Winter Commencement - Saturday, December 16th, 2023
Live Stream the Commencement Ceremony
View the Winter 2023 Commencement Program
Commencement Information
Winter 2023 graduation will have two ceremonies on Saturday, December 16 at The River Center, in downtown Davenport (136 E 3rd St). The Graduate and Doctoral Hooding/Commencement ceremony will begin at 9 a.m., with doors opening for a student check-in time of 8:00 a.m. - 8:15 a.m. The Undergraduate Commencement ceremony will begin at 12 p.m., with doors opening for a student check-in time of 11:00 a.m. - 11:15 a.m. Listed below is a schedule of events for the semester. Please review the schedule and attend the events accordingly. Tickets are not required to attend the commencement ceremony.
The deadline to apply for graduation is October 16th. Please note that students who apply after the October 16 deadline are not guaranteed to be listed in the printed program. If you, or your guests, require special accommodations to attend the December commencement ceremony, please contact the Accessibility Resource Center at 563/333-6275 or send an email to arc@zgjxmp.net.
Schedule of Events
Please check back often as the dates and details are being updated as the semester progresses.
Monday, September 25: Order your cap/gown
To order your cap and gown or any other products related to graduation, please use the following link starting on 09/25/23. Deadline date to order your cap/gown is 10/29/23. After this date, you must contact the Bookstore directly.
http://www.jostens.com/apps/store/customer/1071939/St-Ambrose-University/
Sunday, December 3
3 p.m.
Cultural Stole Ceremony
The Office of Student Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion will hold our Winter 2023 Cultural Stole Ceremony on Sunday December 3rd, for graduating students who identify as either (Asian, Black/African American, Hispanic/Latinx, Indigenous/Native American, and Pacific Islander). The in-person one-hour ceremony will occur in the Rogalski Center Ballroom on Sunday December 3rd, beginning at 3 pm. Please apply to participate in the ceremony by Wednesday, November 29th: http://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSct_nm3elByEOIhxzpkfxO6mXe1ddjvVbFDNhw9hDjFWo2JfQ/viewform
Wednesday, December 6: Pay Graduation fee
By this date, the $35.00 graduation fee needs to be paid to the Student Accounts Office. Any outstanding requirements with the Library, Athletic Office, General Accounting Office, Student Accounts Office, Bookstore, or Student Services need to be paid. Outstanding obligations from any of these offices could cause a delay in receiving your diploma and/or official transcripts.
Monday, December 11
4 p.m.
Ceremony honoring Graduating Service Members, Veterans and Family Members Rogalski Center Ballroom
Medals will be presented to graduating military veterans and service members in recognition of their achievement, which will be affixed to their graduation attire for the commencement ceremony. A reception with light refreshments will follow.
Thursday, December 14
5 p.m.
Commencement Rehearsal and Senior Reception, Rogalski Center Ballroom
Undergraduate students who will graduate this Winter are invited to the Commencement Rehearsal & Senior Reception hosted by the Registrar's Office and Alumni Office. Check-in begins at 4:30pm. Attendance is required for undergraduate students who plan to participate in the ceremony. If unable to attend, please email registrar@zgjxmp.net for further instructions.
Friday, December 15
6 p.m.
DPT Graduation Dinner, Rogalski Center Ballroom
The Physical Therapy Department will host a dinner for its graduates in the Rogalski Center Ballroom. Social @ 6pm and dinner @ 7pm. All questions should be directed to the Physical Therapy Department.
Friday, December 15
7 p.m.
Nursing Pinning Ceremony, Galvin Fine Arts Center
Pinning ceremony for Nursing graduates in the Galvin Fine Arts Center. All questions should be directed to the Nursing department.
Saturday, December 16
Graduate and Doctoral Hooding/Commencement Ceremony
8:00 a.m. Doors open
8:30 a.m. Candidates line up on the upper concourse of The River Center
9 a.m. Ceremony begins
Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony
10:30 a.m. Doors open
11:15 a.m. Candidates line up on the upper concourse of The River Center
12:00 p.m. Ceremony begins
Diplomas will be available on January 9, 2024. Diplomas may be picked up at the Office of the Registrar during regular business hours (8:00am-4:00pm). Diplomas not picked up by January 19, 2024 will be sent to the address you listed on your grad app. If you prefer your diploma be mailed out prior to this date, you must email registrar@zgjxmp.net with a verified address. Diplomas will not be released until all restrictions have been cleared.
Congratulations on your accomplishment, and best wishes for future success.
Conferring Degrees Student Accounts
Degree Candidates
Congratulations to all of our soon-to-be graduates!
Celebrate Your Graduate!
You have so much to celebrate!
Read below on ways to arrive and park for the ceremony, as well as how to make the day even more special with photos and flowers.
