OSU-Cascades notes record diversity in Class of 2019

Oregon State University–Cascades will graduate its most diverse class ever during its 18th commencement ceremony Sunday, June 16, including a record number of graduates who are the first in their family to earn a college degree.

The graduating class of 331 students is the third largest in OSU-Cascades’ history. A record 40% are first generation college graduates, and 20% identify as U.S. minorities.

OSU-Cascades officials anticipate that more than 2,500 family and friends of graduates will attend the ceremony at the Les Schwab Amphitheater in Bend. Nearly 260 students plan to participate in the ceremonies.

OSU-Cascades Vice President Becky Johnson will preside over the ceremonies, which begin at 4 p.m.

Alyssa Macy, chief operating officer for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs will deliver the commencement address. Macy, who is of Wasco, Navajo and Hopi descent, and a citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, has dedicated her career to the rights and cultures of indigenous peoples.

Members of the commencement platform party include Kirk Schueler, representing the OSU Board of Trustees; OSU Provost Ed Feser; Oran Teater, chair of the OSU-Cascades Advocacy and Advisory Board; Julie Gess-Newsome, dean of academic affairs at OSU-Cascades; and members of the OSU-Cascades’ faculty.

Teater will present the OSU-Cascades Distinguished Service Award to Mike Hollern, chairman of Brooks Resources Corp. Hollern is the convener of the advisory board of the Central Oregon Regional Solutions Center and serves on private and public boards and foundations throughout the U.S. He is the former chair of the Oregon Transportation Commission. Hollern served on OSU-Cascades’ first board of directors from 2001 to 2007. He joined the current OSU-Cascades Advocacy and Advisory Board in 2018. The award is provided to individuals, businesses or organizations that have made exceptional contributions to OSU-Cascades, Central Oregon, the state of Oregon or the world.

The commencement ceremony will include remarks by Hunter Kennelly, who will earn a Bachelor of Science in kinesiology. Student body president Reilly King, a human development and family sciences major, also will address the graduating class.

Some facts and figures about the OSU-Cascades’ class of 2019:

Of the 328 graduates, bachelor’s degrees will be awarded to 248 students. Three undergraduates are dual majors, and will receive two degrees. Master’s degrees will be awarded to 83 students. 95% of the graduates are from Oregon, with 67% coming from Central Oregon. In addition, 21 of Oregon’s 36 counties are represented. Graduates represent eight other U.S. states and two countries, Kazakhstan and Oman. Two candidates also will graduate from the OSU Honors College. One candidate for graduation was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, the nation’s oldest academic honor society. One candidate was inducted into Phi Kappa Phi, a scholastic honor society. The average age of the graduating class is 30; the oldest is 63 and the youngest is 20. 3% of the graduating class are veterans of U.S. military service.

Including the Class of 2019, more than 4,100 students will have graduated from OSU-Cascades since it was established in 2001.

To learn more about the OSU-Cascades Commencement Ceremony, visit www.osucascades.edu/commencement.