Elizabethtown College is hosting its first graduation fair April 2 from 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. in the KĀV. The fair, which is sponsored by the College Store, will act as an assembly of information for seniors regarding commencement and the events surrounding the ceremony.
“In the past, the College Store has been the gathering place for information,” College Store manager Nancy Fink said. “Whenever students would have questions and not know where to go, they would come here because that’s where they get their regalia. And we, in turn, would be sending them off here, there and everywhere.”
Although the College Store is organizing the event, other departments are also contributing to the fair. These include the alumni association, Career Services, Student Senate, Dining Services, Financial Aid, international student services, Registration and Records and Residence Life. While attending the event, graduating seniors will not only be able pick up their caps and gowns, but will also be able to buy diploma frames, graduation announcements and class rings.
Students can also pick up tickets for a possible indoor commencement and gather information about senior week. “It’s a one stop shopping and information place,” Fink stated.
Though various stations will be present at the fair, the College Store’s main goal behind sponsoring the event was to ease the process for students to obtain their insignia. This year, graduating students will be able to pick up a cap and gown without ordering it prior to the fair. To make this possible, the College ordered a bulk quantity of caps and gowns in a variety of sizes so that each student will be equipped with well-fitting regalia. “In the past, seniors had a week to order, and it just kind of made it cumbersome for everybody,” Fink said. “We hope that by doing this, it will be short, sweet and fun.”
The College looked into alternative insignia before ordering the mass quantity of the traditional caps and gowns, including rental and environmentally friendly options. After considering these options, the College ultimately decided to continue using the type of gowns that have been used in past years.
Fink and Susan Smith, director of the College Store, decided to initiate this project together. “[Smith] had suggested it in the past, but it just never happened. Last year the two of us decided to try to make it more fun and not quite as drawn out,” Fink said. According to Fink, students have never complained about the organization of graduation material, but they do appear somewhat anxious when trying to find specific information. “As a store, we feel badly. [Students] come in here hoping to get the answer and instead it’s like, ‘no, you have one more place to go.’ Plus, we’re hoping it will be fun and a kickoff to graduation,” she stated.
The graduation fair will also include refreshments, games and prizes. When students enter the fair, they will be given a card to be punched at each station they attend and then placed in a raffle drawing. Prizes will include diploma frames, Visa gift cards, alumni items and free regalia. Members of Student Senate’s class of 2013 will also greet students at the door, as well as offer information about the class gift and senior week.
“As a Senator, I think it is great that the College is doing something to reach out to the graduating class,” Sean Post, class of 2013 president, stated. “As a senior myself, I am really looking forward to it because I predict it being very helpful. I think seniors will benefit by the convenience of having many departments and information in one place. Hopefully, everyone that attends will learn a lot and have an opportunity to have any questions they have about their transition from Etown answered.”
Although this will be the College’s first graduation fair, Fink hopes that it will become a tradition worth continuing in upcoming years. “We’re optimistic. We’ve had good responses from the departments and lot of questions from students and parents. We hope to see everybody there and hope people are just as excited as we are,” she said. Fink would also like to remind students that the fair is not mandatory and that seniors will still be able to pick up their caps and gowns in the College Store after the conclusion of the fair.