June 9, 2020

Media Contacts:
Libby Siebens, community relations executive director, 509-682-6436 (Mon. – Thurs.)
Erin Tofte, associate dean of campus life, equity and inclusion, 509-682-6868 (Wenatchee campus)
Cindie Martin, secretary supervisor, 509-422-7807 (Omak campus)

Wenatchee Valley College virtual graduations are scheduled for Friday, June 19, for the Wenatchee campus and Saturday, June 20, for the Omak campus. Nurses pinning for the associate degree in nursing programs on both Wenatchee and Omak campuses will be held virtually as well on June 19 at 1 p.m.

The Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) program will have a virtual poster session on Zoom on Friday, June 12, at 1 p.m., followed by a BSN graduate ceremony at 2:30 p.m.

The Wenatchee online commencement ceremony will begin at 5:30 p.m. on June 19. The commencement will take place in three parts:

• 5:30 p.m.: Arts and sciences students
• 7 p.m.: Workforce education students
• 8 p.m.: Allied Health students

Students are encouraged to attend the portion of the ceremony for whichever area they are graduating from.

The Omak campus commencement will begin at 1 p.m. on June 20 and will take place all at once for students in all areas.

All students who submitted an application for graduation this year will be included in the virtual graduation ceremony. Their name and earned degrees, certificates or diplomas will be listed. Students who wish to have their photo and brief video or message displayed during their graduation ceremony should submit those files by Friday, June 12. Students can find instructions for submitting in their student emails.

Derek Sheffield will give the commencement keynote address for both campuses. Sheffield recently won the Wheelbarrow Books Poetry Prize judged by Mark Doty. His book, “Not for Luck,” will be published in 2021 by Michigan State University Press. His first collection, “Through the Second Skin,” was a finalist for the Washington State Book Award. He is a co-editor of “Dear America: Letters of Hope, Habitat, Defiance, and Democracy.” Derek is the poetry editor of Terrain.org and a professor of English at Wenatchee Valley College where he also serves alongside Dr. Joan Qazi as co-chair of the Sustainability Committee.

Sheffield also invited American novelist and poet Gary Soto to do a recorded reading of his most famous poem, “Oranges” from his collection “Fire in My Hands.” Learn more about Soto at garysoto.com.

For more information about the pinning and graduation ceremonies, visit wvc.edu/Graduation. 

###

Wenatchee Valley College enriches North Central Washington by serving educational and cultural needs of communities and residents throughout the service area. The college provides high-quality transfer, liberal arts, professional/technical, basic skills and continuing education for students of diverse ethnic and economic backgrounds. Visit our website, wvc.edu.

Wenatchee Valley College is committed to a policy of equal opportunity in employment and student enrollment. All programs are free from discrimination and harassment against any person because of race, creed, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, the presence of any sensory, mental, or physical disability, or the use of a service animal by a person with a disability, age, parental status or families with children, marital status, religion, genetic information, honorably discharged veteran or military status or any other prohibited basis per RCW 49.60.030, 040 and other federal and state laws and regulations, or participation in the complaint process. The following persons have been designated to handle inquiries regarding the non-discrimination policies and Title IX compliance for both the Wenatchee and Omak campuses:

• To report discrimination or harassment: Title IX Coordinator, Wenatchi Hall 2322M, (509) 682-6445, title9@wvc.edu.
• To request disability accommodations: Director of Student Access, Wenatchi Hall 2133, (509) 682-6854, TTY/TTD: dial 711, sas@wvc.edu.