Blog

NEW YORK – Columbia University said Monday they are canceling their main commencement ceremony plan after weeks of protests and turmoil on campus. 

Instead of one single commencement ceremony, the various schools involved will hold smaller, individual ceremonies. They will take place away from the South Lawn, where the larger commencement ceremony had originally been scheduled to take place on May 15, and where students had been encamped until police cleared them out. 

A university official said security concerns were one of the main reasons behind the school’s decision. 

The school said despite the changes, the students will get the celebration they want, and the revised plan is a result of conversations with students about what sort of program they preferred. 

“We are determined to give our students the celebration they deserve, and that they want,” Columbia said in a statement. “Based on their feedback, we have decided to make the centerpiece of our Commencement activities our Class Days and school-level ceremonies, where students are honored individually alongside their peers, rather than the University-wide ceremony that is scheduled for May 15.”

Most of the school-based graduation ceremonies will now take place at the schools’ Baker Athletics Complex. Tickets are required. 

“Our students emphasized that these smaller-scale, school-based celebrations are most meaningful to them and their families. They are eager to cross the stage to applause and family pride and hear from their school’s invited guest speakers. As a result, we will focus our resources on those school ceremonies and on keeping them safe, respectful, and running smoothly. A great deal of effort is already underway to reach that goal, and we understand the Deans and school teams are looking forward to working with their students to incorporate the most creative and meaningful ideas to celebrate this extraordinary moment,” the school said.

Here’s the new schedule of ceremonies: 

Friday, May 10
• 8:30 a.m. – Professional Studies, Morning Ceremony | Baker Athletics Complex
• 12:30 p.m. – Professional Studies, Afternoon Ceremony | Baker Athletics Complex
• 4:30 p.m. – Social Work | Baker Athletics Complex
• 5:30 p.m. – Columbia Climate School | The Forum

Saturday, May 11
• 8:00 a.m. – Business School, EMBA & PhD Candidates | Baker Athletics Complex
• 11:30 a.m. – Business School, MBA | Baker Athletics Complex
• Architecture, Planning and Preservation | St. Paul’s Chapel

Sunday, May 12
• 8:00 a.m. – Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, PhD | Baker Athletics Complex
• 10:00 a.m. – Baccalaureate Service | St. Paul’s Chapel
• 11:00 a.m. – Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, MA | Baker Athletics Complex
• 3:00 p.m. – The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, Graduate Ceremony | Baker Athletics Complex

Monday, May 13
• 8:00 a.m. – Columbia School of General Studies | Baker Athletics Complex
• 11:45 a.m. – The Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, Undergraduate Ceremony | Baker Athletics Complex
• 3:30 p.m. – Law School | Baker Athletics Complex
• 7:30 p.m. – International and Public Affairs | Baker Athletics Complex

Tuesday, May 14
• 9:30 a.m. – Columbia College | Baker Athletics Complex
• 10:00 a.m. – School of Nursing | The Armory
• 10:00 a.m. – Physical Therapy | Alumni Auditorium, CUIMC
• 3:30 p.m. – Genetic Counseling | VEC 201, CUIMC
• 4:00 p.m. – Mailman School of Public Health | The Armory
• 5:00 p.m. – Business School, MS | David Geffen Hall, Manhattanville Campus
• Teachers College | United Palace Theatre

Wednesday, May 15
• 12:00 p.m. – Journalism School | Roone Arledge Auditorium, Lerner Hall
• 2:00 p.m. – Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons | The Armory
• 4:00 p.m. – Barnard College | Radio City Music Hall
• 7:00 p.m. – School of the Arts | Roone Arledge Auditorium, Lerner Hall
• Teachers College | United Palace Theatre

Thursday, May 16
• 10:00 a.m. – Occupational Therapy | Alumni Auditorium, CUIMC
• 10:30 a.m. – Dental Medicine, Predoctoral | The Armory
• 2:00 p.m. – Institute of Human Nutrition | Alumni Auditorium, CUIMC
• 4:00 p.m. – Dental Medicine, Postdoctoral | The Armory