Commencement — Graduate School

Doctoral Hooding and Graduation Ceremony

We are happy to announce our return to an in-person Doctoral Hooding and Graduation Ceremony for Spring 2021! In an effort to provide a safe and meaningful experience during this extraordinary time, we will hold the event outdoors.

Doctoral Hooding and Graduation Ceremony for the Class of 2020 and 2021 will occur on Thursday, May 6 at 4:00 p.m., at Cardinal Stadium (football stadium).

The safety and well-being of our graduates, their families, our faculty and staff and the community are of utmost concern. Despite personal vaccination status, masks/facial coverings will be required and must be worn at all times.

FOR STUDENTS:

ELECTRONIC CALL CARDS: Your electronic call card will have a unique QR code that will be scanned from your phone before you cross the stage so that your name will be read by our name reader. Make sure to bring your cell phone fully charged for the Doctoral Hooding Ceremony!

GRADUATE EXPRESS GATE: Gates to Cardinal Stadium open an hour before Doctoral Hooding begins. Graduates are asked to be in their seats at least 10 minutes before the ceremony. To avoid delays, Gate 3 has been designated as the Graduate Express Gate. Graduates only will be allowed to enter through Gate 3. Graduates will be seated by their Unit.

GUEST ENTRY: Guests may enter Cardinal Stadium from Gates 2, 4, and 5. Guests must show mobile tickets and screeners will monitor temperatures. Clear bags only are allowed and you will be asked to return other bags to your vehicle. Additional details can be found here: https://gocards.com/sports/2018/9/7/clear-bagpolicy.aspx. Masks must be worn at all times in Cardinal Stadium. Gates will open 1 hour before the ceremony.

ACCESSIBILITY: Information on accessibility and support services can be found here: http://louisville.edu/commencement/special-needs-and-services

Safety Protocols

Safety protocols and ceremony details will be based strictly on all UofL, state and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines regarding COVID-19 precautions.

Parking and Entry: Venue staff will direct graduates and guests in the parking lots. Parking is free. We will have multiple entry gates open and temperature checks will be completed on all attendees before entry is permitted. Attendees who arrive unmasked will not be allowed entry. Mask compliance will be strictly enforced.
Capacity: Only those with tickets will be allowed in the stadium. Our total attendance per event will be below the state-approved venue capacity of 12,000. Guest seating will be ticketed. More information on the ticketing process, including the number of guests allowed per graduate, will be shared with you by early April.
Navigating the stadium and seating: No congregating on the concourse will be permitted.

FOR FACULTY:

Parking Pass and Ticket Pick-up

All parking passes must be picked up from the Registrar's Office located in the Houchens Building, Room LL31. You may pick-up your envelope containing your parking pass beginning Tuesday, May 4th anytime during our normal business hours of 9:00am-5:00pm. Envelopes will not be available after 5:00pm on Friday, May 7th.

Important Information and Reminders

Parking Pass

You will place the parking pass on your dashboard on the driver's side of your vehicle before arriving at the parking lot entry. Please enter the H drive which will lead you to parking in the Bronze J lot on the west side of the Stadium where we will reserve spaces for our faculty and event staff so that you have a short walk to gate 7.
As there may be other events in the area, we recommend following the driving directions posted to http://louisville.edu/commencement/driving-directions. Parking lots will open 1 and a half hours before the start of the ceremony.

Entry

Gates will open 1 hour before the start of the ceremony, please be on time. We ask that you be in your seat 10 minutes before the start of the ceremony.
When arriving at Gate 7, you will be subject to a temperature check and security screening. Please note the clear bag policy. When arriving for the University-wide ceremony for your unit, please present your ticket to be scanned. We ask that upon entry you proceed to your assigned seat noted on your ticket. Please do not lose your ticket. There is no faculty processional.
Faculty mentor's hooding a student at the Doctoral Hooding and Graduation Ceremony do not require a ticket for entry. Please arrive in your regalia and enter via Gate 7 on the west side of the stadium. You will receive additional details and instructions pertaining to the Doctoral Hooding and Graduation Ceremony from Courtney Kerr. If you are only attending the Hooding, you may disregard your ticket for the University-wide ceremony. Please do not give your ticket to someone if they are not a member of the faculty at UofL.

Ceremony Information

We anticipate that each ceremony will last 1 hour and 30 minutes to 2 hours. Graduates, their faculty mentor(s) and their guests will recess after their name is read and they cross the stage. Graduates will be seated and called by Unit. We ask that you be mindful of physical distancing as you exit.
Congregating on the concourse will not be permitted. If you plan to visit a graduate, please make plans to do so outside of the event.

Safety protocols:

Safety protocols and ceremony details will be based strictly on all UofL, state and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines regarding COVID-19 precautions.
Hand sanitizing stations will be placed throughout the stadium.
On stage, we will limit the number of speakers and thoroughly sanitize the podium and microphone between remarks.
Mask compliance and physical distancing will be strictly enforced.

Please note these events are subject to the changing nature of COVID-19 restrictions and possible weather disruptions or postponements.

Questions? Contact Courtney Kerr at clkerr01@louisville.edu