Penn State Altoona will hold its spring 2009 commencement ceremony 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 9 at the Blair County Convention Center. Degrees will be awarded to 218 students.
John J. Romano, vice-president of Commonwealth Campuses at Penn State, will be the commencement speaker. Romano provides academic and administrative leadership for 19 undergraduate campuses across the state. He has been a leader in general education by serving as an executive council member, executive director, and president of the Association for General and Liberal Studies, a national organization committed to undergraduate general education reform and innovation. Romano has spoken on many issues of general education at numerous state and national functions.
The decision to move commencement from the Adler Gymnasium on campus to the Blair County Convention Center was made after considerable discussion, review of all options and input from the senior class of Penn State Altoona.
"We realized after the spring 2008 commencement that the Adler gymnasium was no longer adequate to accommodate even two ceremonies efficiently, given the increasing number of graduates each year," said Chancellor Lori J. Bechtel-Wherry. "As spring 2009 is one of Penn State Altoona’s largest graduating class in college history, the Convention Center was the only viable option."