UW Tacoma Class of 2020 Commencement - Online and On Stage

To: Members of the Class of 2020

As you may have read in a recent message from UW President Ana Mari Cauce, all three UW campuses will celebrate our graduates this year with a virtual commencement on June 13, 2020.

This decision was made in consultation with student, faculty and staff leaders on all three campuses and the UW Board of Regents. It was a very difficult decision because we all know how important commencement is as a celebration of the accomplishments of our graduates.

A virtual celebration will not be the same as our traditional event at the Tacoma Dome. But we must protect the health of students, families and our community by not holding an in-person event until the danger from the COVID-19 pandemic has passed. The virtual event will be a live, interactive webcast drawing on the resources of all three UW campuses. It will be the first time all three campuses celebrate commencement together, and it will also be a time for UW Tacoma to celebrate what makes us special.

Graduates of the Class of 2020 are also invited and encouraged to fully participate in an in-person commencement ceremony at UW Tacoma in 2021, where we look forward to recognizing you and the sacrifices you have made. The ceremony will be a well-earned opportunity for you to walk across the stage with your classmates in front of your loved ones.

We are still working to determine whether your in-person commencement will be included as part of the class of 2021's commencement ceremony, or grow into its own separate ceremony if enough of you decide to return for the event, as we hope you will. The postponement to June 2021 gives us ample time to work with you on how you would like this event to take shape.

You will find the latest updates on the UW Tacoma Class of 2020 Commencement website, and you can help by taking this brief survey to tell us what is the most important thing we can do to make the virtual ceremony meaningful for you.

We want to invite the entire Class of 2020 and their loved ones to take part in BOTH the virtual ceremony this June and their choice of UW Tacoma commencements in 2021, 2022, 2023 or 2024. Whether online or on stage, the Class of 2020 will be celebrated and recognized as the unique and wonderful Class it is.

As we are sure is true for you, we each are personally experiencing countless ways that people around us are rising to the occasion and employing their ingenuity to express themselves and move forward in this challenging time. Although it won’t be in-person, we can guarantee this year’s virtual commencement will be a unique experience, unlike any that has come before. Join us for what promises to be a unique and dynamic celebration of the Class of 2020!

Mark A. Pagano, Chancellor

Mentha Hynes-WIlson, Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs