Purdue offering on-demand commencement for summer grads

Second on-demand commencement this year to go live on Aug. 3

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Nearly 1,400 students will hear their names called during Purdue University’s summer commencement.

Originally scheduled for Aug. 8, the on-demand commencement will be posted online for graduates and their families to access starting Aug. 3. This is the second Purdue’s commencement will be offered on-demand due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Purdue alumna Marjorie Magner, a founding member and partner of Brysam Global Partners, will be the keynote speaker.

Magner helped form Brysam, a specialized private equity firm that invests in consumer financial services, in 2006. Before that, she served as chair and chief executive officer of Citigroup’s Global Consumer Group, where she was responsible for serving customers through retail banking, credit cards and consumer finance. 

Magner received her Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Brooklyn College and a master’s degree in industrial administration from Purdue’s Krannert School of Management. She received an honorary doctorate in management from Purdue in 2004.

She was named to Fortune’s list of Most Powerful Women in Business from 2001-2004, as well as Forbes’ list of the World’s Most Powerful Women, and U.S. Banker’s list of the 25 Most Powerful Women in Banking. She earned the New York Stock Exchange Governance Services’ inaugural Leadership Award for a Non-Executive Chairman in 2014.

Marjorie Magner Download image

About 1,377 students are eligible for degrees, with 473 undergraduates, 900 graduate and four professional program students eligible to participate in the ceremony. Purdue also will present a posthumous Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering to the family of Trever L. Col.

The on-demand commencement also will feature a student responder, Aaron B. Benjamin of Haddonfield, New Jersey. He is receiving his doctoral degree in biochemistry from the College of Agriculture. Benjamin was an active member of the Purdue Graduate Student Government, where he was a member of the life team, treasurer and representative to the RecWell Advisory Board. He also was an officer to the Biochemistry Graduate Student Organization. While in biochemistry, he served as a teaching assistant and mentor to three graduate and nine undergraduate students. He has had research published in Organic Letters, Biochemistry and the Journal of the American Chemical Society for his work on synthesis and crystal structures of various compounds.

August 2020 graduates will receive a special “commencement in a box” that includes a diploma cover, the commencement program, any earned honors cords and medals, and some Boilermaker goodies. The box also includes information on how to download the ceremony, which they can watch with their families at a time that works for them. Assembly of the boxes began on Monday (July 13) at the Purdue Armory.

Graduates also received directions to Purdue’s Commencement 2020 website. The site contains information, links and videos to numerous aspects for graduates and families to celebrate the momentous journey. Items that can be accessed on the site are digital downloads of signs and banners, digital wallpapers and filters, and live social media feeds. The on-demand commencement video will be posted there and will include special messages from Purdue’s deans.

Each student will have their name called and receive their diploma cover. Graduates are encouraged to take photos of themselves and their families watching the ceremony or afterward and post to social media using the #PurdueWeDidIt hashtag.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a top public research institution developing practical solutions to today’s toughest challenges. Ranked the No. 6 Most Innovative University in the United States by U.S. News & World Report, Purdue delivers world-changing research and out-of-this-world discovery. Committed to hands-on and online, real-world learning, Purdue offers a transformative education to all. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue has frozen tuition and most fees at 2012-13 levels, enabling more students than ever to graduate debt-free. See how Purdue never stops in the persistent pursuit of the next giant leap at purdue.edu.

Writer: Media contact: Matthew Oates, 765-586-7496 (cell), oatesw@purdue.edu, @mo_oates

Source: Christine DeHahan Pass, senior assistant registrar, dehahn@purdue.edu

Related Releases

Purdue releases on-demand commencement, celebrates graduates amid global pandemic (May 11, 2020)

Purdue Global commencement recognizes more than 1,000 graduates (June 8, 2020)

Note to Journalists: Images of speaker and the commencement box are on a Google Drive. Commencement coordinators are available for interviews via phone or web-based conference services.

Journalists visiting campus: Journalists should follow Protect Purdue protocols and the following guidelines:

• Campus is open, but the number of people in spaces may be limited. We will be as accommodating as possible, but you may be asked to step out or report from another location.
• To enable access, particularly to campus buildings, we recommend you contact the Purdue News Service media contact listed on the release to let them know the nature of the visit and where you will be visiting. A News Service representative can facilitate safe access and may escort you on campus.
• Wear face masks inside any campus building. Wear face masks outdoors when social distancing of at least six feet is not possible.