On May 16th, Fresno State will be celebrating its 50th annual Chicano/Latino Commencement Ceremony.
Fresno State’s annual Chicano/Latino commencement celebration has grown into the largest ceremony of its kind in the nation.
More than 1,000 graduates are expected to participate in this year’s 50th anniversary event, according to the event organizer, Victor Torres, a professor in the Department of Chicano and Latin American Studies at Fresno State.
The ceremony, which celebrates academic achievement alongside family, culture and heritage, has expanded steadily over the decades, forcing coordinators to create stricter eligibility requirements and streamline parts of the event to accommodate growing attendance.
“This is the largest ceremony that focuses specifically on celebrating achievement, but also family, culture and heritage,” said Torres.
According to Torres, planning for the commencement begins nearly a year in advance. Preparations start during the summer with a review of the previous ceremony, followed by months of coordination involving registration systems, volunteer recruitment and logistical planning.
Despite the event’s size, only a handful of primary coordinators oversee the ceremony throughout the year while balancing other full-time university positions, and volunteers assist with execution closer to the event date.
The commencement uses a PeopleSoft registration system that allows students to register and pay fees online, though staff must regularly coordinate with information technology personnel to update the system and troubleshoot issues.
By February the registration infrastructure is typically complete, after which coordinators begin handling hundreds of student emails and questions regarding eligibility and deadlines.
As participation has increased over time, Torres said they have had to implement stricter eligibility rules.
Priority is now given to students completing degrees during the current academic year, while students who wish to walk before finishing their degrees are placed on a waiting list.
“We have to make sure that those who are actually completing a degree have an opportunity to register,” Torres said.
This year, approximately 180 students were initially placed on a waiting list, though many were later accommodated as space became available.
The growth of the ceremony has also altered the event itself.
Earlier ceremonies allowed announcers to read graduates’ full names along with their parents’ full names, but increasing participation forced them to shorten introductions to save time.
“With so many students, we’ve got to cut down,” Torres said, explaining that even a few additional seconds per graduate can significantly lengthen the ceremony.
One addition that has remained popular is a “halftime show” featuring music and dancing during the ceremony, as a way to provide relief from the formality of reading names and shaking hands.
“People just enjoy the music, get some dancing going,” Torres said, noting that university administrators and faculty members often participate as well.
This year’s ceremony will also honor the founders who established the celebration in 1977 to demonstrate the lasting impact and significance of the event across generations of students and families.
“This should be the 50th anniversary,” Torres said. “We honor them for having the vision to do something that 50 years later still exists and is so impactful and meaningful.”