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Graduate School
The University of Mississippi

Celebrating New Doctorates—Two Doctoral Hooding Ceremonies for New UM Ph.D. and Ed.D. Graduates

Hooding ceremony with all graduates seatedIn late April and early May 2021, the Graduate School celebrated the awarding of several new doctorates at our 2020 and 2021 Doctoral Hooding Ceremonies. Holding the ceremonies in the Pavilion for the first time, the Graduate School staff worked to create a special event that would convey the significance of the moment. Masks were worn and people were seated six feet apart. Family, friends, and loved ones sat in pods in the stands, and there was room for everyone’s guests.

For each event, the evening did not disappoint.

On April 29th, Dr. Glenn Boyce, the 18th Chancellor of the University of Mississippi, congratulated our newest doctoral graduates. According to Dr. Annette Kluck, Dean of the Graduate School, “Having the Chancellor at the hooding ceremony reflects the level of achievement we celebrate with the event.” He congratulated our UM graduates on earning the highest degree the academy has to offer. The Chancellor thanked the faculty in attendance for their hard work, mentoring these new doctorates and making the moment possible. Kluck said, “The Chancellor also shared with the new doctorates and those in the audience the story of the day he defended his dissertation and the moment he felt the full weight of that accomplishment. It was really personal.”

During our 2021 Doctoral Hooding Ceremony, nearly 100 individuals crossed the stage, standing in front of their mentor while the doctoral hood was placed over their shoulders. The first students to cross the stage were the 2021 Doctoral Class Marshals: Drs. Asmaa Zakaria Ahmad Taha and Jemar Tisby. Taha, who was the first Ph.D. graduate in Second Language Studies with an emphasis in Applied Linguistics reflected on the value of doing something that is far from easy. She called on her fellow graduates to continue to believe in themselves, pursue their goals, and identify ways to continue positively affecting the world. Tisby, who graduated with a Ph.D. in History and recently assumed the position of Assistant Director for Narrative and Advocacy at the Boston University Center for Antiracist Research, spoke next. True to his discipline, he reminded us of history and, as a leader, he drew connections between the past and present (and our possible future). He declared, “We are living in the Civil Rights movement of our day” and he called on his fellow new doctorates to remember that it is not just progress but the opposition to that progress that is used to measure a movement. He ended his remarks with a call, “As we go forth from this place—degreed, verified, and satisfied—you must interpret the present time so that you do not miss your time to do what’s right.”

At the 2020 Doctoral Hooding Ceremony, we also enjoyed the opportunity to celebrate with many of the individuals who earned doctoral degrees in December of 2019 and May and August of 2020. Kluck said, “We had many graduates who made their way back to Oxford for this event. It was really a pleasure to be able to finally celebrate their achievement in person.” We had between 50 and 60 graduates who were able to join us for the event and had many more whom we celebrated who were not able to be there that evening. Kluck also noted that many of those individuals were in the final stages of their dissertation when the pandemic hit. They navigated such a disrupting moment extremely well. “Next, they went on to start new careers in the midst of a pandemic. I look forward to seeing what these graduates will do in their careers. They already demonstrated the ability to pivot and adapt while succeeding in their goals,” shared Kluck.

Our 2020 Doctoral Class Marshals were Drs. Michael Cox and Prabhdeep Sandha. Cox, a veteran with 26 years of service in the US Army Special Operations Forces, earned his doctorate in Education. He was unable to join the ceremony in person, but shared his remarks via video. To his fellow 2020 doctoral graduates, Cox urged them to build a legacy of the greatest meaning by having an impact for good on the lives of others. Sandha, a Ph.D. graduate in Nutrition and Hospitality Management with an interdisciplinary graduate minor in Applied Statistics, spoke next. Having just completed her first year as an assistant professor at Metropolitan State University in Denver, Colorado, she spoke about her journey at the University of Mississippi, the long hours of work on courses, writing, and research, and the value of following your dream. She humorously shared what many of us have experienced during the pandemic, such as video screens freezing at the worst time. But she also spoke of the resilience now evident among our 2020 doctoral graduates and said, “Each of us will carry a piece of this University in our hearts, a piece of the Grove and the Circle, moving forward in different directions, with one sole intention: Making this planet a better place to live in!”

In the Graduate School, we hope this for each of our graduates…that they take a part of this institution with them and help change the world.

 

Newsletter Spring/Summer 2021 Articles

   
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