Commencement Moved to May 22, 2020 — Virtual, Online Ceremony
OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT
Dear CCU Community:
As we mark the beginning of our second week of this new and temporary online 'era' at Colorado Christian University, we continue to make changes to University operations in order to address the ongoing challenges presented by the coronavirus pandemic.
Typically, at this point in the semester, we would already be looking ahead to final exams and to eagerly celebrating the accomplishments of our graduates as we prepare for Commencement. Unfortunately, as you all know, this semester has been anything but typical. We've had to make many quick decisions over the past few weeks in response to COVID-19, with the health and well-being of the CCU community always at the forefront of our thinking.
Two weeks ago, we announced plans to postpone our 2020 Commencement Ceremony originally scheduled for May 8, 2020, at the 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, Colorado. Due to the continued spread of the coronavirus and the public health recommendations from state and federal authorities, we have concluded that Colorado Christian University's 2020 Commencement will move to a virtual, online ceremony. While the format may be different, please know that our sincere hope is that this will still give our students and their families a meaningful way to mark one of the most significant achievements of their lives — graduation from Colorado Christian University.
The University-wide ceremony will be held online at 6:30 p.m. (MDT) on Friday, May 22. It will include welcoming comments, speeches from student speakers, announcements of student awards and honors, a Commencement address, and most importantly, the conferring of degrees to the newest CCU alumni. Friends and family will be able to join in the celebrations from anywhere in the world via the live streamed event.
The University did consider a postponed in-person ceremony at a later date (both August and December). However, a late-summer ceremony still presented a degree of uncertainty due to the volatility of the pandemic, and it was determined that a winter ceremony was too significant of a delay for graduates and their families, complicated by potential travel just a few days before Christmas.
As we move to make this change, we are all mindful of the disappointment that many will feel in not being able to gather in person for Commencement. Clearly this is an enormous departure from our cherished graduation traditions at CCU. It's also a tremendous disappointment to all of us here at CCU, that we are unable to hold this event in person, but with input from a very innovative group of faculty and staff members, we will do everything we can to preserve the spirit and the joy of this special occasion. As many of us have learned over the last several weeks, technology-enabled engagement can still present an amazing opportunity to come together as a CCU community.
Members of the Class of 2020 will receive further instructions and information from the University Registrar in the coming days on the next steps they need to take in order to participate in the virtual Commencement ceremony. In addition, graduating students will receive (before May 22), a mailing that will include a diploma cover, the Commencement program, and their honor cords (as earned).
More details about the planned virtual ceremony will also be announced in the coming weeks on the Commencement website.
Finally, as a reminder, for all students who complete their degree program requirements in spring 2020, degrees will be conferred as scheduled despite the delayed ceremony. Diplomas will be produced as usual and there will be no changes in the availability of transcripts.
Again, it is our deepest desire to assure that our virtual Commencement ceremony is a joyful celebration that honors our graduates' achievements and honors Jesus Christ. Thank you for being part of our CCU community, and I pray that God would bless you abundantly in the days ahead.
Yours in His service,
Dr. Donald W. Sweeting
President