Commencement Program
May 27, 2022, 8:30 a.m. Provident Credit Union Event Center — at San José State University
- Accounting & Finance: Accounting, Accounting Information Systems, Corporate Accounting and Finance, Finance
- Business Graduate Programs
- School of Global Innovation & Leadership: Entrepreneurship, Global Operations Management, International Business
- Hospitality, Tourism, Event Management
- School of Information Systems & Technology: Management Information Systems
Processional
Announcement of the Commencement
Elizabeth Grace, Director, Accounting and Finance
National Anthem
Julianne Citino, ’22 Music Education
Welcome
Dan Moshavi, Dean, Lucas College and Graduate School of Business
Presiding
Steve Perez, Interim President
Congratulations from the SJSU Alumni Association
Chrissy Chang, ’96 Kinesiology, President, Alumni Association Board of Directors
Commencement Speakers
Jeremy King, ’92 Information Systems Management
Jeff King, ’93 Marketing
Presentation of Candidates
Dan Moshavi, Dean, Lucas College and Graduate School of Business
Conferring of Degrees
Steve Prerez, Interim President
Alma Mater
“Hail, Spartans, Hail”
Recessional
Jeremy King, ’92 Information Systems Management and Jeff King, ’93 Marketing
Jeff and Jeremy King were raised in Silicon Valley and grew up at the dawn of the Internet age. After graduating from San José State University, they held positions at some of the Valley's most iconic companies. Jeff earned his marketing degree and followed the product management path at Apple, Sun Microsystems, eBay and Facebook, while Jeremy earned a degree in information systems management and held engineering positions at Bay Networks and eBay before serving as chief technology officer of Walmart and Pinterest. In between, they both held leadership positions at startups and private equity companies. They are both active investors and give back often to SJSU, including frequent guest lectures at the business school. They both married SJSU MBA graduates and each have two college-age kids. In their free time, you can find them biking together in the Santa Cruz mountains with their work colleagues and SJSU friends.
Regalia
Commencement exercises like today’s ceremony date from the Middle Ages and the traditions of Europe’s first universities. Our graduates and members of the platform party are wearing regalia — robes, hoods and caps —that are likely adapted from the clothing of medieval priests or friars. Spot the differences in the gowns:
- Presidential gown is adorned with four bars, representing the Office of the President.
- Doctoral gown has velvet panels down the front and three velvet bars on each of the bell-shaped sleeves. The color of the velvet may indicate the academic discipline.
- Master’s gown may be worn open and has long sleeves with slits above the elbow.
- Bachelor’s gown has a closed front and long, pointed sleeves.
Draped over the shoulders, the hood evolved from a priest’s cowl and was often used to carry items — the first backpack, perhaps. The lining colors signify the college or university granting the degree. At San José State, the hood is gold, blue and white. The monk’s skullcap became the mortarboard cap or tam. Black is the accepted cap color in the United States, but many foreign universities have colorful headdresses.
Tassels vary in use and color. At SJSU, the color of tassels for bachelor’s degree candidates represent each college. The color for the Lucas College and Graduate School of Business is sapphire blue.
The Ceremonial Mace
An ornamental staff or scepter, the mace is carried by officials as part of formal parliamentary or academic ceremonies. A gift from the Tower Foundation of SJSU, the university’s ceremonial mace was designed and created by Art and Art History Lecturer Yvonne Escalante, ’13 MFA Spatial Arts (right photo). She found inspiration for the design in both SJSU history and the paths students take to reach graduation.