Niagara’s graduation moved to Artpark

Shaina Pumputis

LEWISTON, N.Y. – On Oct. 2 Niagara University Student Government Association (NUSGA) announced that Niagara University’s 2018 commencement will now be taking place at Artpark in Lewiston, New York. Previously, NU’s commencement has taken place in the Gallagher Center.

Another exciting change is that students will be receiving six tickets as opposed to four. The commencement ceremony can now hold 2,100 people instead of 1,400. Tickets for the ceremony are no longer general admission but assigned seating. Each student is guaranteed six seats for friends and family members. Along with the six tickets, Artpark’s lawn seats will also be open, weather permitting.

There will still be two ceremonies: one in the morning with the Colleges of Business Administration, Education, and Hospitality and Tourism Management and the second in the afternoon for the College of Art and Sciences. The ceremonies will be live-streamed in Clet Dining Hall, offering a greater opportunity for more people to see loved ones and friends walk the stage.

If students do not need all six tickets, they are able to return them and the tickets will be put back up into a lottery for other students who may need more. However, if a student would like to give tickets to a specific friend, that is possible. They have the opportunity to pick the seat for them on the Artpark website while getting seats for their own family.

NU is very excited about this change because it will solve many problems, from the parking, to not having enough tickets. Parking is available both at Artpark as well as NU, with shuttles available to and from the ceremony. Seniors should be looking for emails and more information on graduation as the school year progresses, and any questions can be directed to Mike Jeswald.

Correction: A correction has been made in the article on the person to contact.