UNL announces Saturday commencement plan in case of weather cancellation

            University of Nebraska-Lincoln officials are monitoring the weather forecast for Saturday's scheduled 9:30 a.m. undergraduate commencement in Memorial Stadium. A decision to go ahead with the planned, abbreviated ceremony or to cancel the outdoor event will be announced by 6 a.m. Saturday. It will be posted at http://www.unl.edu, shared on UNL social media channels and communicated to media.

            "If we cannot proceed with the planned ceremony in Memorial Stadium, we will implement our backup plan that will still allow students and their families to celebrate this occasion as diplomas are formally presented to individual students Saturday morning in Hawks Championship Center next to Memorial Stadium," Chancellor Harvey Perlman said.

            If the weather forces cancellation of the outdoor ceremony, graduates and family members are invited to come to the Hawks Center during a specific timeframe Saturday so each student can receive his or her diploma from their college dean or associate dean. This will allow each student to be professionally photographed in cap and gown, and for family members to see and take photos of their graduate.

            This backup plan calls for diploma tables to be set up on the Hawks Center indoor field, with college banners to indicate where students will find their dean and be awarded their diploma. Parking will be available immediately west of the Hawks Center, in the stadium garage or at the Champions Club.

            The diploma distribution schedule in case of a weather cancellation would be as follows: 

• College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources: 9:45 to 11 a.m.
• College of Architecture: 8 to 9 a.m.
• College of Arts and Sciences: 10 to 11:30 a.m.
• College of Business Administration: 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.
• College of Education and Human Sciences: 9:15 to 11 a.m.
• College of Engineering: 9:45 to 11 a.m.
• Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts: 8 to 9 a.m.
• College of Journalism and Mass Communications: 8 to 9 a.m.
• College of Public Affairs and Community Service: 8 to 9 a.m.

            For details on the planned, abbreviated ceremony that is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Saturday at Memorial Stadium, go to http://commencement.unl.edu.