This immersive picture story captures Commencement for the 乐播传媒 Class of 2024, which came in with a pandemic and went out on May 26 in high style and great happiness.

Produced by the 乐播传媒 Communications and Marketing Office, with photography by Phyllis Graber Jensen, video by Theophil Syslo, and text by Jay Burns

This immersive photographic display captures 乐播传媒’ distinctive Baccalaureate Service. Far from serious or somber, it is a “celebration that is particular to each graduating class,” said President Garry W. Jenkins.

Produced by 乐播传媒 Communications and Marketing with photography by Phyllis Graber Jensen and text by Jay Burns.

From shelling in Iraq to the shelter of 乐播传媒, Mohammed Shwani ’24 was able to find a public platform during Commencement Week to thank his parents and 乐播传媒 for helping him achieve his dreams.

One of the nation鈥檚 foremost journalists, NPR’s Mary Louise Kelly, offered three pieces of life advice to the Class of 2024: Be wary of when success becomes a non-stop treadmill, remember much of life depends on what we choose to see, and hold tight to those lifelong friendships forged at 乐播传媒.

Amelia Hawkins 鈥�24 wants her 乐播传媒 classmates to graduate with a sense of hope, so she created an ivy stone design everyone can rally around: the ducks at Lake Andrews.

Mary Louise Kelly, a journalist and co-host of NPR鈥檚 All Things Considered and author of It. Goes. So. Fast.: The Year of No Do-Overs, will deliver the 乐播传媒 College Commencement address on Sunday, May 26, 2024.

A journalist who has never wavered in her chosen duty to inform the public about the forces at work in our society and their impact on our lives, Kelly will receive an honorary Doctor of Letters degree and be joined by two other honorary degree recipients:

• Richard Blanco, an award-winning author and poet who explores ideas of identity, love, and home, will receive a Doctor of Letters degree.
• Clayton Spencer, a transformative leader in U.S. higher education who oversaw far-reaching strategic improvements at 乐播传媒 as the college’s eighth president, will receive a Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

The 158th 乐播传媒 Commencement will be the first for President Garry W. Jenkins, who took office as the college’s ninth president on July 1, 2023.

“I am proud and honored to welcome individuals who are so incredibly deserving of the college’s highest recognition,” said Jenkins. “From the strength of 乐播传媒 today to how we interpret, comprehend, and understand ourselves and our world, they have made significant and wide-ranging contributions to our lives and society.”

Beginning at 10 a.m. and concluding shortly after noon, Commencement takes place on the Coram Library Terrace on the Historic Quad. The event will be streamed live on the and pages as well as on the 乐播传媒 website.

Richard Blanco

An award-winning author and poet whose close attention to the ordinary illuminates extraordinary truths, Richard Blanco explores ideas of identity, love, and home. In 2013, he was selected as the fifth inaugural poet by President Obama, the youngest as well as the first Latinx, immigrant, and gay person to serve in that role.

Born in Madrid, Spain, to Cuban-exile parents and raised in Miami in a working-class family, Blanco, who has called Maine his home in recent years, uses his poetry to negotiate universal themes of identity, place and belonging. His most recent collection of new and selected works, Homeland of My Body, evokes 鈥渉ome鈥� as not just a specific, tangible place but also internal, within one鈥檚 entire being.

After earning a bachelor鈥檚 degree in civil engineering from Florida International University in 1991 and working as an engineer, Blanco turned his insights and expression toward poetry, returning to his alma mater and earning a master鈥檚 in creative writing from FIU in 1997. He has also authored the memoirs For All of Us; One Today: An Inaugural Poet鈥檚 Journey; and The Prince of Los Cocuyos: A Miami Childhood.

Blanco鈥檚 numerous awards and honorary degrees include the Agnes Starrett Poetry Prize, the PEN American Beyond Margins Award, the Patterson Prize, and a Lambda Literary Award for memoir. A Woodrow Wilson Fellow who is now an associate professor at FIU, Blanco was The Academy of American Poets鈥� first education ambassador and the first poet laureate for Miami-Dade County. The citation for his National Humanities Medal, awarded in 2023, noted, 鈥淧ersonal experience anchors the poetry and prose of Richard Blanco, but he also somehow includes us all.鈥�

Mary Louise Kelly

As a journalist, Mary Louise Kelly has sought authenticity over artifice, conducting incisive interviews, sharing deeply researched reports, and never wavering in her chosen duty to inform the public about the forces at work in our society and their impact on our lives.聽Well-known as a host of NPR鈥檚 All Things Considered since 2018, she has long moved fluidly between the worlds of broadcast and print journalism, providing the highest degree of service to both readers and listeners in her more than three decades as a journalist.

