CANYON, Texas — West Texas A&M University will celebrate the graduation of about 1,000 students during Dec. 9 commencement ceremonies.
Students from the Paul Engler College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, the College of Nursing and Health Sciences, and the Terry B. Rogers College of Education and Social Sciences will take part in the 10 a.m. Dec. 9 ceremony.
Students from the Paul and Virginia Engler College of Business, College of Engineering, and the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities will take part in the 2 p.m. Dec. 9 ceremony.
Both ceremonies will take place inside the First United Bank Center, 3301 Fourth Ave. in Canyon.
In all, 966 students have earned undergraduate or graduate degrees and will participate in the ceremonies.
“We are proud of hard work and dedication exhibited by these scholars, and we are excited to celebrate alongside them and their loved ones,” said WT President Walter V. Wendler. “WT always strives to produce quality students who are ready to meet the needs of the Panhandle and beyond, and we know our Buffs will go on to make a difference in their world.”
A Donning of the Stoles ceremony for African American, Hispanic, international and first-generation students will take place at 6 p.m. Dec. 8 in the Jack B. Kelley Student Center. Parents, family members or friends place a stole on their graduate and express what the student means to them as they move into their next stage of life, said Angela Allen, director of engaged citizenship.
Parking will be available at the First United Bank Center. Overflow parking will be behind the Agricultural Sciences Complex and the Virgil Henson Activities Center. Handicapped parking is available at the First United Bank Center.
Doors will open one hour before each ceremony. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis.
Each ceremony will last up to two hours. At the end of each ceremony, graduates will walk in the recessional out of the arena doors. Guests may meet their graduates outside.
The WT Bookstore will be at each ceremony to sell merchandise and graduation accessories, and the campus store will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 9. For information, contact Cortney Carter at 806-651-2745.
Sign-language interpreters will be available at each ceremony.
Graduates of WT will value hard work and performance as measures of excellence, a key mission of the University’s long-range plan, WT 125: From the Panhandle to the World.
That plan is fueled by the historic One West comprehensive fundraising campaign, which reached its initial $125 million goal 18 months after publicly launching in September 2021. The campaign’s new goal is to reach $175 million by 2025; currently, it has raised more than $150 million.
