One Hundred Eighty-First FRIDAY & SATURDAY, AUGUST 5 & 6, 2011 • COLEMAN COLISEUM 2 | August 2011 Commencement COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY DecorUM AND COURTESY The faculty and staff at The University of Alabama congratulate you on your academic achievement and wish to ensure the commencement ceremony will be a fitting conclusion to this phase of your education! The University of Alabama Commencement ceremony is, by its very nature, a festive occasion. The festivity manifests itself in many ways including the dress of the students; the faculty adorned in academic regalia; and the warmth, joy and satisfaction of accomplishment. The ceremony is also marked by seriousness where the actual conferring of degrees signifies long, hard work on the part of everyone involved: students, faculty, administrators, parents and spouses. As a consequence of the serious nature of the ceremony, students and guests are expected to maintain a measure of decorum consonant with the occasion. The University community requests that audience participation be of respectful celebration honoring the commitment to learning and the fulfillment of dreams shared by all degree candidates that today walk across the stage. This element of respectful celebration also extends to the parents, guardians and spouses whose labor and support brings pride to the fulfillment of these dreams, and to the family members aspiring to one day have their moment of “walking across the stage.” CEREMONIAL FLAGS Today we celebrate commencement at The University of Alabama. To commemorate the University’s most sacred ceremony, we draw from academic traditions that are centuries old. The Commencement “A” you see throughout these materials and on the commencement flags was first introduced to mark the Capstone’s conferral of degrees at the turn of the century. The Commencement A is a seventeenth- century, Gothic font appropriately named “Diploma.” Lest We Forget... As the University family comes together to celebrate commencement and to honor the hard work and accomplishments of our May and August 2011 graduates, we also pause to acknowledge an event that significantly changed the city of Tuscaloosa forever. When we look back on April 27, 2011, however, it is the resilience of our community that stands out, not the ferocity of the storm. And, it is the compassion and generosity of our students, employees and alumni as they work tirelessly to meet the needs of our friends and neighbors that so clearly define the Capstone. The outpouring of gifts, time and supplies from UA students, faculty and staff, and alumni continues to be a source of inspiration and pride. The University expresses its deepest sympathies to those who lost loved ones. We especially mourn the loss of our students: Brandon S. Atterton, Danielle M. Downs, Ashley T. Harrison, Melanie N. Mixon, Morgan M. Sigler and Marcus J. Smith. We honor their memory and the contributions they made to our community today. Our thanks go out to the first responders and everyone who worked to provide aid and assistance in the aftermath of the storm. We continue to partner with the city and county of Tuscaloosa to meet the needs of our students and employees, as well as our friends and neighbors. Tuscaloosa is a strong community, and we are working together to rebuild our city even better than it was before. We encourage every member of the UA family to continue to reach out to those in need in the communities where they live and work. At the end of the day, we are a University family united in service to our students, our faculty and staff, and our friends and neighbors, wherever we are and whenever we can help. Please know that The University of Alabama is very proud of you, and wishes you much success and happiness in the coming years. 4 | August 2011 Commencement ORDER OF EXERCISES Processional Alabama Wind Ensemble Dr. Kenneth B. Ozzello, Conductor Presentation of Colors Tuscaloosa First Responder Color Guard The National Anthem Leslie C. Procter Class of 2011 The Invocation Reverend Kennard C. Smith United Methodist Church Welcome Dr. Robert E. Witt President The University of Alabama Conferring of Degrees Dr. Robert E. Witt National Alumni Association Greeting Dick E. Coffee III President The Alma Mater Leslie C. Procter The Recessional Alabama Wind Ensemble Commencement Marshal Dr. Elizabeth S. Aversa Professor/Director School of Library & Information Studies Reader of Candidate Names Eugene O. “Doff” Procter III Ceremony Interpreted for The Deaf and Hearing Impaired by Ellen Bowman Susan Gordon August 2011 Commencement | 5 The University of Alabama The University of Alabama is a major, comprehensive, student-centered research university founded in 1831 as Alabama’s first public college. Dedicated to excellence in teaching, research and service, UA provides a creative, nurturing campus environment where our students can become the best individuals possible, learn from the best and brightest faculty, and make a positive difference in the community, the state and