25
April
2013
|
18:00 PM
America/New_York

Story Idea for Media 4/26/13

Ohio State will award diplomas to nearly 10,000 – May 5. Nearly 10,000 students will receive their diplomas in Ohio Stadium on May 5 and become the next generation of leaders. The graduates, who are among the brightest in the university’s history, enter the stadium at noon. The ceremony celebrates the academic achievements, dedication and commitment that each student has put forth to earn his or her degree. Diplomas will be given individually to each graduate, a practice rarely attempted by a university the size of Ohio State.

President Barack Obama will deliver the commencement address. Also during the commencement ceremony, honorary doctorates will be presented to President Obama, Annie Leibovitz, one of the most influential photographers of our time; Thomas D. Pollard, a professor of cell biology and molecular biophysics and biochemistry at Yale University, and Reinhard Rummel, who has dedicated his career to determining the earth’s gravity field with the utmost accuracy

Distinguished Service Awards will be presented to Carole A. Anderson, who has dedicated more than 25 years to The Ohio State University, both as a key administrator and a distinguished professor in the health sciences; George A. Skestos, who has three decades of leadership and philanthropy at the university and in the central Ohio community; and Justine “Tina” Skestos, a devoted public servant and Ohio State ambassador. Additional information is available at commencement.osu.edu. CONTACT: Amy Murray, (614) 292-8385.

It’s Commencement Week at Ohio State – through May 5. Graduating seniors can mark their final days at Ohio State through a series of special events during Commencement Week, a week-long celebration leading up to spring commencement. Events, including an opportunity to climb the Orton Bell Tower, are for graduates and not members of the general public. However, media are welcome to cover them.
*Time and Change Tailgate following commencement rehearsal – approximately 2:30 p.m. – on Friday (5/3) on the south lawn of St. John Arena. Even though it’s not football season yet, graduates can celebrate their final tailgate as a student.
*Commencement Eve Candlelight Ceremony, 9 p.m. on Saturday (5/4) on the Oval.
On the night before commencement, graduating students congregate in front of the Thompson Library on the Oval for a very special candlelight ceremony. Speakers will include campus celebrities and student who was selected to deliver an address that reflects on their time at Ohio State. The event concludes with a candlelight rendition of "Carmen Ohio," the Ohio State alma mater. CONTACT: Dave Isaacs, 614-292-8424. SEE: commencementweek.osu.edu.

10th Annual Patterson Lecture features Kellogg Foundation president - May 2. The 10th Annual James F. Patterson Land-Grant University Lecture, featuring Sterling K. Speirn, president and CEO of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, is Thursday, May 2 from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. in the Ohio Union, Performance Hall, 1739 N High St.
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation is one of the largest private foundations in the United States and has provided more than $8.8 million in funding to Ohio State projects since 1990, according to the foundation. The foundation supports programs for creating educated and healthy children, secure families, racial equity and civic engagement. Ohio State has received at least four grants of more than $1 million, including a current $1.5 million grant through the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity, as well Kellogg's first-ever endowment for agricultural ecosystems management.
The lecture honors former Board of Trustees member James Patterson and the cause to which he is most committed, a vibrant university fulfilling its land-grant mission in an ever-changing world. The inaugural Ohio State University Outreach and Engagement Forum will take place immediately following the Patterson Lecture in the Ohio Union. The forum will be a poster exhibition featuring more than 80 outreach and engagement initiatives from across the university. SEE: The event is at capacity, but can be viewed live at http://go.osu.edu/pattersonlecture. CONTACT: Ben Lewis, (614) 247-7100, lewis.485@osu.edu.

Boots on the Ground in Europe: Ohio State Students Head Out to Explore the War That Changed the World – May 5. The unprecedented journey that eighteen undergraduate students embarked upon in classrooms around campus in January ends at the Berlin Wall in late May. The history department’s new interdisciplinary undergraduate World War II Study Abroad Program (unique to Ohio State) has fully armed them with an arsenal of in-depth courses to successfully take on their final course--a three-week tour of European battle sites, memorials, and museums, led by program faculty.

Students leave May 5 and will post photos and blogs on the College of Arts and Sciences tumblr site: http://ascatosu.tumblr.com/ as part of their course requirement. CONTACT: Professor David Steigerwald, WWII Study Tour Program Director, steigerwald. 2@osu.edu; 614-292-7014; or Sandi Rutkowski, Rutkowski.1@osu.edu, 614-292-4759.

First Student-Athlete Study Abroad Program Takes Flight in May. Fifteen Ohio State student-athletes will be studying abroad for the first time this May thanks to a new program launched by the Student Athlete Support Services Office (SASSO). With Ohio State's recent switch to semesters, the new month-long May Term – which falls between the end of spring semester and the start of the summer term – is now an "open" month for students.

The May Term affords student-athletes the time to participate in SASSO's study abroad experience; opportunities were previously limited for student-athletes due to the shorter training and competition intervals on the quarter system.

Students representing sports such as ice hockey, women’s basketball, track and field and cheerleading will travel to destinations including England and Brazil. Many will have the majority of their study abroad program paid for by SASSO. CONTACT: Jane Carroll, carroll.296@osu.edu.

The person listed as the CONTACT will have the most current information about the story. Call on our media relations staff for help with any Ohio State story: Jane Carroll, 614-292-5220 or carroll.296@osu.edu, Liz Cook, 614-292-7276 or cook.17@osu.edu,or Amy Murray, 614-292-8385 or murray-goedde.1@osu.edu.