Well, we did it. Did what? We successfully staged our first two-part commencement day on May 1. Last year, the difficult but necessary decision was made to hold two commencements in May to accommodate an ever-growing graduating class. This May/August, more than 1,000 students received, or will receive, degrees from UM-Flint.

The Commencement Committee, as well as a wide variety of other staff, faculty, student and alumni volunteers, and vendors worked very, very hard to ensure that this first venture was a success, and it showed! Other than a lot of us (myself included) being very, very tired at the end of a long, long day, the day was a huge success. I want to personally express my thanks to all who made May 1 a meaningful day for our graduates and their guests. My special thanks to Dr. Gregg Pane, our speaker for both ceremonies, who flew in from Washington to be with us.

Ruth J. Person
Chancellor
 

Commencement Speakers’ Reception at Ross House
(Cameron Waites, Gregg Pane, Ruth Person, Ned DeGalan)

Compete

At its April 19 meeting, CAPTE approved a ten-year accreditation of our Professional Doctor of Physical Therapy degree with no citations. This is the maximum length of accreditation a DPT program can receive. Kudos to our PT colleagues for their hard work and success.

Our Division of Student Affairs achieved a 77% participation rate in the U of M’s MHealthy program this year, putting them in the “top 5” category for all university units.

Drs. Mary Jo Sekelsky and Carolyn Gillespie were recently honored as YWCA Women of Achievement at a wonderful ceremony. Congratulations to both!

Convene

In late-April, our campus hosted its semi-annual retirement celebration. The nine retirees honored (Sharon Beam, Carolyn Gillespie, Dave Hart, Pat Klein, Doritta McDaniel, Gary Pace, Judy Rosenthal, Chalmers Sanders, and Sharon Seames) had a combined total of 206 years of service! On the Flint campus, Gary Pace has the most seniority, and will retire on June 1 with 48 years of continuous service!! Our best wishes to all.

Gary Pace Celebrates!

In early-May, we hosted our second annual Town-Gown dinner for campus leaders and community elected officials and other leaders. More than 60 individuals enjoyed an evening of lively discussion and a panel discussion, skillfully moderated by Dr. Marcus Paroske. Our community colleagues were exceedingly complimentary about what we are accomplishing on campus and in the community. It was a great evening!

Connect

Vice Chancellor Mary Jo Sekelsky and I headed off into the wilds of Oakland County bright and early on Saturday morning, May 7, to participate in the IMPACT program with our Greek organizations. IMPACT is a three-day program offered by the North-American Interfraternity Conference designed to enhance fraternity/sorority communities. Nearly 60 of our students were able to take part in this leadership program; yet another example of the way we develop “Leaders and Best” at UM-Flint.
 

IMPACT Staff on an early Saturday morning

On My Calendar