Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) will celebrate students’ academic success during the fall 2024 commencement ceremonies on Thursday, Dec. 5 and Friday, Dec. 6, at the EKU Center for the Arts. Five ceremonies are planned to honor graduates from the university’s six academic colleges.
The schedule is as follows:
Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024
1 p.m. ceremony – Master’s and Doctoral Graduates from all Colleges
4:30 p.m. ceremony – College of Justice, Safety and Military Science
7:30 p.m. ceremony – College of Education and Applied Human Sciences and College of Business
Friday, Dec. 6, 2024
9 a.m. ceremony – College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences
1 p.m. ceremony – College of Health Sciences and College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
EKU will honor Jada Cortez with a posthumous degree during the 1 p.m. ceremony on Friday. Cortez, from Lexington, was a senior nursing major with a minor in psychology working toward her goal of obtaining a doctorate in nursing. Heavily involved at EKU, Cortez was an EKU Honors student, a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Psi Chi honor society, Global Leaders Unite, African Student Association and more.
Additionally, distinguished EKU alum C. Richard Mattingly will receive an honorary doctorate of humane letters during the Friday afternoon ceremony. Mattingly dedicated nearly 40 years to finding a cure for cystic fibrosis, leading to increased fundraising for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (CFF) and significant improvements in patient life expectancy. He also made a major impact on mental health treatment and support. After losing his wife, Carolyn, Mattingly retired from the CFF and founded The Luv U Project with his daughter to advance mental health awareness and treatment.
EKU will be recognizing 1,325 graduates: 145 certificates, 37 associate degrees, 946 bachelor’s degrees, 178 master’s degrees, 2 post-master’s certificates and 17 doctoral degrees.
Graduates range in age from 18 to 68. They come from 13 countries, 39 states and 98 Kentucky counties; 49% are the first in their families to attain a higher education degree.
A livestream of the ceremonies will be available on EKU’s website on the day of commencement. Find more information about this year’s ceremonies, including a campus map and visitor information at go.eku.edu/graduation.
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