Early in her career, she reported for the BBC World Service and was a CNN producer. She joined NPR in 2001 as a senior editor and, in 2004, became its first intelligence reporter. Her truth seeking has taken her to North Korea, Russia, Ukraine, Afghanistan, Israel, Iran, and beyond, and her byline has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and Newsweek, and she is a contributing writer at The Atlantic. She led the NPR team that was named a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2021 for reporting from Iran.

Kelly is also the author of two novels, Anonymous Sources and The Bullet, which have been translated into more than a dozen languages worldwide. Her memoir of parenting amidst her older son鈥檚 last year at home before college, It. Goes. So. Fast., was an instant New York Times bestseller. Kelly earned her bachelor鈥檚 degree from Harvard University in government and French language and literature, and a master鈥檚 in European studies at the University of Cambridge in England. She created and taught a graduate course on national security and journalism at Georgetown University.

Clayton Spencer

A transformative leader in U.S. higher education for more than three decades and a powerful voice in service of the liberal arts, Clayton Spencer served as president of 乐播传媒 from 2012 to 2023. As president, she oversaw far-reaching strategic improvements that elevated the college鈥檚 strength and reputation.

Centering equity and inclusion as animating 乐播传媒 values, the college made significant advances under her leadership in its academic program, the student experience, and fundraising. 乐播传媒 created a Program in Digital and Computational Studies; built a state-of-the-art STEM facility; expanded the faculty; launched major transformations in curriculum and teaching; and completed its largest fundraising campaign ever, while doubling the college鈥檚 endowment. Spencer also spearheaded the creation of 乐播传媒鈥� nationally recognized Purposeful Work program, which mobilizes core strengths of the liberal arts to prepare students for lives of meaning and purpose.

Before 乐播传媒, she served on Harvard University鈥檚 senior leadership team for 15 years, overseeing strategic initiatives on behalf of four successive presidents. In the early 1990s, she worked for the late U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy as chief education counsel, directing the Senate’s legislative agenda in education. As 乐播传媒 president, she served on the boards of the American Council on Education and the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, among others. Spencer currently serves on the boards of the Davis Educational Foundation and the Portland Museum of Art, and previously served as a Trustee of Williams College and Phillips Exeter Academy. She earned a B.A. from Williams College, magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa; a J.D. from Yale Law School; and master鈥檚 degrees from Oxford and Harvard universities.  

This campus map shows locations of various resources and activities for 乐播传媒 Commencement on Sunday, May 26, 2024, including vehicle parking, portable bathrooms, handicap accessibility, entrances to guest seating on the Historic Quad, charging stations, and, of course, the ceremony itself.

乐播传媒 Locations for Photos

Want to show your Bobcat pride? Celebrate your graduate with these lawn sign designs. Just download and order through your local copy & print business. Download the printable PDF to see the complete collection.

Printable Lawn Sign for 2024 Families

• Download the PDF 12×18
• Download the PDF 18×24

Thumbnail previews of each option:

Social Media Frames

Last updated: Jan. 9, 2024

We are looking forward to welcoming 乐播传媒 families and friends to campus in May to celebrate the Class of 2024. We will continue to update this website as more details are confirmed.

If you have any questions, email Christine Schwartz at cschwart@bates.edu

• What, where, when
• The Commencement livestream
• Visitor policy 

What, where, when

When is 乐播传媒 Commencement 2024?

The 158th Commencement of 乐播传媒 College will take place on Sunday, May 26, 2024, beginning at 10 a.m. and ending shortly after noon on the Coram Library Terrace on the Historic Quad.

What activities are planned for students prior to Commencement? Will the college do anything special to recognize the unusual college experience of the Class of 2024?

A schedule overview of events for Commencement week can be found on our Commencement website. There are a number of events all week for students, as well as events for families toward the end of the week.

Throughout winter semester, seniors will hear from their co-class presidents about how they would like the class to celebrate the culmination of their time at 乐播传媒. Please encourage your senior to share their input, participate in decisions regarding programs for Senior Week, and connect with their class leaders about anything special they are interested in proposing so this is a truly class-centered moment.

Are tickets required for the Commencement ceremony? Is there a limit on how many guests graduating seniors may invite to attend Commencement itself?

Tickets are not required, and there is no limit on the number of guests graduating seniors may invite to Commencement.

Where do families and guests sit? What time should they arrive?

Families and friends may sit in any areas not marked as reserved. Please ask an usher if you are unsure. Family members can arrive as early as 7 a.m. to begin selecting seats.

If you wish to hold seats with jackets, etc., a person from your party must remain with your held seats. Unattended seats are not considered held, even if you leave items on the chairs.

We ask that all guests arrive and take their seats by 9:15 a.m. to view the Commencement procession.

Where do graduating seniors sit during the ceremony?

