IOWA CITY, IOWA (May 9, 2022) — Trey Van Hemert of Muscatine, Iowa, is one of only nineteen students at the University of Iowa who will serve as a student speaker at one of the commencement events scheduled next week.
More than 5,100 undergraduate and graduate students at Iowa will receive degrees during in-person and livestreamed commencement ceremonies beginning with the College of Pharmacy's Doctor of Pharmacy ceremony on May 12 and concluding with the College of Dentistry's ceremony on June 4. See the full list of ceremonies here.
Van Hemert will speak at the commencement for the College of Pharmacy at 10AM, Thursday, May 12. UI President Barbara Wilson and Dean Donald Letendre will provide messages to students. Board of Regents member Abigail Crow will attend. Nancy Alvarez, associate dean of academic and professional affairs-Phoenix campus, and R Ken Coit, associate professor of practice and director of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy, will be the guest speakers.
"It is an honor and a privilege to speak on behalf of my fellow graduating classmates and it is something that I will remember for the rest of my life. We have all worked very hard and are excited to celebrate our achievements. I want to congratulate everyone for making it to this moment," Van Hemert said.
“Thank you to the University of Iowa College of Pharmacy for a fantastic experience and all the preceptors and mentors who have guided us along the way. Go Hawks!" he added.
Dates, times, and livestreaming details for each ceremony are listed below. Learn more on the UI commencement website.
After the conclusion of the livestreamed ceremony, the video will be uploaded to the UI's YouTube channel.
Thursday, May 12
College of Pharmacy
Doctor of Pharmacy ceremony
10AM
Hancher Auditorium
UI President Barbara Wilson and Dean Donald Letendre will provide messages to students. Board of Regents member Abigail Crow will attend. Graduate Trey Van Hemert will be the student speaker. Nancy Alvarez, associate dean of academic and professional affairs-Phoenix campus, and R Ken Coit, associate professor of practice and director of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy, will be the guest speakers.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/IERXQf79Dww
College of Education
Undergraduate and Teacher Education Program ceremony
4PM
Hancher Auditorium
Dean Daniel Clay will deliver messages to students. The student speaker will be graduate Tucker Chorpening, of Independence, Iowa, who is receiving a Bachelor of Arts in education studies and human relations, a Bachelor of Arts in English, and a minor in political science. Saba Khan Vlach, an assistant professor in the college, will be the faculty speaker, and Jim Miller, director of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Dan Gable Museum in Waterloo, Iowa, will be the keynote speaker. President Barbara Wilson and Abby Crow, member of the Board of Regents, State of Iowa, will attend.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/rjuRWbYs39w
Friday, May 13
Graduate College
Doctoral degree candidates
11AM
Carver-Hawkeye Arena
UI President Barbara Wilson and Associate Provost for Graduate Education and Dean Amanda Thein will deliver messages to students. An Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters will be bestowed upon Rita Dove, graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop (MFA '77) and former US Poet Laureate. Graduate Redwan Bin Abdul Baten of Bangladesh will be the student speaker.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/1BENdXQyQqI
College of Law
2PM
Hancher Auditorium
Dean Kevin Washburn will deliver welcome message and remarks to students. Graduate Anne Parrish of Des Moines, Iowa, will be the student speaker. Cannon D Lambert Sr (96JD) will be the alumni speaker. Executive Vice President and Provost Kevin Kregel will confer degrees. Christina Bohannan, Lauridsen Family Fellow in Law; Alison Guernsey, clinical associate professor; and Joseph W Yockey, David H Vernon Professor, will present and hood the graduates.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/3Y3dhbUO6Vg
Roy J and Lucille A Carver College of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine and Master in Medical Education
6:30PM
Hancher Auditorium
UI President Barbara Wilson and J Brooks Jackson, vice president for medical affairs and the Tyrone D Artz Dean of the Roy J and Lucille A Carver College of Medicine, will deliver welcome messages to students. Christopher S Cooper, senior associate dean for medical education, will give introductory remarks. David Moore III, of Iowa Falls, Iowa, will be the student speaker, and Michael Haugsdal, clinical associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology and assistant medical clerkship director, will provide the commencement address. Jane L Miller, professor and director of the Master in Medical Education Program, will present the graduates of the Master in Medical Education Program. Graduate Lisa Bell, of Torrance, California, and 2022 recipient of the Leonard Tow Humanism in Medicine Award, will administer the Hippocratic Oath. Nancy Dunkel of the Board of Regents, State of Iowa; Jessica Zuzga-Reed, president-elect of the Iowa Medical Society; and Kimberly Hunter, interim chief executive officer of UI Hospitals and Clinics, also will participate in the commencement ceremony.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/6X-C6e_xmOI
