Commencement Symbolism & Senior Awards

Be In the Know
Be In the Know

There's a lot that goes into Commencement, and you might miss some of those details if you don't know what to look for. Below is a breakdown of a few things that make Commencement such a special ceremony.

Graduation Details

The People

The Designations

The Awards


 

The People

Marshals

The most senior member of the faculty is chosen to serve as the Faculty Marshal to carry the mace during the commencement ceremony. The Student Government Association president serves as the Student Marshal carrying the academic gonfalon. Traditionally, members of the Dorcas Society are selected to serve as Student Marshals to lead segments of the academic procession and recession.

The Platform Party

The platform party is the first group in the academic procession. The group includes the President of the College, the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the Faculty, a representative from the Board of Trustees, the campus minister and invited honored guests, such as the commencement speaker.

Student Ambassadors

Young Harris College Student Ambassadors are the College’s student public relations team and represent the College at a variety of programs and events. One of the largest of these events is Commencement, where the ambassadors serve as ushers, hosts and hostesses to families and guests.

Academic Regalia

The practice of wearing academic attire connects contemporary graduates with scholarly traditions that extend back to medieval times and the Renaissance, when it was the custom for clerics, ecclesiastics and scholars in European universities to wear gowns, caps and hoods. Although the wearing of the garb is now limited to formal occasions, the garb itself may be called the uniform of the professional scholar and teacher. A costume for commencement has been a tradition since the beginning of higher education in America. The style and color serve as symbols of collegiate attainment. The long sleeves of the gowns and the deep hoods were, on occasion, used to carry books and refreshments. Each European university developed its own style of garb with strict rules for its design. In the United States, however, most American colleges have agreed on a uniform design and color code.

Holders of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees wear black gowns; the pattern and trimming differ for each degree. Originally, the bachelor’s gown was made of serge or worsted and the master’s of serge, worsted or silk; but now synthetic fibers are also used. The bachelor’s gown is distinguished by its long pointed sleeves. The master’s gown has long sleeves with a slit for the arm at either the elbow or the wrist. Doctor’s gowns are adorned with velvet panels and bars that may be black or of a color distinctive to the wearer’s discipline.

Holders of all degrees wear caps, popularly known as mortarboards, to which a long tassel is fastened and which hangs over the left side of the cap. Doctors may wear tassels of gold thread. Holders of bachelor’s and master’s degrees may wear black or the color appropriate to the academic discipline.

The academic hood is an ornamental fold that goes around the neck and hangs down the back of the gown. The length and shape of the hood vary with the level of the degree. Hoods are generally lined with the colors of the college or university that granted the degree and trimmed with the color representing the faculty by which the degree is granted.


 

The Designations

Baccalaureate Honor Designations

  • Gold cord: Summa Cum Laude (3.9 grade point average or above)
  • Purple cord: Magna Cum Laude (3.7 grade point average or above)
  • White cord: Cum Laude (3.5 grade point average or above)

Candidates wearing purple stoles bearing the official seal of Young Harris College are members of the Young Harris College Senior Class of 2013. The stole is presented to each baccalaureate candidate by a special mentor during the College’s Baccalaureate Service.

Honors Program Statement

Students wearing gold and white cords are members of the Young Harris College Honors Program. Baccalaureate candidates announced as YHC Honors Scholars have earned honors degrees by completing all requirements of the YHC Honors Program.

Honor Societies

Candidates wearing blue and green cords are members of Alpha Chi Honor Society, a national honor society which recognizes the top 10 percent of juniors, seniors and graduate students at colleges and universities.

Candidates wearing gold and purple cords are members of Lambda Pi Eta Honor Society, an international communication studies honor society which aims to recognize, foster and reward outstanding scholastic achievement of undergraduate students enrolled as communication studies majors or minors.

Candidates wearing purple and white cords are members of Mu Phi Epsilon Music Fraternity, an international professional music fraternity which recognizes scholarship, musicianship and character of undergraduate students enrolled as music majors or minors.

Candidates wearing red and blue-gray cords are members of Phi Alpha Theta Honor Society, a national history honor society that promotes the study of the field through the encouragement of research, good teaching, publication, and the exchange of learning and ideas among historians.

Candidates wearing blue and yellow cords are members of Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, a national honor society which recognizes and encourages scholarship among two-year college students.

Candidates wearing black and red cords are members of Sigma Tau Delta Honor Society, an international English honor society which confers distinction upon students of the English language and literature in undergraduate, graduate and professional studies.


 

THE STUDENT AWARDS

Dr. Charles R. Clegg Outstanding Scholar Award

The Dr. Charles R. Clegg Outstanding Scholar Award is presented to the graduating senior(s) with the overall highest grade point average in all courses completed at Young Harris College. It is named in honor of the late Dr. Charles R. Clegg, beloved president of Young Harris College from 1950 to 1963.

Zell B. Miller Leadership Award

The Zell B. Miller Leadership Award is presented to the graduating senior who has made significant contributions to campus life at Young Harris College as an outstanding leader and role model. It is named in honor of the late Hon. Zell B. Miller, a member of the Young Harris College Class of 1951 and a Lifetime Trustee of the College. Miller served as Georgia’s 79th Governor from 1991 to 1999 and as U.S. Senator from 2000 to 2005. The recipient is selected from campus nominations by a panel of faculty, staff and administrators.

Young Harris Spirit Award

The Young Harris Spirit Award is presented to the graduating senior who best exemplifies the “Young Harris Spirit,” the indefinable characteristic that Young Harris College students and alumni know makes the College a unique and special place. The student also demonstrates outstanding levels of personal integrity, friendliness and engagement with the campus community. The recipient is selected from campus nominations by a panel of faculty, staff and administrators.

Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award
Mary Mildred Sullivan Award

The Algernon Sydney Sullivan and Mary Mildred Sullivan Awards are given annually by the Algernon Sydney Sullivan Foundation to a male and female graduating student at Young Harris College whose nobility of character and dedication to service sets them apart as examples for others.

The awards were created in 1890 to honor the husband and wife for whom the awards are named. The colleges and universities that participate in the Sullivan Awards program reflect the interest of Algernon Sydney Sullivan and his wife, Mary Mildred Sullivan, a native of Virginia, in the education of students in the American South. Previous recipients of the Sullivan Awards include First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and noted children’s television star Fred Rogers.