Seniors are seated in front of the stage in reserved seating alphabetically according to their last name. Seniors with the last name A-K will sit on the right side, and seniors with the last name L-Z will sit on the left as you are facing the stage.

Will Commencement Weekend be accessible for people with disabilities?

Yes, 乐播传媒 strives to make Commencement accessible. There is accessible parking behind the Bonney Science Center, and there is a small accessible drop-off zone on Campus Avenue next to Carnegie Science Hall.

At Baccalaureate on Saturday and at Commencement on Sunday, there will be accessible seating on the Historic Quad. Families who need this seating should look for chairs with blue covers. On Sunday, staff ushers can also help you find accessible seating.

If you anticipate barriers or would like to request an accommodation related to any of the planned programs, activities, or materials, please reach out to Brenda Pelletier, Associate Director of Conferences and Campus Events at bpelleti@bates.edu or 207-786-6400.

Will there be a professional photographer taking pictures during the ceremony?

Professional photographers from GradImages will photograph each senior as they receive their diploma and while leaving the stage. Approximately two weeks after Commencement, notification with details on how to access their proofs will be sent directly to each graduate who has provided the college with their post-乐播传媒 email address.

When do graduating seniors need to move out of their dorms?

Graduating seniors should plan to move out of their dorms by 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 26. Please contact the Residence Life and Health Education Office at reslife@bates.edu for any questions or concerns regarding the move-out process.

If graduates have a sibling who is a 乐播传媒 student, can the sibling stay in campus housing through Commencement?

Siblings of graduating seniors who wish to remain in their campus housing through Commencement should reach out to reslife@bates.edu to request approval. All siblings should note that attendance at senior week events is limited to seniors only.

Will families be allowed in campus buildings during Commencement weekend?

Families will be allowed to enter the following buildings in order to access bathroom facilities:

• Clifton Daggett Gray Athletic Building
• Commons
• Dana
• Gomes Chapel
• Hathorn
• Ladd Library
• Merrill Gym

Families will be able to access specific student residences as permitted by the Office of Residence Life during student move-out hours.

What dining options will be available for students and their families?

Dining at the end of Commencement week expands to include options for families who have arrived for the festivities.

Friday May 24 

• 8-10 a.m.: Breakfast (Commons, open to seniors and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required.)
• 12-2 p.m.: Lunch (Commons, open to seniors and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required.)
• 5-7 p.m.: Dinner (Commons, open to seniors and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required.)
• 8:30-10:00 p.m.: Senior/Parent Wine and Cheese Tasting (Perry Atrium, no charge for seniors and their families)

Saturday May 25

• 8-10 a.m.:  Continental Breakfast  (Commons, open to seniors and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required.)
• 12:30-2:30 p.m.: Lunch (Commons, open to seniors, their families, and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required for students. Families use one of their senior’s guest passes or pay with a credit card. The cost for guests is $12 per person.)
• 5:30-7:30 p.m.: Dinner (Commons, open to seniors, their families, and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required for students. Families can use one of their senior’s guest passes or pay with a credit card. The dinner cost for guests is $14 per person.)
• 12:30-1:30 a.m.: Senior Breakfast (Commons, open to seniors and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required.)

Sunday May 26

• 7-8:30 a.m.: Breakfast (Commons, open to seniors and underclass students who have approval to remain on campus. 乐播传媒 ID required.)
• 7-8:30 a.m.: Coffee service for families (Library Arcade)
• 12-2 p.m.: Traditional Commencement Lunch (in front of Commons and under the Bardwell field tent, open to seniors and their families)

Will there be water available on campus?

Water will be available during all events. Look for the canoes under the garnet feather flags along Alumni Walk, on the Historic Quad, and in other high-visit areas.

What will the weather be like? How should I dress?

May weather in Maine is quite variable. You should plan to bring clothing that is appropriate for rain and cool temperatures, as well as for warm weather. Please remember the ceremony is outside, so we recommend wearing shoes suitable for walking on wet grass.

What happens in the case of inclement weather?

Commencement is outside 鈥� rain or shine 鈥� but in the case of thunder or lightning, the ceremony will be paused. Guests will be directed to the Gray Cage and Alumni Gym, students to Commons, and faculty to the Perry Atrium until the ceremony can be resumed.

Where can I purchase Commencement gifts?

The 乐播传媒 College Store .

Can I fly a drone over the event?

No. Unmanned Aerial Systems, i.e., drones, are prohibited at all times.

Can I bring my pet to campus?

Pets are prohibited inside all campus buildings and at all dining events. Service animals are welcome.

The Commencement livestream

How can I watch the livestream?

The livestream will be publicly available so friends and family members will be able to watch on a wide array of platforms.

