UC Riverside administration has announced that the class of 2023 will hold most of its Commencement Ceremonies inside the air-conditioned Toyota Arena in Ontario. The Arena is less than 20 miles from campus and UCR Vice Chancellor Brian Haynes has expressed that the venue will provide a more well-rounded, enhanced experience for all attendees.
Haynes stated the commencement shift is in response to students’ top two commencement wishes: to continue having their names called individually and to invite more family and friends. “Graduates and their guests will have the luxury of an air-conditioned ceremony with improved seating, sightlines, and security,” the announcement explained.
Ceremonies will still include individual name reading of each graduating student. Guest tickets will range from 8 to 10 tickets per graduate depending on the college and/or school program, which matches or exceeds guest tickets for the on-campus ceremonies. Free parking will be provided by the university to all graduating students attending the ceremonies, and graduate photos will be available at the arena.
Designed for concerts, sports, and other high-capacity events, the new location will bring a much needed change in atmosphere and will replace the past’s unpredictable and uncontrollable outdoor graduation conditions. Indoor campus options provide limited seating capacity and the ever-increasing number of graduating students made for longer ceremonies leaving attendees in Riverside’s harsh summer sun.
“This decision, which was discussed prior to the pandemic, is in response to feedback on the commencement experience for graduates, family members, and loved ones,” Haynes explained in a Nov. 3 email to the campus community. “UC Riverside is enhancing the graduation experience.”
Navjot Brar, a third-year Computer Science with Business Applications major, was thrilled with the changes and looks forward to his graduation ceremony, “Not only do we get the stadium experience, but this helps tremendously especially when you consider the difficulties that come with having a large family to bring as guests. My older sister’s graduation ceremony faced a lot of issues with this and the heat.”
The venue will provide cooler temperatures, more seats, better viewpoints, clearer audio, security, and other amenities enjoyed when attending high-profile events. The 225,000-square-foot Toyota Arena can accommodate 11,000 people and has hosted icons including the LA Lakers, LA Kings, Metallica, Justin Bieber, Carrie Underwood, Elton John, Cher, and many more.
The 2023 Commencement schedule has been posted on commencement.ucr.edu to allow ample time for graduates and their guests to plan their attendance. The School of Medicine Hippocratic Oath Ceremony for M.D. degree recipients and the Graduate Division Hooding Ceremony for Ph.D. and M.F.A. degree candidates are scheduled for Friday, June 2 and Saturday, June 3, 2023, at the Student Recreation Center.
The Highlander Newspaper looks forward to the pleasant experience for our future graduates, and their families and friends at UC Riverside’s future commencement events.
Commencement FAQ and Summary:
- Commencement will take place inside the air-conditioned Toyota Arena in Ontario
- Ceremonies will still include the individual name reading of each graduating student.
- Guest tickets will range from 8 to 10 tickets per graduate depending on the college and/or school program, which matches or exceeds guest tickets for the on-campus ceremonies.
- The 2023 Commencement schedule has been posted on commencement.ucr.edu, providing ample time to plan.
- Free parking is provided to all graduating students attending the ceremonies. Guest parking information will be added to the commencement website once it is confirmed.
- Graduate photos will be available at the arena.
- The School of Medicine’s Hippocratic Oath Ceremony, Graduate Division’s Hooding Ceremony, Chicano Student Programs’ Raza Grad, and African Student Programs’ Black Grad will remain at UCR’s Student Recreation Center.