Winter Commencement Ceremony
RiverCenter, 136 E. Third St., Downtown Davenport, Iowa, 563-326-8500
Parking is available at the RiverCenter parking ramp on Brady Street between 2nd and 3rd streets.
Parking is complimentary between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. Graduation guests leaving the parking ramp after 3 p.m. will need to provide payment with one of the garage payment kiosks. On-street parking is free on weekends.
Order Photos
St. Ambrose University contracts with GradImages to take photos of graduates as they receive their diploma and as they walk off the graduation stage.
Graduates can pre-register prior to the event and receive a coupon code for a 20% discount on an order of at least $50. After the ceremony, graduates will receive the photo proofs via text message, email, and postal mail.
If you do not receive your proofs or have any additional questions, contact GradImages Customer Service Department at 800- 261-2576, online at www.gradimages.com, or email ecc.giservice@gradimages.net.
St. Ambrose does not receive photo proofs or order forms from GradImages.
Order St. Ambrose Diploma Frames
Frames for St. Ambrose University bachelor's and master's degree diplomas may be ordered through the St. Ambrose Campus Bookstore.
Frames for doctoral degrees may be ordered through FramingSuccess.com. Search for St. Ambrose University and select the option at the bottom of the page for "Frame Creator," which will allow you to customize the frame size.
Dimensions for St. Ambrose diplomas:
Bachelor's diplomas: 11 inches wide x 8-½ inches high
Master's diplomas: 11 inches wide x 8-½ inches high
Doctoral diplomas: 14 inches wide x 11 inches high
Order Flowers or T-Shirts
Celebrate and honor your graduate with flowers! Pre-ordering is available and flowers will be available for purchase at both ceremonies.
Place your order here.
If you or any of your guests require special accommodations to attend the Commencement ceremony, please call the Accessibility Resource Center at 563-333-6275 or email arc@zgjxmp.net.
Diplomas available.
Please remember that diplomas will not be released until all restrictions have been cleared.
Honorary Speakers and Degrees
Graduate Hooding and Commencement Speaker - Waylyn McCulloh
Waylyn McCulloh has worked in corrections and related criminal justice programs for 48 years. He is the district director for the Iowa Department of Corrections, Seventh District. McCulloch is responsible for the community corrections programs in a five-county area in Eastern Iowa. His responsibilities include grant program management, which supports the enhancement of specialty courts, improved mental health services, and justice-involved individual employment programs, and housing programs.
McCulloh was instrumental in educating hundreds of students at St. Ambrose University over 36 years. He served as the director of the St. Ambrose Crime Prevention Institute and department chair from 2003-2006 and again from 2007-2009. He taught numerous undergraduate and graduate courses and coordinated the student internship programs for graduate and undergraduate students in the Criminal Justice programs.
In addition to his work in criminal justice, McCulloh has been involved in several community volunteer programs. He served on the boards of Unity House of Davenport and Humility Homes and Services, Inc. He volunteered with Junior Achievement and the Scott County YMCA. He also volunteered with United Way Quad Cities and United Way of Clinton County, Iowa, for over 30 years. He is currently a member of the First Presbyterian Church adult choir.
McCulloh is married to his wife Libbi. They have three grown children and three grandchildren.
Undergraduate Commencement Speaker - Dr. William W. Parsons
William W. Parsons, PhD, professor emeritus, recently retired from St. Ambrose University after serving primarily in the Department of Political Science and Leadership Studies for 35 years. He served as department chair for over twenty years.
His teaching focus in political science includes American institutions, campaigns and elections, public policy, public administration, and leadership. Parsons continues to enjoy the interdisciplinary nature of politics.
While at St. Ambrose, Parsons engaged in many collaborative teaching and research opportunities with colleagues in sociology, criminal justice, management, and leadership. He also developed and served as the Director of the Master of Organizational Leadership program from 1998-2005. More recently he taught graduate-level courses in the Master of Criminal Justice program and the Master of Public Health program. He was instrumental in working with the late Jane Folwell to establish an endowment that continues to support faculty scholarship, departmental programming, and students pursuing majors in political science, international studies, and pre-law.
He is a co-author of two editions of Criminal Justice and the Policy Process (2008, 1998). In 2016, he conducted a focus group study of Iowa caucus voters that produced two conference papers: A Slice of Caucus Life (2016) and Do You Remember the Iowa Caucus (2017). Since 2018, he has been engaged in a collaborative research project on women in politics. He has a co-authored book forthcoming by the New York University Press in December of this year titled The Pink Wave: Women Running for Office After Trump.
Parsons served as an officer in the Iowa Association of Political Scientists from 2011-2015 including as president of the organization from 2013-2014.
He earned a master's degree in Public Administration from Iowa State University and a doctorate in Political Science from the University of Arizona.
Contact
Office of the Registrar
Ambrose Hall, 1st floor
518 W. Locust St.
Davenport, IA 52803
563-333-6203
registrar@zgjxmp.net