Fall commencement features 166 graduates
Penn State Erie will hold its fall commencement ceremony beginning at noon Saturday, Dec. 17, in the Junker Center. Some 166 students are graduating from Erie. Of those, 125 are planning to participate in the ceremony. This fall's graduating class will earn 133 bachelor's degrees, 20 master's degrees and 13 associate degrees.
Mary Beth Pinto, associate professor of marketing in the Black School of Business at Penn State Erie and director of the Center for Credit and Consumer Research, will present this year's commencement address. Her message is "Marketing the Most Important Brand."
The commencement ceremony includes a welcome by George Morgan III, Class of 2005 of Erie, and a farewell from Nicole Pacinelli, Class of 2005 of Erie. Leisa Mills, Class of 2005 of Erie, will lead the singing of the alma mater.
Kurt F. Buseck, chair of the Penn State Erie Council of Fellows, will offer greetings, and Penn State Trustee Bob Metzger, Class of 1960, will provide authorization to confer degrees to Jack Burke, chancellor of Penn State Erie. Alumni Society President Aaron Rospierski, Class of 1995, will induct new graduates into the Alumni Association.
Music for the event is performed by the Commencement Brass and Percussion Ensemble under the leadership of Gary Viebranz, director of instrumental ensembles at Penn State Erie. Lambda Sigma Honor Society and the Lion Ambassadors will serve as ushers for the event.