Commencement 2023

USU MOAB COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY

April 27, 2023

ACADEMIC HERALDRY

The history of academic heraldry reaches back into the early days of the university. A statute of 1321 required that all “Doctors, Licentiates and Bachelors” of the University of Columbia wear gowns. When American colleges and universities decided to adopt some suitable system of academic apparel, it seemed best to agree on one that all might follow. From a conference of various institutions’ board representatives held at Columbia University in 1895 came a code of academic dress for higher learning institutions in the United States, which most adopted.

GOWNS

The academic gown for the bachelor’s degree has pointed sleeves and is designed to be worn closed. Master’s degree gowns have an oblong sleeve, open at the wrist. The sleeve base hangs down in the traditional manner. The rear part of its oblong shape is square cut, and the front part has an arc cut away. It is designed this way so it can be worn open or closed. The gown for the doctoral degree has bell-shaped sleeves and may be worn open or closed.

COLORS

For all academic purposes, including trimmings of doctoral gowns, edging of hoods and tassels of caps, the colors associated with the different academic disciplines are as follows:

• Agriculture, Maize

• Arts, Brown

• Business, Drab

• Education and Human Services, Light Blue

• Engineering, Orange

• Humanities and Social Sciences, White

HOODS

• Natural Resources, Russet

• Science, Gold-Yellow

• School of Graduate Studies, Black

• Associate Degrees, Black

• Integrated Studies, Black

Academic hoods are worn by recipients of advanced degrees. Master’s degree hoods are three-and-one-half feet in length and lined with the official color(s) of the college or university conferring the degree, which at Utah State University are navy blue and white, displayed in the heraldic chevron. The doctoral hood consists of a larger and longer assemblage of institutional color draped over the recipient’s shoulders, falling well down the back. The binding or edging of the hoods is of velvet or velveteen, three inches wide for the master’s degree and five inches wide for the doctoral degree.

CAPS

Academic caps come in two forms: the traditional mortarboard (from Oxford) or square cap, and a soft cap that resembles an oversized beret (from Cambridge). The mortarboard used by Utah State University is worn with a tassel.

ACADEMIC PROCESSION

The commencement procession is composed of three divisions: (1) color guard, University President, Utah Board of Higher Education members, Board of Trustees, administrative officers and special guests; (2) the faculty; and (3) candidates for degrees.

UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY MOAB COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY

PROCESSIONAL

Music by Ryan Barnum, Dave Stewart & Jeff Gutierrez

NATIONAL ANTHEM

WELCOME & LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Lianna Etchberger

Associate Vice President, USU Moab

STUDENT SPEAKER

Amra Hubbard-Harrison

ADDRESS TO GRADUATES

Peter Lawson

Owner, Operator of Professor Valley Ranch

CONFERRING OF DEGREES

Laurens H. Smith

Provost & Chief Academic Officer, USU

PRESENTATION OF DIPLOMAS

Lianna Etchberger

Associate Vice President, USU Moab

GREETING TO GRADUATES

Steven L. Palmer

President of the USU Alumni Association & USU Trustee

RECESSIONAL

PETER LAWSON

OWNER, OPERATOR OF PROFESSOR VALLEY RANCH Commencement Speaker

Peter Q. Lawson was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. He graduated from the University of Utah in 1980 and immediately went to work for his family at Alta Ski Area. After 11 years of working in the family business, Peter was ready for a new adventure. In 1991, he purchased Professor Valley Ranch and moved to Moab. To this day, Peter and his family enjoy living and working on the ranch located in the spectacular cliff-lined valley with views of the La Sal Mountains and red rocks.

Peter’s longtime affiliation with Utah State University and the S.J. and Jessie E. Quinney College of Natural Resources stems back to his grandparents — the college’s namesakes. Peter has been an avid supporter of students enrolled in various programs in the Quinney College of Natural Resources and has hosted them at his home for a variety of hands-on learning experiences at the ranch. He was also instrumental in providing support for the Janet Quinney Lawson Chair in Colorado River Studies at Utah State. In addition to his ongoing support of conservation, charitable, and educational endeavors in the Moab Valley, Peter and his family have been foundational in seeing our new USU Moab campus come to fruition.

AMRA HUBBARD-HARRISON Student Speaker

Amra Hubbard-Harrison will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in integrated studies. He began his undergraduate study at Santa Monica College in Los Angeles. He has vivid memories of negotiating Los Angeles traffic on his road bike to make it to class on time. His ambition as a professional cyclist led him to transfer to Colorado Mesa University (CMU) to train under a coach he had always admired.

Two years into his studies, a philosophy course at CMU challenged Amra to ask himself: are you doing exactly what you want to be doing right now? The truth led the 20-year-old to spend the next two years traveling throughout Europe instead. He spent six months in a cabin in the mountains above Sarajevo, Bosnia, and a year training and racing sled dogs in Norway before he ultimately moved to Moab, drawn in by the culture of outdoor adventures. While he was finishing his studies at USU Moab, he became an advanced EMT with Grand County EMS, and a member of Grand County Search and Rescue. After graduation, Amra looks forward to enjoying Moab’s beauty, woodworking, and exploring opportunities to apply his diverse experience to a meaningful cause.

2023 CANDIDATES FOR GRADUATION

Names listed in this program do not constitute graduation.

