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  1. #21
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Vermont
    I love my paper calendar.

  2. #22
    Join Date
    Dec 2014
    Location
    On the Road to Nowhere
    Quote Originally Posted by budwom View Post
    I love my paper calendar.
    Does yours have kittens or puppies?

    Saw this recently:

    I was visiting a friend a few days ago. I asked to borrow a newspaper and she said "This is the 21st Century. I don't waste money on newspapers. Here, use my IPad."

    I can tell you this...that fly never knew what hit him.

  3. #23
    I never walked at my undergrad or grad graduations. Just wasn’t my thing but I am obviously in the very small minority.

  4. #24
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Vermont
    Quote Originally Posted by LasVegas View Post
    I never walked at my undergrad or grad graduations. Just wasn’t my thing but I am obviously in the very small minority.
    Then I'm in that small group. Never occured to me to attend, yet I have solid allegiance to Duke and my other alma mater...nor have I ever attended a single reunion, yet I've been back to Duke at least 140 times or so...

  5. #25
    Quote Originally Posted by LasVegas View Post
    I never walked at my undergrad or grad graduations. Just wasn’t my thing but I am obviously in the very small minority.
    Probably being too literal here but ...

    If you're a Dukie (as your profile suggests) maybe you wouldn't have walked anyway ... unless you're just talking about walking in and walking out of the stadium. For me ('89) there was no walking across a stage (degrees conferred en masse, by degree type). I don't even recall a procession for undergrads in terms of finding a seat, or for that matter, leaving. I'm sure faculty and admin processed; maybe graduate degree candidates too. I just don't recall doing it myself. Maybe at Baccalaureate, though.

    I agree somewhat with the person upthread who mentioned departmental graduations. I only recall one for my certificate program, not either of my majors, but I did find it pretty meaningful. I wish my majors had done something (perhaps they did and there was a schedule conflict; I can't recall). There's just something about a formal recognition of wrapping up a course of study in a topic that interests you, having someone acknowledge the work and achievement, the subject's importance in the world, and so on. To try to capture that sense of intellectual curiosity and practical importance for a dizzying array of majors - the message becomes terribly diluted and generic.

  6. #26
    Quote Originally Posted by cspan37421 View Post
    Probably being too literal here but ...

    If you're a Dukie (as your profile suggests) maybe you wouldn't have walked anyway ... unless you're just talking about walking in and walking out of the stadium. For me ('89) there was no walking across a stage (degrees conferred en masse, by degree type). I don't even recall a procession for undergrads in terms of finding a seat, or for that matter, leaving. I'm sure faculty and admin processed; maybe graduate degree candidates too. I just don't recall doing it myself. Maybe at Baccalaureate, though.
    I’ve just heard people use the “walked” term before so I assumed that how it goes down everywhere. I guess you can tell I’ve never been to one besides my high school graduation!

  7. #27
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Watching carolina Go To HELL!
    Quote Originally Posted by budwom View Post
    I love my paper calendar.
    I’ve used my wallet sized Day Timer for 45 years, renewing every year. I’d be lost without it!
    Ozzie, your paradigm of optimism!

    Go To Hell carolina, Go To Hell!
    9F 9F 9F
    https://ecogreen.greentechaffiliate.com

  8. #28
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Watching carolina Go To HELL!
    Quote Originally Posted by dudog84 View Post
    Does yours have kittens or puppies?

    Saw this recently:

    I was visiting a friend a few days ago. I asked to borrow a newspaper and she said "This is the 21st Century. I don't waste money on newspapers. Here, use my IPad."

    I can tell you this...that fly never knew what hit him.
    LOL! Tried to Zpork you but alas, gotta spread them around first.
    Ozzie, your paradigm of optimism!

    Go To Hell carolina, Go To Hell!
    9F 9F 9F
    https://ecogreen.greentechaffiliate.com

  9. #29
    Quote Originally Posted by OZZIE4DUKE View Post
    I’ve used my wallet sized Day Timer for 45 years, renewing every year. I’d be lost without it!
    I used to use the same system. Now I just don't have anything to do or places to be. Life is good.

  10. #30
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Carrboro
    Quote Originally Posted by Ranidad View Post
    My alma mater is not instilling confidence in its 2020 graduates. First world problems but a rant follows...

    I am very disappointed that my alma mater has managed this so poorly.


    - Ranidad

    I wonder what percentage of the current student and staff population will be happy to see the Class of 2020 returning to campus for this event, at this time. I would speculate that the number is not large. I'm not saying my speculation refutes your point; perhaps it supports it.

  11. #31
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Chicago suburbs
    Quote Originally Posted by orrnot View Post
    I wonder what percentage of the current student and staff population will be happy to see the Class of 2020 returning to campus for this event, at this time. I would speculate that the number is not large. I'm not saying my speculation refutes your point; perhaps it supports it.
    The disappointment is largely the execution of the event by Duke. The current Duke staff committed to celebrate the class of 2020 on campus, selected the dates, require all attendees to be vaccinated, and has now reduced the extent of the celebration.

    They selected a weekend when current students are on campus (not summer or fall break) and with a home football game. They also waited until mid July to announce the schedule of events and still apparently didn't have a back up plan to accommodate stricter COVID restrictions on events.

