In-person commencement for the University of Alabama at Birmingham is planned for Friday, April 29, and Saturday, April 30, in Bartow Arena.
More than 2,600 students will graduate from UAB this spring. Approximately 1,600 students will walk in one of the university’s three ceremonies:
- The ceremony for all graduate students will be at 6 p.m. Friday, April 29.
- The ceremony for undergraduates who have earned degrees from the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Education will be at 9:30 a.m. Saturday, April 30.
- The 2 p.m. April 30 ceremony will be for undergraduates of the Collat School of Business, School of Engineering, School of Health Professions, School of Nursing and School of Public Health.
There is no limit on the number of guests who can attend. Parking will be free.
There will be no handshake with the president or deans, but graduates will have their photo taken. Students are asked to wear flat shoes. Full details are available on the UAB commencement website.
For spring 2022, the UAB Graduate School will confer the university’s highest degrees on 107 students from 16 states and nine countries, representing 31 disciplines.
The mace carrier for the Friday night ceremony will be Professor Robin A.J. Lester, Ph.D., in the UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine’s Department of Neurobiology. Lester is the recipient of the 2021 Ellen Gregg Ingalls/UAB National Alumni Society Award for Lifetime Achievement in Teaching. Lester’s research focuses on unmasking the physiological roles of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in the brain, and how exposure to nicotine can promote persistent changes that may contribute to nicotine dependence.
The mace carrier for Saturday’s ceremonies will be Distinguished Professor Smita Bhatia, M.D., MPH, in the UAB Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine’s Department of Pediatrics. Bhatia is the 2022 Distinguished Faculty Lecturer. She is the Gay and Bew White Endowed Professor in Pediatric Oncology, director of the UAB Institute for Cancer Outcomes and Survivorship, the vice chair for Outcomes in the Department of Pediatrics, and senior adviser for Cancer Outcomes Research at the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center at UAB. She is an internationally renowned leader in cancer survivorship and outcomes research.
M. Miller Gorrie, chairman of Brasfield & Gorrie, LLCIn recognition of his exemplary service to UAB and the Birmingham community, the state of Alabama and the nation, the 2022 President’s Medal will be awarded to M. Miller Gorrie, chairman of Brasfield & Gorrie, LLC, during the 9:30 a.m. ceremony April 30. Gorrie is among Alabama’s most successful and respected businessmen. Under his leadership, Brasfield & Gorrie has evolved into one of the nation’s top domestic general building contractors servicing clients in 23 states. Brasfield & Gorrie has had a tremendous impact on the UAB campus, having built the new Collat School of Business, UAB Hospital’s North Pavilion, Women and Infants Center, Hazelrig-Salter Radiation Oncology building, UAB Campus Dining’s Commons on the Green, and more. A member of the Alabama Engineering Hall of Fame, the Alabama Business Hall of Fame, the Birmingham Business Hall of Fame-Downtown Kiwanis Club, the Alabama AGC Construction Hall of Fame and the Alabama Academy of Honor, Gorrie was awarded the Cornerstone Award by the Association of Builders and Contractors for Lifetime Achievement in the Construction Industry in 1998.