Graduate College
Master's degree candidates
7PM
Carver-Hawkeye Arena
Executive Vice President and Provost Kevin Kregel and Associate Provost for Graduate Education and Dean Amanda Thein will deliver messages to students. The alumna speaker will be Hayley Harvey (DDS '94, MS '96). Graduate Michaeljulius Idani of Harlem, New York, will be the student speaker.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/WFHpPIzKYaM
Saturday, May 14
College of Nursing
9AM
Hancher Auditorium
Dean Julie Zerwic will provide opening remarks and deliver a message to students. Alumni Col Aaron Gopp, (MSN, CRNA '04) of Fruitland, Idaho will be the keynote speaker. The student speaker will be BSN graduate Molly Sullivan of Littleton, Colorado. Executive Vice President and Provost Kevin Kregel will present the charge to the graduates and confer degrees.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/m-LBdE2y2Lo
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS)
9AM
Carver-Hawkeye Arena
This CLAS ceremony will recognize graduates majoring in actuarial science; applied physics; astronomy; criminology, law and justice; communication studies; dance, data science; enterprise leadership; ethics and public policy; global health studies; history; interdepartmental studies; international relations; international studies; journalism and mass communication; linguistics; mathematics; microbiology; music; neuroscience; philosophy; physics; political science; psychology; religious studies; social work; sociology; statistics; theatre arts; and world languages: Asian languages and literature; French; German; Italian; Portuguese; Russian; Spanish.
Dean Sara Sanders and UI President Barbara Wilson will confer degrees. President Wilson will confer an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters upon Mark Johnson (MA '73), an award-winning film and TV producer.
The student speaker will be Camellia Pham, of Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, who will receive a Bachelor of Arts degree in comparative literature with honors, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Chinese, and a minor in translation for global literacy with highest distinction.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/XPcrBBAM3Jo
College of Public Health
10AM
Iowa Memorial Union (IMU)
Dean Edith Parker and UI Vice President for Research J Martin Scholtz will confer degrees. Parker will deliver a message to students. Graduates Kurayi Mahachi, of Harare, Zimbabwe, and Eliza Steere, of Rancho Palos Verde, California, will be the student speakers.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/jrci9mh8FOk
Carver College of Medicine
Associated medical sciences degree candidates
2PM
Hancher Auditorium
President Barbara Wilson and Colin Derdeyn, the Krabbenhoft Chair and professor and department executive officer of radiology, director of the Iowa Institute of Biomedical Imaging, and professor of neurology, will deliver welcome messages to the students. The keynote speaker will be Marc Pizzimenti, associate professor of anatomy and cell biology and director of the master of clinical anatomy program. Benjamin Ong, of Penang, Malaysia, master of clinical nutrition graduate, and Drew Pochinski, of Rockwell City, Iowa, Bachelor of Science in radiation sciences graduate, will be the student speakers. Anthony Knight, clinical associate professor of radiology, administrative director of radiation sciences education, and director of nuclear medicine technology education, will provide the charge to students. President Wilson will confer degrees.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/DR6acyhKeK4
College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS)
1PM
Carver-Hawkeye Arena
This CLAS ceremony will recognize graduates majoring in African American studies; American studies; ancient civilization; anthropology; art; art history; biochemistry; biology; biomedical sciences; chemistry; cinema; classical languages; computer science; economics; English; English and creative writing; environmental policy and planning; environmental sciences; gender, women's, and sexuality studies; geography; geoscience; health and human physiology; human physiology; informatics; science studies; screenwriting arts; social justice; speech and hearing science; sport and recreation management; sport studies; sustainability sciences; and therapeutic recreation.
