Fall Commencement Ceremonies Held Dec. 17 at Clemente Center

1,585 Degrees Earned for Summer, Fall 2016

MELBOURNE, FLA. — T. Dwayne McCay led his first commencement ceremonies as president of Florida Institute of Technology as students from two dozen states and 42 countries received their diplomas during two ceremonies Saturday, Dec. 17, at the Charles and Ruth Clemente Center on the university’s Melbourne campus.

McCay, who was inaugurated as Florida Tech’s fifth president in July, welcomed Harris Corp. Chairman, President and CEO William Brown as commencement speaker at the undergraduate ceremony starting at 9:30 a.m. McCay offered the keynote address at the graduate ceremony, which starts at 2 p.m.

The undergraduate ceremony featured 291 students. A total of 529 students received master’s and doctoral degrees in the afternoon session.

Including 310 graduates from off-site programs, 536 graduates from the university’s online programs and several dual degree recipients, Florida Tech bestowed 1,585 degrees for fall 2016.

The graduates Saturday included hundreds who completed their degrees over the summer. Starting in 2017, Florida Tech will offer a summer commencement. The inaugural ceremony will be at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, July 29, at the Clemente Center.

Among the recipients Saturday were international graduates from countries large and small, including Brazil and China, Gambia and India, Kazakhstan and Qatar, Sri Lanka and Vietnam. Some parents and friends traveled thousands of miles to attend the ceremonies.

Students from the U.S. were also well represented, including more than 100 from Florida, as well as individual undergraduate students from Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri, North Dakota, Nevada, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia, the Virgin Islands and Vermont.

For more information and details on the Web broadcast of both ceremonies, go to www.fit.edu/graduation/.

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