    The seating layout for the graduation ceremony itself, all students and guests (limit 4), fits between the bus stop and the steps up to the chapel with some overflow in front of Perkins. The entire expected attendance should be less than a football game.

    I'm not sure what current student and staff population think about hosting events on campus at this point in the pandemic but after learning they scaled back on 2020 graduation I received an email telling me to save the 11/5&6 for homecoming at Duke. Ironically I presume that the 2020 graduates all also received that email!

  12. #32
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Chicago suburbs

    Post event comments

    We spent the weekend in Durham with our daughter. Duke did put on a very nice commencement ceremony on Abele quad with the Chapel as the backdrop. The graduates and families that we spoke with all truly appreciated the effort and recognition.

    The lack of other events is still disappointing but with today's communication tools the graduates were able to find their friends who were in town and plan their own get togethers which will likely be more memorable in the long run. Gatherings just happened away from campus.

    Quote Originally Posted by Ranidad View Post
    My alma mater is not instilling confidence in its 2020 graduates. First world problems but a rant follows...

    I understand that the pandemic has made planning events large and small difficult at best. Duke is not handling the 2020 graduation well at all. Communication has only been directly to graduates, infrequent, and lacking detail. For instance, it has been mentioned that anyone attending must be fully vaccinated but no indication of how that will be monitored/enforced.

    My daughter graduated in 2020. Understandably, she had an abrupt end to her time at Duke and a virtual graduation two months later. Duke has continued to state that it was committed to honoring the 2020 graduates with an on campus ceremony.

    In late May 2021 graduates received a save the date email for September 24-26, 2021, details to follow. A schedule of events with registration link was not emailed to graduates until mid July and requested registration by mid August. A Friday evening welcome reception, Midnight gathering in the cafeteria on East Campus, and a Tailgate before the Duke-Kansas football game on Saturday. All student graduation ceremony on Sunday morning.

    Clearly a streamlined weekend (lacking Baccalaureate, department events, etc..) but offering several opportunities for events offering casual & unplanned meetings with their classmates who were dispersed without warning. Remember that during spring break of their senior year they received notice not to return to campus.

    Today, 9 days prior to those Friday events graduates received an email stating that all of those events have been cancelled. Graduation is still on for Sunday at 9:00 am in Abele Quad but the university is no longer providing any group gathering for 2020 graduates. The only "group" event on the schedule is the Duke-Kansas football game and they are offering concessions vouchers since the tailgate has been cancelled. In my mind, wandering Wallace Wade searching for other 2020 grads is not a graduation event.

    They are left to plan their own weekend. Duke could at least provided a list of classmates who have registered so that attendees would have a chance to reach out beforehand and try to arrange some time/place to connect over the weekend. So far nothing of the kind has been provided or even alluded to.

    Clearly the Delta variant is a major curveball, but Duke had over a year to plan prior to the late May "save the date" announcement and another six weeks before the event schedule release in mid July.

    If you mandate that everyone attending must be vaccinated shouldn't there be a way to find venues on/around campus that can accommodate an outdoor welcome reception and tailgate allowing for adequate social distancing?

    If you pick a weekend without a home football game then you have Wallace Wade available all weekend as a location. Even if ALL 2020 graduates returned with 3 guests(a number they could limit) that is what 24,000 to 40,000 people? Nowhere near that many people would actually attend. I do not have any data on planned attendance because Duke hasn't shared any registration numbers with graduates.

    End of rant. I am very disappointed that my alma mater has managed this so poorly.


    - Ranidad

  13. #33
    Glad to hear that the commencement ceremony was nice. Even better that she was able to connect with the people she most wanted to see.

  14. #34
    Join Date
    Feb 2018
    Location
    Dur'm
    Quote Originally Posted by Ranidad View Post
    We spent the weekend in Durham with our daughter. Duke did put on a very nice commencement ceremony on Abele quad with the Chapel as the backdrop. The graduates and families that we spoke with all truly appreciated the effort and recognition.

    The lack of other events is still disappointing but with today's communication tools the graduates were able to find their friends who were in town and plan their own get togethers which will likely be more memorable in the long run. Gatherings just happened away from campus.
    This was precisely my son's experience. His post-weekend comment was, "This was really more of a reunion than a graduation, but I really enjoyed seeing all my friends again." It's hard to argue with that. He appreciated the chance to wear and get pictures of himself in full graduation regalia. I didn't fully appreciate how much that meant to him and his friends alike. We spent a good long time getting pictures after the ceremony. And I have to say: It sure was better weather than late May!! Duke couldn't have requested a better weekend weather-wise (and that also helped with all the pictures).

  15. #35
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Chicago suburbs
    Quote Originally Posted by Phredd3 View Post
    This was precisely my son's experience. His post-weekend comment was, "This was really more of a reunion than a graduation, but I really enjoyed seeing all my friends again." It's hard to argue with that. He appreciated the chance to wear and get pictures of himself in full graduation regalia. I didn't fully appreciate how much that meant to him and his friends alike. We spent a good long time getting pictures after the ceremony. And I have to say: It sure was better weather than late May!! Duke couldn't have requested a better weekend weather-wise (and that also helped with all the pictures).
    Agreed. Weather was perfect and it seemed like a big turnout of undergrads.

    For all of the virtual connections that exist this event showed how meaningful in person activities remain.

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