PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (December 14, 2019) – Nearly 600 Prairie View A&M University students participated in PVAMU’s Fall 2019 Commencement Ceremony on Dec. 14, 2019. Each of the university’s eight colleges and school was represented at the event, which began at 9 a.m. in the William “Billy” J. Nicks, Sr. Building.

Reginald DesRoches, William and Stephanie Sick Dean of the George R. Brown School of Engineering at Rice University, served as Commencement Speaker during the event. On Friday, DesRoches was named the new provost of Rice, effective July 1, 2020.

DesRoches told students five main points during his address: “Always be prepared, and take care of business; be bold, take risks, and get outside of your comfort zone; be a good person and have integrity; keep learning; and, give back to your community and your university – their success depends on you,” he said.

DesRoches serves as a member of PVAMU’s Presidential Advisory Council, advising President Ruth J. Simmons on critical issues affecting Prairie View. She presented DesRoches with a Presidential Medal during the ceremony. In addition, Frederick Newhouse, ’70, received the Distinguished Alumnus Medal from Simmons.

According to PVAMU officials, the university had 462 bachelor’s degree candidates, 109 master’s, and 13 doctoral candidates this fall, bringing the total number to more than 75,000 alumni who have graduated from PVAMU since the university opened its doors in 1876. Nearly 40-percent of undergraduate candidates for fall 2019 identified themselves as first-generation college students, or the first person in their immediate families to attend a college or university.

“Earning a degree is an outstanding accomplishment, attesting to the hard work and dedication it took to achieve this milestone,” said James M. Palmer, interim provost and senior vice president of Academic Affairs. “The faculty and staff at PVAMU have provided our graduates with mentoring, guidance, and the requisite knowledge and skills needed to earn their degrees. Still, they have also cultivated a passion for lifelong learning, as Dr. DesRoches mentioned today in his commencement address.”

PVAMU students from this semester’s graduating class have accepted jobs at General Motors, CocaCola, PepsiCo, Bank of America, ADT, Goldman Sachs, IBM, Dell, the United States Department of Agriculture, Walmart eCommerce, and dozens of area school districts and hospitals, to name a few.

To view some of PVAMU’s notable fall 2019 graduates, visit www.pvamu.edu/academicaffairs/commencement/graduates.

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By Marchita Shilo