By Guamacice Delice
The class of 2023 commencement is drawing near, slowly but surely, on June 1 at UBS Arena in Belmont Park. Multiple graduation-related events have occurred on campus since Feb. 23. The next on the list will be on May 3 – the Awards and Scholarships Recognition Reception, held in the Faculty Dining Room. The itinerary includes thanking York’s donors and celebrating the Spring 2020 – Spring 2023 scholarship and award recipients. But the major event before graduation is the Senior Ball at Antun’s Catering Hall in Queens Village on May 30 and 31.
Besides the Commencement Committee, the Office of Student Activities and Student Government Association has been working to make this a memorable last semester for graduating seniors. This included a new Senior Paint and Sip event where students could, as the name suggests, paint and sip soda in a relaxing environment.
The next event, the Awards and Scholarships Recognition Reception, will feature York College’s president Berenecea J. Eanes attending and is meant to show appreciation to “our scholarships donors and celebrate,” according to the York website.
A digital invitation card on the website explains that the York College Foundation wants donors to learn how impactful their donations have been on students’ lives, get more information about the school’s future goals, and “meet the scholarship recipients and other supporters of student success.”
On May 11, York’s Women’s Center for Gender Justice is hosting the 2nd Annual Lavender Graduation Ceremony. “The reception includes refreshments, acknowledgments, and the presentation of rainbow cords that can be worn during commencement,” according to the description on York’s website. It also says guests of graduates are welcome to attend. Additionally, Lavender Graduation intends “to honor lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, asexual, intersex, and ally students and to acknowledge their achievements and contributions to the University,” according to the City College of New York website.
The following day an awards banquet will be hosted in honor of York’s teams and student-athletes at the gymnasium and will acknowledge their accomplishment during the 2022-2023 season.
On May 18, graduating seniors can decorate their cap with President Eanes in the H-Wing Patio. Then, on May 24, they are invited to Senior Carnival in the Performance Art Center’s parking lot, where free food, rides, games, and music will be available, according to the website.
Several other graduation events have unfolded on campus since the Feb. 23 Commencement Count Down, including a commencement exercise appeal. Between April 3 and April 19, students with incomplete degree requirements who want to participate in this Spring commencement were allowed to petition the Committee of Commencement Appeal.
The Atrium was the theater of Senior Salute on April 18 and 19, where graduating students got an update about the commencement ceremony and related activities, including information about the commencement’s location, time, and parking, according to the website. Students could also “purchase Class Rings and other graduation mementos, get help decorating their Graduation Cap, join the York College Alumni Association, Inc. [with] 50 percent discount for [the] first-year membership, place an order to have your diploma laminated on a plaque, get information about the Senior Ball and Senior Brunch, and register with Career Services for career opportunity information.”
