If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Somebody should have used that old line on University officials a few weeks ago.
On Nov. 7, Texas A&M students received an e-mail from University President Elsa Murano stating that the procedure for graduation commencement had changed, and not for the better. Starting this semester, all graduating Aggies will have one speaker at a single commencement speech, and a later, separate graduation ceremony. Essentially, all graduates go to one commencement speech, and then attend their graduation ceremony in assigned blocks of time as before.
The logic behind the change was that the school could attract one prestigious speaker for all graduates to hear. It seemed good in principle, but this is a bad idea for several reasons.
First of all, graduates will only be able to invite two guests to their commencement. This is because all graduates have only one speaker and there will be limited room. For many Aggies, this is a problem. In fact, this is a problem for any Aggie with more than two loved ones.
Many family members come to enjoy the keynote speaker at their loved one's graduation. This seems more important than the status of that speaker. Many Aggies feel the same way.
Senior Mark Scheel said, "I'm disappointed because I had a lot of people that wanted to come hear the speech, and now they can't."
Besides that, graduation is now a two day event for many Aggies. Not all graduates have relatives who can come to College Station for a whole weekend, as December is a very busy time of year. This means many out of town family and friends will have to choose between the convocation speech and graduation ceremony.
This isn't sitting right with many graduating seniors, and rightly so. All Aggies should take notice though, because in her e-mail to the student body, President Murano declared that this will be the standard procedure, "moving forward for the fall, spring and summer semesters."
Like many Aggies, I can appreciate the fact that President George W. Bush is the speaker at this graduation ceremony, and would be honored if he spoke at my own. It would be a great opportunity to hear a president speak on campus. However, my excitement would be dulled because most of my family wouldn't be able to see it. Hopefully, the many Aggies who disagree with the new graduation ceremony will let the University know, and encourage change.
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