OSU-Cascades » OSU-Cascades 10th Commencement marks decade of student success and community support

OSU-Cascades 10th Commencement marks decade of student success and community support

At its first commencement in 2002, Oregon State University - Cascades awarded 67 degrees and shared its graduation ceremony with the community college.  At its 10th Commencement on Sunday, June 12, 2011, OSU-Cascades will draw a crowd of more than 1,500 family and friends of graduates to Drake Park in Bend and will grant degrees to 252 students.  In total, OSU-Cascades will have awarded more than 1640 degrees during the previous decade.

The commencement event begins at 1 p.m.  In recognition of the 10th anniversary of the campus, OSU President Ed Ray and Provost Sabah Randhawa will deliver remarks at the ceremony.  Former senator Neil Bryant will deliver the keynote address.  A longtime supporter of higher education in Central Oregon, Bryant was a member of the Central Oregon Regional Advisory board formed in 1998. CORAB was the group that created the original proposal for the campus.

 

First Distinguished Service Award to be presented posthumously to family of Ben Westlund

During the event, OSU-Cascades will present the campus’ first annual Distinguished Service Award, an award created to honor individuals, businesses or organizations that have made exceptional contributions to OSU-Cascades, Central Oregon, the State of Oregon, or the world.

The award will be presented posthumously to Libby Westlund, the widow of the former Oregon State Treasurer Ben Westlund, and her children.  Ben Westlund was a key proponent and champion in the creation and funding of OSU-Cascades.

 

About the Class of 2010

With the class of 2010, OSU-Cascades will have awarded more than 1,640 undergraduate and graduate degrees since it was founded in 2001.  This year, degrees will be conferred to 157 graduates of OSU programs and 95 graduates of UO programs.  Of the OSU graduates, 52 are to be awarded master’s degrees from the counseling and teaching programs.

Most of the graduates are from Central Oregon.  In addition, 18 of Oregon’s 36 counties are represented.  Graduates represent five other states.  The average age of the graduating class is 31; the oldest is 61 and the youngest is 20.  Five percent participated in study abroad programs in six different countries. 

The commencement ceremony will include presentations by two OSU-Cascades candidates for graduation, Jessica Corrales, a general science major from Bend, and Macy Holmes, a human development and family sciences major from Redmond.