In its 150th anniversary year, Texas Christian University will hold a special commencement weekend filled with milestones, achievements and traditions. TCU and Brite Divinity School will present degrees to more than 2,400 candidates during four separate ceremonies May 13 and 14 at the Ed and Rae Schollmaier Arena on the TCU campus.
Among the notable events, TCU will reach its 100,000th living alum, the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at TCU will graduate its first class, and TCU will commemorate its Sesquicentennial with ceremonies filled with unique touches and a new tradition.
“Commencement is an extraordinary moment for our graduates, their families and our outstanding faculty and staff – it is the culmination of years of hard work, dedication, sacrifice and commitment,” Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr., said. “Like our 150th, it is a time to celebrate success and achievement while looking boldly to the future. We’re especially excited for all that is in store this milestone commencement weekend.”
Inaugural Medical Graduates
The Burnett School of Medicine, Fort Worth’s M.D. school, opened with a class of 60 students in July 2019. The Burnett School of Medicine’s focus on communication, a first-of-its-kind curriculum and the development of Empathetic Scholars® uniquely positions the school to radically transform medical education, improving care for generations.
“We are immensely proud of these young doctors. They will forever be a part of TCU’s 150th,” Boschini said. “This is a day that has been years in the making, and it is only fitting that this special class would be a part of such a celebratory moment in the life of our university.”
TCU’s 150th
Ceremonies will include commemorative 150th diplomas and medallions for each graduate and fireworks at the end of each ceremony.
TCU also will present a new tradition: a ceremonial “flame of knowledge.” In honor of the Sesquicentennial, the piece was commissioned to join TCU’s mace in preceeding the platform party at the opening of the ceremony and will be carried by the chair of the Faculty Senate as a symbol of academic learning. The mace is carried by the chief marshal as a symbol of academic leadership.
Four Ceremonies
The more than 2,400 graduates for Spring 2023 include 40 students with an expected 4.0 grade point average and 32 students who are candidates for double degrees. Boschini will confer the degrees and deliver the commencement address. Each ceremony also will include remarks from TCU President Daniel W. Pullin.
“Our students have become innovative leaders and are prepared for the challenges and opportunities ahead of them,” Pullin said. “TCU has given them the life skills, education and knowledge to continue to their next step and make a difference here in Texas and beyond, in the global community. We congratulate them all and look forward to celebrating commencement weekend.”
The first ceremony at 9 a.m. May 13 will include the presentation of the honorary doctorate, and the recognition of degree candidates from the Burnett School of Medicine, as well as AddRan College of Liberal Arts, Brite Divinity School and the College of Fine Arts. The 1 p.m. ceremony May 13 will feature the Neeley School of Business.
The 9 a.m. ceremony on May 14 will recognize graduates of the College of Education and the College of Science & Engineering, and Sunday’s 1 p.m. ceremony will host the Bob Schieffer College of Communication and Harris College of Nursing & Health Sciences.
Read more about the class of 2023.
Honorary Doctorate
During the university’s first ceremony, TCU will present a Doctor of Letters, honoris causa to Godeliève Mukasarasi, an activist of women's rights for more than 40 years through social work. The recipient of the university’s 10th Global Innovator award in 2018, Mukasarasi is founder and coordinator of the Rwandan organization Solidarity for the Development of Widows and Orphans Aiming at Work and Self-Promotion, also known as SEVOTA. Initiated in 1994 in the aftermath of the genocide committed against the Tutsi in Rwanda, the organization aims to ensure moral and organizational support to its beneficiaries who are women survivors or victims of violence and children born as a result of such violence, vulnerable households, including those of widows and orphans. Read more about Mukasarasi in TCU Magazine.
Reception and photo opportunities will be offered in the Campus Commons on both days between ceremonies. TCU enforces a clear bag policy for all campus events. Visit commencement.tcu.edu for more information.