The University of Colorado at Boulder will hold its spring commencement ceremony on Friday, May 8, beginning at 8:30 a.m. at Folsom Field, where 5,282 degrees will be conferred.
Stadium gates will open at 7 a.m. and guests are urged to be in their seats by 8:15 a.m. University officials are recommending that people arrive as early as possible to avoid traffic delays. The ceremony is free and open to the public.
Each spring the commencement ceremony begins with a procession of faculty and all graduates starting at the Norlin Quadrangle at 8 a.m. and ending at Folsom Field.
Degrees to be awarded include 4,255 bachelor's degrees, 782 master's degrees, 150 law degrees and 95 doctoral degrees.
Guests are asked not to bring large purses or bags to the ceremony. People entering the stadium may be subject to search. The ceremony will be held outdoors in the stadium regardless of the weather. However, in the event of heavy rain or snow an abbreviated ceremony will be held.
John Roberts, co-anchor of CNN's "American Morning" program, will give the commencement address.
Roberts joined CNN in 2006 after spending more than 14 years with CBS News, where he served as its chief White House correspondent and chief medical correspondent. He also anchored the weekend editions of the "CBS Evening News" and was anchor of the "CBS Morning News." He earned three national Emmy Awards for his coverage of the Atlanta Olympics bombing in 1996, the death of Princess Diana in 1997 and the crash of TWA Flight 800 on July 17, 1996.
Thomas F. Marsico, founder, chairman, CEO and chief investment officer of Marsico Capital Management, is among four people who will be awarded special honors by CU-Boulder during the commencement ceremony. Marsico, Martin Isepp, Alexander Bogusky and John Barth will receive honorary degrees from CU-Boulder.
In 2002 Marsico and his wife Cydney established the Marsico Endowed Chairs of Excellence to support CU faculty members whose intellectual achievements have received high national and international recognition. The two chairs currently are held by Nobel laureate Eric Cornell, a CU-Boulder adjoint professor of physics and fellow at the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and Leslie Leinwand, a professor in CU's molecular, cellular and developmental biology department and a professor in the cardiology division at the University of Colorado Denver's Anschutz Medical Campus. Marsico will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Humane Letters.
Isepp is a world-renowned conductor, pianist and vocal coach and is considered an expert on Mozart and Benjamin Britten. He has performed and recorded with many well-known classical singers including Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Jessye Norman and Maureen Forrester. For many years Isepp came annually to CU's College of Music to present a weeklong master class with singer/pianist teams. He will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Humane Letters.
Bogusky is an influential and creative advertising and marketing innovator and pioneer in the field of social marketing. Time magazine listed him among the "Visionaries of Tomorrow" in 2004. He is chairman of the Crispin Porter + Bogusky advertising agency, an award-winning agency with offices across the globe, including in Boulder. Bogusky will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Humane Letters.
Barth is an award-winning novelist, short-story writer and essayist who has published 18 books. He is the winner of many literary awards including the National Book Award, F. Scott Fitzgerald Award for Outstanding Achievement in American Fiction and the Lannan Foundation Award for Lifetime Achievement. He will receive the honorary degree Doctor of Humane Letters.
Many departments within CU-Boulder's schools and colleges will hold events to personally recognize their graduates. Students should check with their individual departments for more information. For a schedule of individual recognition ceremonies visit .
For more information about the commencement ceremony visit /. The ceremony will be broadcast on the Web and can be accessed by visiting the commencement Web site and clicking on the webcast link any time during the ceremony.