235 Graduate from Texas Wesleyan at May 2008 Commencement

235 GRADUATE FROM TEXAS WESLEYAN UNIVERSITY

More than 200 students earned degrees and became the newest Texas Wesleyan alumni during commencement activities on Friday, May 9. Just over half of those graduates participated in the robing ceremony, held that morning at Polytechnic United Methodist Church. Robing is a unique and deep-rooted Texas Wesleyan tradition that began in 1927. For the robing ceremony, graduating candidates choose a faculty or staff member whose support was meaningful to them during their studies, to vest them with cap and gown. The ceremony demonstrates the strong bonds developed between faculty, staff and students at Texas Wesleyan.

After the robing ceremony, one graduate quickly exchanged her robe for a wetsuit and jumped in the pool for an underwater graduation ceremony. Brooke McNabb, a chemistry major and scuba minor, was joined in the pool by current and former scuba students, who took positions underwater to congratulate the new graduate. Pam Rast, director of the scuba program, and Adam Harrison, the most recent scuba graduate, entered the pool and take positions by the oath board. McNabb entered the pool in full gear, but without fins, and swam past scuba students to receive congratulations. During the Finning Ceremony, McNabb was given her fins by Rast and Harrison. She received a pin and signed an oath to support Texas Wesleyan scuba and underwater programs. After moving her tassel from right to left, she ascended to the surface. McNabb was presented with an alumni gift and red and white honor cords to symbolize the colors of the dive flag. The ceremony recognized her achievement of advanced scuba certifications.

Click here to read about McNabb in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram; click here to view an audio slide show.

The full University graduation exercises began at 7 p.m. in the Will Rogers Auditorium. Dr. Sheryl Smith Kappus delivered the commencement address, "Everyday Leadership," for Texas Wesleyan. Kappus is the fourteenth president of Hill College and its first female president. She has served as president of Hill College, a community college with five locations in Central Texas, since 2004.

Also at the commencement ceremony, an honorary doctor of business was presented to Lowell "Stretch" Smith, a former Texas Wesleyan trustee, in honor of his lifelong service to the banking industry, his commitment to helping young people attain a higher education, and his devotion to the community (Rio Vista/Cleburne) where he was born and raised.

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