Important News About Commencement Tickets

In the event of truly foul or severe weather, Commencement will be held in LeFrak Gymnasium.

Commencement seating in LeFrak Gymnasium is limited, and will be restricted to participants and ticket holders.

A few days before Commencement, each senior will receive three tickets for family members or other guests. As always, there will be reserved seating for the processing faculty. For others without tickets who want to watch the Commencement ceremonies inside, the adjacent Coolidge Cage will be set up with a large video-screen simulcast of the event.

We will go inside only if the weather threatens to be intolerable. Seating at the outdoor site is unlimited.

2002 Commencement Information

Questions? Call (413) 542-2321 or (413) 542-2322.

See also Commencement Schedule of Events and Conversations with Honored Guests

Commencement Headquarters: Converse Lobby

Headquarters will be open at the following times:

Friday, May 24: 1 to 11 p.m.
Saturday, May 25: 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 26: 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Name tags are available upon check-in in Converse Lobby.

Telephones

413/427-1278 General Information and Room Assignment, Converse Lobby (This is a cell phone number and will only be available during the headquarters hours listed above.)
542-2291 Campus Police (for those who may get locked out of their rooms)
542-2111 Campus Police (for emergency only)

Rooms

The College expects to have sufficient accommodations in the College dormitories for all seniors and for families who preregistered. Specific room assignments may be learned at Commencement Headquarters in the Lobby of Converse Hall. Rooms will be available from 1 p.m. Friday, May 24, until 5 p.m. Sunday, May 26. Please be sure to return room keys to Commencement Headquarters before departure. When keys are not returned, the College must change locks to dormitory rooms for next year’s students.

Meals

Meals will be served cafeteria style in Valentine Hall throughout the period at the following times:

Breakfast: Friday, 8 to 9:30 a.m.; Saturday, 7 to 10 a.m.; Sunday, 7 to 10 a.m.

Luncheon: Friday, 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.; Saturday, 12:15 to 1:30 p.m.; Sunday, following Commencement.

Dinner: Friday, 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.

The last meal served by Valentine Hall on Commencement Weekend will be the Sunday luncheon. Schwemm’s Gourmet Coffee House will be open in the Keefe Campus Center on Friday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. It will be outside, on the front patio of the Campus Center, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday and from 7 to 11 a.m. on Sunday.

Family Luncheon

All seniors, their families, and members of the faculty and administration are invited to attend the Family Luncheon on Saturday, May 25. The charge for the luncheon is $7.50 for adults and $4 for children 12 and under. Tickets are available at the luncheon.

Parking

Parking permits are not required during Commencement Weekend, and you may park vehicles in the regular campus parking spaces. Friday through Sunday, however, no parking is allowed along the War Memorial side of the Main Quadrangle, or near Johnson Chapel at the quadrangle; and no parking is allowed on the quadrangle itself at any time.

Medical Services

The Student Health Service will be open during the following hours on Commencement Weekend:

Friday, May 24: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday, May 25: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Sunday, May 26: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Students continue to be covered for urgent medical needs (during the hours when the Student Health Office is not open) at the University of Massachusetts Health Center.

Students, visitors, and families may be served at the University Health Services during these “off-hours” on a fee-for-service basis.

Student Health Office: 542-2266
University of Massachusetts Health Services: 577-5000

Recreational Facilities

Tennis will be available on the College courts throughout the Commencement Weekend.

Mt. Doma Golf Course (Amherst Golf Club), south of the campus on South Pleasant Street (Route 116), will be open to the public on Friday, May 24.

Campus Shuttle Service

There will be a shuttle service available to those needing transportation from the area of the Social Dorms and/or Converse Hall, uphill to events on the Main Quadrangle on campus. To obtain a ride, call 542-7433 (RIDE).

Exhibitions

The Mead Art Museum will be open from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday, May 24, and Saturday, May 25. Closed Sunday, May 26. Exhibitions include Fine Arts curatorial and studio work by Amherst seniors. For special tours information, see handouts at Commencement Headquarters.

The Robert Frost Library will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday, May 24; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 25, and Sunday, May 26.

The Pratt Museum will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, May 24; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, May 25; and 2 to 5 p.m. Sunday, May 26.

The Eli Marsh Gallery in Fayerweather Hall will be open from 1 to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, May 25 and 26.

The Dickinson Homestead

The home of poet Emily Dickinson, located in town at 280 Main Street, will be open for afternoon tours on both Friday, May 24, and Saturday, May 25. Call 542-8161 for tour reservations.