CERTIFICATE OF COMPLETION

ELECTRICAL APPRENTICESHIP

Conrado Pastor ++

MEDICAL ASSISTANT

Megan Flynn ++

PRACTICAL NURSING

Alicia Dawn Cervantes

Pennellope Decaria ++

Kristian Briana Hutchinson

Chelsey Mclaughlin

Sydney R. Smith +

Alyssa Amoire Wilson +

CERTIFICATE OF PROFICENCY

CERTIFIED NURSING ASSISTANT

Christina Behling +

Bianca Bell ++

Alyssa Benedict

Litzi Gutierrez

Monica Ovando ++

DIGITAL DESIGN

Tess Marksberry

PHLEBOTOMY

Christina Behling

Raeme Clark ++

Litzi Gutierrez

Monica Ovando ++

Sara Wall ++

ASSOCIATE DEGREES

PROVOST’S OFFICE

Laurens H. Smith Provost & Chief Academic Officer

ASSOCIATE OF APPLIED SCIENCE – GENERAL TECHNOLOGY

Tess Marksberry

ASSOCIATE OF APPLIED SCIENCE – NURSING

Madison Barney ++

Michael Calvert ++

Dan Dial ++

John Garcia +

Madeline Jenkinson ++

Quincy Masur ++

Hannah Stripeika ++

ASSOCIATE OF APPLIED SCIENCE – SMALL BUSINESS OPERATIONS

Preston John Henning

ASSOCIATE OF SCIENCE –GENERAL STUDIES

Rocky Audenreid

Alicia Dawn Cervantes

Pennellope Decaria

Dan Dial ++

Kayla Nicole Hawkins

Corah Eden Moody ++

Jamie Reidhead ++

Nicole Renee Slighting

Jefferson Gerald Wakefield

Alyssa Wilson +

Alex Winder

The quality of performance in academic work enables those indicated to be graduates with distinction:

++High Honors grade point average of 3.75 to 4.00

+Honors grade point average of 3.50 to 3.74

BACHELOR’S DEGREES

EMMA ECCLES JONES COLLEGE OF EDUCATION & HUMAN SERVICES

Alan L. Smith, Dean

COMMUNICATIVE DISORDERS & DEAF EDUCATION

Lisa Jacobs **

ELEMENTARY EDUCATION

Candice Marie Gary *

HUMAN DEVELOPMENT & FAMILY STUDIES

Estee Christine Squires **

NURSING

Carmen Raye Holyoak ***

Alia Jean Welsh **

Sara Wall *

COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES & SOCIAL SCIENCES

Joseph P. Ward, Dean

ENGLISH

Riley Thomas Manley **

SOCIOLOGY

Cabrielle Andersen **

PROVOST’S OFFICE

Laurens H. Smith, Provost & Chief Academic Officer

INTEGRATED STUDIES

Anjelica Juliet Dixon

Amra Hubbard-Harrison ***

Lily Amanda Jensen *

The quality of performance in academic work enables those indicated to be graduates with distinction:

***Summa Cum Laude grade point average of 3.95 to 4.00

**Magna Cum Laude. ....................................................................................................grade point average of 3.80 to 3.94

*Cum Laude. grade point average of 3.50 to 3.79

SCHOOL OF GRADUATE STUDIES

Richard Cutler Vice Provost of Graduate Studies

GRADUATE CERTIFICATE

S.J. & JESSIE E. QUINNEY COLLEGE OF NATURAL RESOURCES

Christopher Matthew Michaud

Geographic Information Science

MASTER’S DEGREES

COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE & APPLIED SCIENCES

Bryton Betty

Master of Education in Career & Technical Education

EMMA ECCLES JONES COLLEGE OF EDUCATION & HUMAN SERVICES

Cadie Michelle Richardson

Master of Education in Curriculum & Instruction

Kimberly Kathleen Mogensen

Master of Education in Education Technology & Learning Science

Joan Elyia Miller

Master of Public Health in Health Education & Promotion

COLLEGE OF HUMANITIES & SOCIAL SCIENCES

Yvette Tarin Alba

Master of Social Work

Taylor Flanders

Master of Social Work

Rebecca Louise Hinchcliff

Master of Social Work

Shylo Shantae Robertson

Master of Social Work

UTAH BOARD OF HIGHER EDUCATION

Lisa Michele Church, Chair

Jesselie Barlow Anderson, Vice Chair

Grace Acosta

Stan L. Albrecht

Julie Beck

Stacey K. Bettridge

Rich Christiansen

Sanchaita Datta

Hope Eccles

Korianne Gibson

Patricia Jones

Arthur E. Newell

Shawn Newell

Steve Starks

Scott L. Theurer

Richard Wheeler

Xitlalli Villanueva

David R. Woolstenhulme, Commissioner of Higher Education

UTAH STATE BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Kent K. Alder, Chair

John Y. Ferry, Vice Chair

Gina Gagon

David H. Huntsman

Kacie Malouf

Wayne L. Niederhauser

Steven L. Palmer

David A. Petersen

Abraham Rodriguez

Jacey Skinner

Tessa White

Janalyn G. Brown, Secretary to the USU Board of Trustees

UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY MOAB ADVISORY COUNCIL

Jim Webster, Chair

Leticia Bentley

Samantha Campbell

Lianna Etchberger

Keith Hughes

Taryn Kay

Joe Kingsley

Ashley Korenblat

Mary McGann

Jen Sadoff

Dave Sakrison

Jason Taylor

MOAB’S LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We acknowledge Utah State University Moab resides on the American Indian Crossing of the Colorado River, the traditional homeland of the descendants of the Pueblo of Zuni (A:shiwi); the Hopi Tribe; the Southern Ute Indian Tribe; the Ute Indian Tribe; the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah; and the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians who have been stewards of the rivers and mountains, cliffs and towers, arches, and canyons from time immemorial. In offering this land acknowledgment, we affirm Indigenous sovereignty, history, and experiences.