Author Dan Ariely and America Online co-founder Steve Case will speak during UNC’s Commencement weekend on Saturday, May 11 and Sunday, May 12.
The main University Commencement will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, May 12, in Kenan Stadium. The Doctoral Hooding Ceremony will be at the Dean E. Smith Center on Saturday, May 11, at 10 a.m. Both ceremonies are open to the public and no tickets are needed.
At the Hooding event, social scientist Dan Ariely will speak. Ariely, the James B. Duke Professor of Psychology and Behavioral Economics at Duke University, researches psychological processes determining daily human decisions and the possible implications of this human behavior. He is the author of the Wall Street Journal column “Ask Ariely” and three New York Times bestselling books.
The Commencement speaker is Steve Case, co-founder of America Online and chair of the Case Foundation and chairman and CEO of Revolution. During the ceremony, an honorary degree will be awarded to Case as well as Bernard Flatow, Joel Fleishman, Freeman Hrabowski, and Mary Pope Osborne. Read more about this year’s honorary degree recipients.
Chancellor Holden Thorp will preside during the ceremony. Thorp chose Case in consultation with the University’s Commencement Speaker Selection Committee, whose members include students and faculty.
The University Registrar estimates that 6,027 students will graduate: 3,731 with bachelor’s, 1,445 master’s, 235 doctoral and 616 professional degrees. The last are from the schools of dentistry, law, medicine, nursing and pharmacy.
If for Commencement rain showers are forecast, attendees should come prepared for wet conditions in the stadium. Umbrellas will be permitted, but guests should use caution when opening umbrellas and be mindful of those seated around them. If it rains, the ceremony will be shortened, but not relocated. If severe weather threatens and attendees’ safety is at risk, the ceremony will be canceled because there is no alternative site large enough to accommodate the expected 30,000 attendees.
Watch live Commencement and Hooding video streams, with captioning.
Published May 2, 2013.