the world. UA offers a solid core curriculum and the latest in classroom technology and labs, as well as extensive international study opportunities, internship programs and cooperative education placements to help our students prepare for successful careers. The University of Alabama ranks among the top public universities in the nation in the enrollment of National Merit Scholars and is consistently ranked as one of the top 50 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. UA has grown significantly in both quality and numbers in recent years, with enrollment over 30,000 students and one in five freshmen enrolling in Honors College each fall. Offering bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in more than 200 fields of study, UA gives its students a wide range of choices and opportunities. The 200 buildings on UA’s beautiful 1,000-acre campus range from original historic structures that survived the 1865 burning of the University during the Civil War to new state-of-the-art classroom, research, athletic and residential facilities. The Campus Master Plan provides a comprehensive plan for assuring that the campus meets the current and future needs of a growing flagship university. Officers of The University of Alabama Robert E. Witt President and Chief Executive Officer Judy Bonner Executive Vice President and Provost Mark D. Nelson Vice President for Student Affairs Vice Provost for Academic Affairs John D. McGowan Vice Provost for Information Technology & CIO D. Joe Benson Vice President for Research Lynda Gilbert Vice President for Financial Affairs and Treasurer Pamela H. Parker Vice President for Advancement Samory T. Pruitt Vice President for Community Affairs Photographs and DVD’s Photographs of graduates as they walk across the stage and DVDs of the entire ceremony are available through professional groups who have contracted with the University to provide these services. Color, on stage photographs with the President and individual portraits photographed off stage are available from ZAP Professional Photography, P.O. Box 2686, Tuscaloosa, AL 35403, (205) 345-2686. Toll free: (888) 345-2686, email: [email protected]. The University of Alabama has partnered with GradMemory to provide a professional video of the 2011 Commencement ceremonies. This DVD contains the complete graduation ceremony. The DVD package can be personalized with the graduate’s name and a picture of choice. TO ORDER: Visit www.gradmemory.com Questions: Call 866-977-4723 or email [email protected] 6 | August 2011 Commencement Teresa P. Boody Capstone Inspiring Educator Award The Capstone Inspiring Educator Award salutes a high school teacher, nominated by a member of the University of Alabama graduating class, for their inspirational approach to teaching and commitment to helping students achieve their greatest potential. Nominated by graduating senior Tommy Majors from the College of Arts and Sciences, the University of Alabama salutes Mrs. Teresa Boody. Mrs. Boody founded the Latin program at Oak Mountain High School in Shelby County when she joined the faculty there in 1999. She also taught special education in Alabama public schools from 1975-1999. She says the Classics have truly made a difference in the lives of her students and have made her experiences at Oak Mountain High School “the most thrilling and fulfilling” of her career. Her enthusiastic teaching has earned her numerous awards including the Teacher of the Year for the Linda Nolen Learning Center; the Roberson Lifetime Commitment to Teaching Award from the University of Montevallo; and the 2011 College Board Southern Region Outstanding AP Teacher of the Year, among others. She holds a B.A degree in history from the University of Montevallo and a master’s degree in learning disabilities from UAB. She earned additional certification in Latin from The University of Alabama and Troy University. She was awarded a Vergilian Society scholarship to study AP Latin in Italy last summer and has participated in numerous Alabama Humanities Foundation language and culture programs. In nominating Mrs. Boody for the Capstone Inspiring Educator Award, Mr. Majors, wrote: Mrs. Boody was more than a teacher to me as I looked to her for guidance, wisdom and common sense. Her passion for teaching and her students is unrivaled. Mrs. Boody’s ability to connect on a personal level with students, discern their strengths and weaknesses, and then develop a strategy for an individual to succeed is unmatched. August 2011 Commencement | 7 Dr. Elizabeth S. Aversa Commencement Marshal Dr. Elizabeth Aversa came to the University of Alabama in 2003 as professor and director of the School of Library and Information Studies (SLIS) in the College of Communication and Information Sciences. An Atlanta native, Dr. Aversa attended secondary schools in Baltimore, Maryland, and returned to Atlanta to receive a BA in English from Emory University. She spent a year as a technical writer for an engineering firm and then returned to Emory, earning a Masters in Librarianship.