket. Read the Campuswide Commencement website for information on how to obtain tickets.

Parking Information

Free parking is available at the Assembly Hall. Cars may enter from the west via First Street and from the east via Fourth Street. Additional parking is located west of First Street. If you attend the morning campuswide Commencement, please do not leave your vehicle in the Assembly Hall lots after the ceremony. A map showing available parking in the area is available on the campus parking website.

GSLIS Convocation Ceremony (Smith Memorial Hall)

GSLIS will hold Convocation for LIS graduates on Sunday, May 12, 2013, at 1:30 p.m. at Smith Memorial Hall. Cap and gown are not required but strongly encouraged.

You must sign up to participate in the GSLIS Convocation ceremony--in person and online (see link below). The deadline is Friday, May 3, 2013. You do not need tickets for the GSLIS ceremony, but seating is limited so plan to arrive early (doors open at 12:30 p.m.). 

•  GSLIS Convocation ceremony registration form

A reception for you and your guests will be held in the Charles & Millicent Marshall Library Gallery (east foyer) of the Main Library immediately following our ceremony. Parents, spouses, children, and friends are welcome to share in the celebration of your accomplishments. Please note that the Main Library will be closed except for the first floor.

Regalia Pickup and Return

Please read the Campuswide Commencement website as well as below for additional GSLIS-specific information.

Local students

Pick up your regalia (cap and gown) as instructed on the Campuswide Commencement website.

Out-of-town students

Assistant Dean Rae-Anne Montague has agreed to pick up and distribute regalia (cap and gown) for LEEP and other out-of-town graduates who are unable to do so themselves. If you would like Rae-Anne Montague to pick up your order, please send a copy of your order confirmation receipt and a check for the appropriate amount made payable to "Herff Jones" to:

Attn: Cap and Gown
GSLIS-UIUC
501 East Daniel Street
Champaign IL 61820-6211

Please note: Herff Jones requires that checks have your address imprinted on them or they will not be accepted.

Rae-Anne Montague must have your order confirmation receipt and your check BEFORE she can pick up your regalia. Please plan accordingly to allow enough time for your receipt and check to arrive by Thursday, May 2.

The regalia Rae-Anne picks up will be available for you to pick up at either the President's and Chancellor's Reception on Sunday, May 12, from 8:00-9:30 a.m. at the President's House or from 12:30-1:10 p.m. at Smith Memorial Hall.

Returning Rented Regalia

Return your regalia as instructed on the Campuswide Commencement website. Regalia may not be left at Smith Hall, at the Main Library, or with GSLIS staff.

Where to Be and at What Time

Graduates should arrive no later than 1:00 p.m. at Smith Memorial Hall to line up for the procession. Please check in at the east entrance and pick up an index card with your name appearing as you requested it to be announced. This card will be used by the announcer to introduce you on stage as you receive your diploma cover.

Photographs

Guests are welcome to take photographs and videotape during the Convocation ceremony if they remain on the outside aisles. There will also be a professional photographer from Memory Lane Photography (217-351-1565) at the ceremony that will take a picture of each participating graduate as they receive their diploma cover and cross the stage. A proof copy of the photo may be viewed online a few days after the ceremony and a proof will be mailed to you with no obligation to buy. Please remember to keep your address updated by emailing the "Advancement Office"-lis-dev, at illinois.edu-.

Virtual Participation in the GSLIS Convocation

The GSLIS graduation ceremony will be broadcast live online so all GSLIS students, faculty, staff, as well as their family and friends can tune in if they are unable to attend the ceremony in person. An online chat room will also be available for those watching online to communicate with one another.

Parking Information

The parking garage on the corner of Gregory and Dorner (Lot F29) is a three-block walk to Smith Memorial Hall (building #60 on these maps).

http://www.parking.illinois.edu/visitors/campus-maps/campus-parking-map/map2-4

Additional parking is available at several lots within walking distance of Smith Memorial Hall.   Consult the following maps. (Parking is highlighted in red and yellow.)

http://www.parking.illinois.edu/campus_map/ (full campus map)
http://www.parking.illinois.edu/visitors/campus-maps/campus-parking-map/map2-3

On weekends, you may park in any University lot in any space that does not have a sign stating the lot or the space is rented 24 hours a day/7 days a week. There is also limited street parking around Smith Hall on Mathews Street and other nearby streets.

Which events should I attend?

Graduates often ask about which weekend event(s) to participate in. The following is a recap of the events during commencement weekend:

- Sunday, May 12 (8:00-9:30 a.m.): The President and Chancellor will host a reception in the gardens of the President's House, 711 West Florida Avenue, Urbana. Academic attire is encouraged.
- Sunday, May 12 (10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m.): GSLIS graduates and their families and guests are invited to the morning campuswide Commencement ceremony at the Assembly Hall. This is a large event with thousands of participants. Doctoral students are called by name and invited to the stage for hooding.
- Sunday, May 12 (1:30-4:00 p.m.): GSLIS graduates and their families and guests are invited to the GSLIS Convocation ceremony and reception. All students who attend are called by name.

Checklist for Participants

___ I have arranged for my name to appear on the May 2013 M.S., C.A.S. or Ph.D. degree list (make sure you have enough credit hours to graduate) or my name appeared on the August ’12 or December ’12 degree list, or I am an M.S. student with 8 or fewer hours remaining and expect to graduate in August ’13.

___ I wish to participate in the 10:30 a.m. Campuswide Commencement ceremony at the Assembly Hall on Sunday, May 12, and have made those arrangements as instructed on the Campuswide Commencement website, including ordering my regalia (mortarboard, gown, hood) and tickets for my guests.

___ I am a doctoral candidate and wish to participate in the 10:30 a.m. Campuswide Commencement ceremony at the Assembly Hall on Sunday, May 12. I will have deposited my dissertation and have made the arrangements as instructed on the Graduate College Commencement website and the Campuswide Commencement website, including ordering my regalia (mortarboard, gown, hood) before the deadline and tickets for my guests.

___ I wish to participate in the 1:30 p.m. GSLIS Convocation ceremony at Smith Memorial Hall on Sunday, May 12 (tickets are not required), and have signed up for the GSLIS Convocation ceremony and reception as instructed above, for either in-person or virtual participation. (The deadline is Friday, May 3.)

___ I have ordered my regalia (mortarboard, gown, hood) before the deadline (11:59 p.m. on April 11).

___ Doctoral students: I have made arrangements for the hooding at the GSLIS Convocation ceremony (Who will hood you?). If you attend the campuswide Commencement ceremony, Interim Dean Renear will hood you unless you specify otherwise.

___ I am an LEEP student and would like Rae-Anne Montague to pick up my regalia. I have mailed my check (made payable to “Herff-Jones”) and the Herff-Jones receipt for my regalia by the Thursday, May 2, deadline to:

ATTN: Cap and Gown
GSLIS-UIUC
501 East Daniel Street
Champaign IL 61820-6211

We look forward to seeing you at the GSLIS Convocation and hope that it will be a special day for you. If you have questions about the GSLIS Convocation, please contact the GSLIS office: phone (217) 333-3280 or (800) 982-0914; e-mail: cbrigg2@illinois.edu.