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Audience – Readers

Category: Audience – Readers

Cultural Senior Dinner

Friday, June 13 | 5-6:30 p.m.
Diversity & Intercultural Center

The Diversity and Intercultural Center and International Student Services celebrate and support students from diverse backgrounds. This dinner honors graduates’ achievements while affirming the importance of culture, community, and belonging. Seniors and their families are welcome to attend. 

Baccalaureate Ceremony

Saturday, June 14 | 2:30-3:45 p.m.
Memorial Chapel

All members of the Lawrence community are invited to Memorial Chapel at 2:30 p.m. for a multi-spirited reflection of a shared spiritual journey.

Robert McDonald ’73 was selected as the Baccalaureate speaker this year. McDonald is on the faculty at The Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute of Music, where he holds the Penelope P. Watkins Chair in Piano Studies.

He continues to stay connected to Lawrence. When the Conservatory of Music took its 150-year celebration to New York City during the recent spring break—11 students spent four days in NYC attending masterclasses, one-on-one sessions, and performing at Manhattan School of Music—McDonald was among the alumni working with the students. 

Commencement 2025

Join us to celebrate the class of 2025! The Commencement Ceremony is set for Sunday, June 15, at 10 a.m. on Main Hall Green. A Post-Commencement Ceremony will follow immediately after next to the Mudd Library.

Find the full schedule of events, FAQs, and more on the Lawrence website.

Commencement website

Commencement 2025 Weekend Celebrations

Please join the Lawrence community for celebrations throughout Commencement Weekend.

The celebration begins on Friday with the Senior Art Exhibit and Commencement Concert and culminates with the Commencement Ceremony on Sunday, June 15 at 10 a.m. on Main Hall Green.

Schedule of Events

Friday, June 13, 2025

Senior Art Exhibition 
10 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Wriston Art Center Galleries 
Please contact wriston-gallery@lawrence.edu for appointments outside of these hours. 

Commencement Rehearsal for Seniors
2 – 3 p.m. | Main Hall Green (Rain Site: Memorial Chapel)
Caps and gowns are not needed; Class photograph follows at Wriston Amphitheatre.

Cultural Senior Dinner hosted by D&IC and ISS
5 – 6:30 p.m. | Diversity & Intercultural Center
The Diversity and Intercultural Center and International Student Services celebrates and supports students from diverse backgrounds. This dinner honors graduates’ achievements while affirming the importance of culture, community, and belonging. Seniors and their families are welcome to attend. 

Commencement Concert featuring Class of 2025
7:30 p.m. | Memorial Chapel (Reception follows in Shattuck Hall, Room 163)
Graduating seniors from the Class of 2025 are featured in the Commencement Concert. Reception follows in Shattuck Hall, Room 163.

Viking Room Open
Confirmation pending – 9 p.m. – 2 a.m. | Memorial Hall

Saturday, June 14, 2025

Phi Beta Kappa Initiation (Members Only)
9 – 10 a.m. | Warch Campus Center (Pusey – Program; Somerset – Buffet)

Senior Art Exhibition 
10 a.m. – 4 p.m. | Wriston Art Center Galleries 
Contact wriston-gallery@lawrence.edu for appointments outside of these hours. 

First-Gen Student & Family Celebration
10:30 – 11:15 a.m. | Warch Campus Center (Cinema – Second Level)

Cookout for Seniors, Families, Faculty & Staff; Performance by Lawrence University Grad Band
Noon – 1:30 p.m. | Main Hall Green
Graduates, their families, and the Lawrence community are invited to join President Laurie A. Carter for a cookout. 

Baccalaureate Service
2:30 – 3:45 p.m. | Memorial Chapel
A multi-faith celebration for graduates and their guests.

Posse Celebration (Invite Only)
Confirmation pending – 5:15 – 7 p.m. | Warch Campus Center (Esch Hurvis Room)

Posse Dinner (Invite Only)
Confirmation pending – 7 – 9 p.m. | TBD

Viking Room Open
Confirmation pending – 9 p.m. – 2 a.m. | Memorial Hall

Sunday, June 15, 2025

Processional Assembly
9:30 a.m. | Memorial Chapel (sidewalk on the east side; Rain Site: report directly to seats at 9:30 a.m.)

Commencement
10 a.m. – noon | Main Hall Green (Severe weather site: Memorial Chapel; please check this website and LU Social Channels for weather-related communications)

Post-Commencement Ceremony Reception
Noon – 1 p.m. | Main Hall Green (next to Wriston/Mudd Library)

Senior Art Exhibition 
Noon – 4 p.m. | Wriston Art Center Galleries
Please contact wriston-gallery@lawrence.edu for appointments outside of these hours. 

June 14 – Farm Market & Flag Day Parade

As you make your plans for Commencement celebrations, keep in mind that Saturday, June 14 will be a busy day in downtown Appleton!

The Downtown Appleton Farm Market will run 8 a.m.-12:30 p.m. from Drew Street to Appleton Street, including Houdini Plaza.

The Appleton Flag Day Parade is scheduled for 2 p.m. The route begins at Oneida St/Wisconsin Ave and heads west to State St, then south to College Ave. It continues east and turns north on Drew St to City Park.

RABLS Talk with Dr. Maria Castillo

Tales of Water and Sand: When a Molecular Biologist Gets Out of the Lab

Monday, June 2 | 3:10-4:20 p.m.
Wriston Auditorium

What makes an organism successful and competitive in an environment? What is needed for an animal to be an efficient vector for disease transmission? What is the role of the immune system in these processes?

To answer some of these questions, Dr. Maria Castillo’s (New Mexico State University) laboratory group focuses on two topics: the ecoimmunology of the freshwater snail Physela cuta in relation to its invasive capacity and the desert-adapted kissing bug Triatoma rubida as a trypanosome vector of Chagas disease in New Mexico.

End-of-year celebrations

Spiritual and Religious Life Celebration Dinner

Monday, June 2 | 4-6 p.m.
Spirit Space

Alianza Graduation Ceremony

Monday, June 2 | 6-8 p.m.
Diversity Center

Psychology Senior Send-Off

Monday, June 2 | 6-9 p.m.
Steitz Atrium

Senior Banquet

Wednesday, June 4 | 6-11 p.m.
Warch 225, 226, 324, 325

D&IC End-of-Year Celebration

Thursday, June 5 | 5-6:30 p.m.
Diversity Center

Ethnic Studies Graduation Ceremony

Friday, June 6 | 4:30-6 p.m.
Diversity Center

Kente Cloth Ceremony

Friday, June 6 | 3-10 p.m.
Warch 324 – Somerset Room

Celebrating Brian & Leila Pertl

Saturday, June 7 | 12-1:30 p.m.
Memorial Chapel

Join the Lawrence Conservatory in celebrating Brian and Leila Pertl as they come to the end of a 17-year tenure marked by inspiring vision, loving support, and musical empowerment. You’re invited outside after the celebration for the annual Con Picnic, this year in honor of Brian and Leila.

International End-of-Year Celebration

Sunday, June 8 | 12-4 p.m.
International House