• 乐播传媒 Website: bates.edu/live 
• Facebook:
• LinkedIn:
• Instagram:
• YouTube:

All platforms, with the exception of Instagram Live, will afford the same viewer experience. With a four-camera setup, the livestream will show everything that takes place!

Will I be able to view the video afterward?

Yes. After the livestream concludes, the video will be available on demand on Facebook, , and bates.edu/commencement/live.

What time will the livestream begin?

The livestream will begin at approximately 9:00 a.m. with the procession starting at 9:30 a.m. and the Commencement ceremony starting at 10:00 a.m.

How can families and loved ones participate in the Commencement livestream?

Our goal is to use all elements of social media to help a wide range of families and loved ones join this event in the virtual space. The event will be available on the , allowing audience members to share in real-time their congratulations and shout-outs.

If you wish, friends and family members may post Commencement content to your own personal social media and tag the official @batescollege accounts, which then may be shared to the entire 乐播传媒 community.

Leading up to Commencement, family members and loved ones can contribute a sentiment to the seniors, and it will appear on the #乐播传媒2024 aggregation page within the hour. 

Will I experience connectivity issues, as I do with video conferencing?

乐播传媒 has successfully streamed past Commencements through the Facebook platform and it has proven reliable and accessible. There still could be hiccups based on your local internet speed and signal strength.

Visitor policy 

What are the public health guidelines for participants and guests at Commencement 2024?

乐播传媒 is a mask-optional campus. If visitors have concerns about their own health risk factors related to attending mask-optional college events, they should seek guidance from their primary care physician.

Members of our community may choose to wear a mask at any time for any reason, including and not limited to their own level of comfort, personal medical status, family medical status, or personal risk. We encourage you to be courteous and respectful with regard to the needs and choices of others about masking. 

Monday May 20, 2024

• 5:30p-7:00p (Gray Cage)
  • Farewell Celebration for Seniors and Faculty 

Wednesday, May 22, 2024

• Short Term Ends
• 2:00p-4:00p (Perry Atrium)
  • Short Term Showcase

Thursday, May 23, 2024

• By 5:00p
  • Underclass students depart

Friday, May 24, 2024

• 8:00a-10:00a (Commons)
  • Breakfast (Students Only)
• 9:30a (Garcelon Field)
  • Senior Class Photo
• 10:00a-12:00n (Historic Quad)
  • Mandatory Commencement Rehearsal – Caps and Gowns will be handed out at rehearsal. Senior Survey must be completed to receive Cap and Gown.
• 12:00n-2:00p (Commons)
  • Lunch (Students Only)
• 12:00n – 12:30p (Historic Quad)
  • Platform Party Rehearsal
• 12:30p-3:00p (Historic Quad)
  • Baccalaureate Rehearsal 

• 5:00p-7:00p (Olin Arts Center)
  • Induction Ceremonies
    • 4:00p-5:00p Phi Beta Kappa
    • 5:15-6:15p College Key
• 5:00p-7:00p (Commons)
  • Dinner (Students Only)
• 8:00p-8:45p (Chase Hall)
  • Families of the Class of 2024 Collaborative Work Space Opening Celebration
• 8:30p- 10:00p (Perry Atrium)
  • Senior/Parent Wine and Cheese Tasting 

Saturday, May 25, 2024

• 8:30a-10:00a (Benjamin Mays Center)
  • Psychology Continental Breakfast
• 9:00a-10:00a (Pettengill 260)
  • Sociology Continental Breakfast
• 8:30a-9:30a (Commons)
  • Continental Breakfast (Students Only)
• 8:30a-11:00a (Library Arcade)
  • Coffee Services for Families
• 10:30a (Alumni Walk)
  • Seniors line-up for Baccalaureate – Wear Cap and Gown
• 11:00a- 12:30p ( Historic Quad Rain or Shine)
  • Baccalaureate Service
• 12:30p-2:30p (Commons)
  • Lunch in Commons – Open to Student & Families (Families use one of their senior’s remaining guest passes or pay with a credit card. The lunch cost for guests is $12 per person.)
• 5:30p-7:30p (Commons)
  • Dinner in Commons – Open to Student & Families (Families use one of their senior’s remaining guest passes or pay with a credit card. The dinner cost for guests is $14 per person.)

Sunday, May 26, 2024

• 12:30a- 1:30a (Commons)
  • Senior Breakfast (Students Only)
• 7:00a-8:30a (Commons)
  • Breakfast (Students Only)
• 7:00a-8:30a (Library Arcade)
  • Coffee Service for Families 
• 8:30a (Alumni Walk)
  • Line-Up for Commencement – Wear Cap and Gown
• 10a-12:00n (Historic Quad – Rain or Shine)
  • Commencement 
• 12n-2:00p
  • Picnic lunch for graduates and their families (Bardwell Field Tent in front of Commons)