Dean Sara Sanders and Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education and Dean of the University College Tanya Uden-Holman will confer degrees.
The student speaker will be Mitchell O'Meara of West Des Moines, Iowa, who will receive a Bachelor of Science degree in human physiology with honors and a minor in American Sign Language, with highest distinction.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/d_djt2b8dOo
University College
3PM
Virtual
This virtual ceremony will include University College graduates earning the Bachelor of Applied Studies and Bachelor of Liberal Studies degrees. President Barbara Wilson and Associate Provost and Dean of University College Tanya Uden-Holman will deliver messages to the students. Alexandra Nica, associate professor in the Tippie College of Business, will be the faculty speaker. Graduates Ryan Schmittou of Chicago, Illinois, and Marnae Wright of Ankeny, Iowa, will be the student speakers.
A ceremony link will be available approximately one week prior to the virtual début.
Tippie College of Business
5PM
Carver-Hawkeye Arena
Dean Amy Kristof-Brown will deliver messages to students. Alumni Jeff Lorenger (BBA87/JD91/MBA01), president and CEO of HNI Corp, will be the guest speaker, and graduate Allison Klage, of Wheaton, Illinois, will be the student speaker.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/IrqibhbHJbU
Sunday, May 15
College of Engineering
12PM
Carver-Hawkeye Arena
President Barbara Wilson and Dean Harriet B Nembhard will deliver messages to students. Valerie C Boksa, of Caledonia, Michigan, will be the student speaker. UI alumna Diana Craigmile of the Kellogg Co will be the guest speaker. Nancy Dunkel, Board of Regents, State of Iowa, will serve as a platform official.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/RgqDab8wCn4
Saturday, May 21
Tippie MBA Programs
10AM
Hancher Auditorium
Dean Amy Kristof-Brown and Associate Dean for Graduate Management Programs Jen Blackhurst will deliver messages to students. Alumna Yvette Taylor (MBA ‘92), national manager of wealth-management client-support services for Northern Trust Corp, will be the guest speaker.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/YzOwqXPqXjs
Friday, June 3
College of Dentistry
3PM
Hancher Auditorium
President Barbara Wilson and Dean Clark Stanford will deliver messages to students. Kane Louscher, of Mason City, Iowa, will be the student speaker. Faculty members Michelle Krupp, Marcela Hernandez, and Sherry Timmons will present honors and awards. Faculty Members Steven Means, Michael Santucci, Marcela Hernandez, and John Syrbu will hood the graduates.
Live video stream: https://youtu.be/jLosx-eun2U
Streaming and broadcast
See ceremony details above for live video stream links. Streaming pages will go live 24 hours before the ceremonies, and archival videos will replace livestreams on these pages shortly after the ceremonies conclude.
Social media
Social-media users can join the celebration online by using the hashtag #UIowaGrad22 with UI graduation-related posts on their favorite platforms. Some posts will be shared via UI social media channels.
About the University of Iowa
As a top global university, Iowa is the ideal destination for learning, discovery, and innovation. We bring art and science together to create a truly unique interdisciplinary education. With over 200 areas of study to choose from, students are encouraged to mix and match majors, minors, and certificates to earn a degree that reflects their unique interests.
From inside our world-class medical center to the most prestigious creative-writing program in the US, students have access to quality academic support and are equipped with the tools they need to stand out in a competitive workforce. Our 15:1 student-to-faculty ratio allows students to work directly with experts in their field while earning valuable, practical skills.
Our campus seamlessly blends into the heart of downtown Iowa City, making it easy to access academic resources and belong to a larger, welcoming community. With over 500 student organizations, clubs, and communities on campus, and countless in-town events scheduled throughout the year, Iowa makes it easy to build a network of friendships and connections that last a lifetime.
To learn more about the University of Iowa, click HERE.
