Cal State Fullerton Celebrates 46th Annual Commencement With Record Number of Candidates

May 25, 2005 :: No. 212a

More than 8,500 — including 1,885 January graduates — are eligible to participate in Cal State Fullerton's 46th annual commencement ceremonies May 28-29.

Keynote speakers for the universitywide celebrations will be Cal State Fullerton alumna Michele Ruiz (B.A. communications-radio/TV/film '88), former news anchor for NBC4, who will address attendees at the Saturday, May 28, ceremony and State Sen. Dick Ackerman (R-Tustin), who will step to the podium Sunday, May 29.

Cal State Fullerton graduate Steven G. Mihaylo (B.A. business administration ‘69), chairman, president and CEO of Inter-Tel, will receive an honorary doctorate of humane letters during Sunday’s 8 a.m. ceremony. The doctorate will be presented in recognition of his success as a business leader and philanthropist. The Phoenix-based company he founded is a publicly traded provider of communications hardware, software and services.

Last year, Mihaylo made the largest pledge of cash to the university in CSUF history — $3 million to help fund a new building for the College of Business and Economics. In his honor, the planned state-of-the-art facility will be named Steven G. Mihaylo Hall. The telecommunications entrepreneur, who spent three years in the U.S. Army, attended Cal State Fullerton on the GI Bill.

Saturday’s keynoter, Ruiz, joined NBC4 as a general assignment reporter in April 1998 and until this month co-anchored weekday editions of the “Channel 4 News” with Chuck Henry. Previously, she was a field reporter and co-hosted a weekly public affairs program on KTLA. She began her broadcasting career as a news anchor for Channel One, a national news program for high school students. During her distinguished career, she has been honored with five Emmy Awards and four Golden Mikes. In 2002, she received the LA Press Club Award for a series on autism.

State Sen. Dick Ackerman, a former mayor and city councilman for the city of Fullerton, has represented Orange County in the state Legislature for 10 years. He was elected to the Assembly in 1995, moving to the state Senate in 2000. In May 2004, he was unanimously elected the Senate Republican leader.

Ackerman has received numerous accolades, including Legislator of the Year awards from the University of California, California Charter Schools Association, Orange County League of Cities and Republican Party of Orange County; Distinguished Service Award from the Black Chamber of Commerce of Orange County; Elected Official of the Year Award from the Orange County Committee for the Employment of Persons with Disabilities; and Fullerton Chamber of Commerce Educator of the Year Award.

Both commencement ceremonies will begin at 8 a.m. on the sports fields north of Titan Gymnasium. College and department exercises will follow at various locations throughout campus. (Times and locations noted below.)

The ceremonies will be broadcast live on the Internet and may be viewed by visiting the university website (www.fullerton.edu). The ceremony also will air live on Channel 67 in Fullerton, Placentia, Santa Ana and Seal Beach; Channel 36 in Yorba Linda; and Channel 37B in Garden Grove.

Tickets are not needed for the all-university ceremonies at 8 a.m., but are required for admission to all college and department exercises.

On-campus parking will be restricted to those who carpool (three persons per car) and those with disabled-person license plates or placards, due to the limited number of spaces. Off-campus parking sites include Hope University south of the campus, plus Troy High School and Western State University College of Law, both just west of the campus.

Campus parking information is available on 1620-AM within a 2.5 mile radius of the campus.

Faculty Marshals
Leading the campus faculty marshals will be Nancy Segal, professor of psychology and recipient of the university's Outstanding Professor Award for 2004-05. Faculty marshals by college are:
• College of the Arts — Barbara Arms, professor of theatre and dance
• College of Business and Economics — John Lawrence, professor of information systems and decision sciences
• College of Communications — David L. DeVries, professor of communications, and Arden R. Thorum, professor of human communication studies
• College of Engineering and Computer Science — Nick Mousouris, professor of computer science
• College of Education — Hallie Yopp Slowik, professor of elementary and bilingual education
• College of Health and Human Development — Shari G. McMahan, professor of kinesiology and health science
• College of Humanities and Social Sciences — Isaac Cardenas, chair and professor of Chicana and Chicano Studies, and Raphael Sonenshein, professor of political science
• College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics — David Pagni, professor of mathematics.

Honors Convocation
An honors convocation to recognize student achievements will be held at 7 p.m. Friday, May 27, in the Titan Student Union's Portola Pavilion.
The honorees, their cities of residence, degrees and awards are:

College and Department Exercises/Celebrations
May 28-29 Cal State Fullerton
(College events follow the 8 a.m. all-university ceremonies)

Saturday, May 28
College of the Arts — Patio area west of Titan Gym

College of Communications
Communications — Titan Stadium
Human Communication Studies and Radio-TV-Film — Courtyard east of Titan Shops

College of Education — Titan Gym

College of Engineering and Computer Science — Lawn west of Engineering Building

College of Health and Human Development
Child and Adolescent Studies, Health Sciences, Human Services and Kinesiology — Lawn north of Titan Gym
Nursing — Titan Student Union's Portola Pavilion
Counseling — Titan Student Union's Portola Pavilion (begins at 11 a.m.)

College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Sociology and Gerontology — West entrance of Humanities-Social Sciences Building
Philosophy, Afro-Ethnic Studies, Asian American Studies and Chicana and Chicano Studies — Performing Art's Center's Little Theatre
Geography and Environmental Studies — Performing Arts Center's Little Theatre (11 a.m.)
Women's Studies — Ruby Gerontology Center's Mackey Auditorium

ROTC Commissioning Ceremony — 2 p.m. Titan Student Union's Portola Pavilion

Sunday, May 29
College of Business and Economics — Lawn north of Titan Gymnasium

College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Psychology — Titan Gym
Political Science, Public Administration and Criminal Justice — Patio area west of Titan Gym
English, Comparative Literature and Linguistics — West entrance, Humanities-Social Sciences
History — Titan Student Union's Portola Pavilion
Liberal Studies — Titan Stadium
Modern Languages, TESOL and Latin American Studies —Performing Arts Center, Little Theatre
American Studies and Comparative Religion — Performing Arts Center, Little Theatre (11 a.m.)
Anthropology — Courtyard east of Titan Shops

College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics — Lawn west of Engineering Building

Editor's Note: News media covering commencement ceremonies are advised to use the Dorothy Lane entrance off State College Boulevard for parking in the lot adjacent to the Golleher Alumni House.

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