UM-Flint to host fall commencement ceremonies, Dec. 17

The University of Michigan-Flint will celebrate its summer and fall graduates during Fall 2023 Commencement, Dec. 17, at the Riverfront Conference Center. Close to 850 students are eligible to participate. Both undergraduate and graduate students will be awarded degrees during three ceremonies involving the university's five schools and colleges. 

The schedule for commencement is as follows:

• College of Innovation & Technology, School of Management, 11 a.m.
• School of Nursing, 1:30 p.m.
• College of Arts & Sciences, College of Health Sciences, 4 p.m. 

Doors for each ceremony open one hour before the start time. Graduating students are asked to RSVP before the Dec. 8 deadline by logging into the Student Information System portal and navigating to the graduation menu of the student services tab. Each graduate can bring four guests and the ceremonies will be livestreamed and recorded at live.umflint.edu.

Students can purchase caps and gowns, hoods and other commencement items at the UM-Flint Bookstore.

Each ceremony will include messages from Donna Fry, UM-Flint interim chancellor; Sonja Feist-Price, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs; and Michael Behm, U-M regent. 

Student speakers will also share their voices during commencement. The speaker for the 11 a.m. ceremony is Theo Ellis Sr., a business administration major from Port Huron. Tayah Fantin, a nursing major from Lapeer, will speak at the 1:30 p.m. ceremony. Speaking at the 4 p.m. ceremony will be Kyra Salim, a health sciences major from Flushing. 

Feist-Price said that commencement is an important opportunity for the UM-Flint community to look back on hard work and sacrifice and look forward to new opportunities.

"Our students may be earning an invaluable U-M degree on Dec. 17, but the real value can be found in the determination and creativity each of our learners developed within themselves throughout the past years as they worked toward graduation. These attributes not only allowed students to persist through the challenges of academic life, but they will also continue to serve the newest generation of Leaders & Best as they enter the next chapter of their lives."

All graduating students are invited to reflect on their accomplishments and plans for the future at graduates.umflint.edu. Profile submissions are viewable to all website visitors, and friends and family can leave messages of support. 

Here are just a few of the submissions received so far:

Ruudy Olupot, Master of Business Administration

Favorite Memory at the UM-Flint

"One of my most rewarding experiences as a mentor was working with a student who was interested in starting their own business. I shared my experience of owning a coffee shop in Uganda, and he was immediately hooked. We talked for hours about business ideas, challenges, and success stories."

Plans for Celebrating Graduation

"I plan to celebrate at home by sharing the live graduation link with my family and friends back in Uganda so that they can follow the proceedings. In Grand Rapids, I plan to have a great meal with my family here and a game of samba afterward with my wife's gramps and my parents-in-law as well as brothers and sisters-in-law who can make it. I'm excited to celebrate this special day with my loved ones, both near and far."

Vrustiben Patel, Bachelor of Science in Biology

"I transferred to UM-Flint three years ago and it was one of the best decisions I ever made. I'm a pre-med with a biology major and my classroom experience as well as the close faculty interactions has helped me gain so much perspective and knowledge about the field. My teachers and advisors guided me to find the direction I wanted to pursue after my graduation."

Paul-Michael Linville, Doctor of Nursing Practice

"I am a retired U.S. Navy Corpsman who has served with the Navy and Marine Corps. I graduated from Chaminade University of Honolulu (AA) and Jacksonville University (BSN) in Jacksonville, Florida. I am completing my Doctor of Nursing Practice degree as a family nurse practitioner. I plan on working in a rural primary care clinic somewhere in the world."

More information about UM-Flint's Fall 2023 Commencement can be found online.