On May 16, 1,390 students will receive their college degrees at Southeast Missouri State University's commencement in the Show Me Center.

This will also mark the last commencement ceremony held with Dr. Kenneth W. Dobbins serving as Southeast's president.

According to Ann Hayes, the director of the news bureau at Southeast, six students are graduating with academic distinction in their department major and two students will graduate with honors with an Associate Degree.

There will be 170 students that will graduate cum laude, which requires a 3.5 to 3.74 cumulative GPA; 98 students will graduate magna cum laude, which requires a 3.75 to 3.89 cumulative GPA; 81 will graduate summa cum laude, which requires a 3.9 to 4.0 cumulative GPA and 28 students will graduate with the completion of the Jane Stephens Honors Program.

The Honors Program requires the student to maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.25. Completion of the Honors Program consists of meeting the requirement for students to earn a minimum of 24 semester hours of honors credit and at least six of the hours must be at the upper level division. A senior honors project is also required for completion.

The commencement address will be delivered by Dr. Erik Peterson, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C.

Peterson is also the director of the CSIS Global Strategy Institute and heads the "Seven Revolutions Initiative," which is internationally recognized for its effort to identify global trends out to the year 2025. Peterson has made previous appearances at Southeast.

The Honors Convocation will be at 10:30 a.m., and commencement will begin at 2 p.m. Both ceremonies will be streamed live online for viewers unable to attend in person.

The link can be found on the Southeast website, semo.edu/commencement, and will be available approximately one hour before each ceremony.

Southeast Alumnus Amber Rose remembers the excitement and anticipation she had regarding her graduation day.

"When I was preparing for graduation, I worked hard to keep up with the hours I needed and worked hard to do well in my classes," Rose said. "My expectation for after graduation was after that day I was going to be able to pursue a fun job in my career."

Caps and gowns will be available for pick up May 14 and 15. Videos of the ceremonies can be purchased at $20 as long as they are ordered no later than the commencement day.

There will be an additional $10 handling fee for any orders received after the commencement day, and there is an additional $10 charge if the order requires shipping overseas.

Refreshments will be offered at a reception following the commencement in the Student Recreation Center-North.