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UT Tyler Office of Marketing and Communications

UT Tyler Holds First Commencement Ceremonies in Over a Year

April 29, 2021

Media Contact: Beverley Golden
Senior Director of Media Relations
Marketing and Communications
The University of Texas at Tyler
903.566.7303

The University of Texas at Tyler announced that it will hold its first commencement ceremonies since the pandemic started in 2020. The university will recognize students from four different terms and will hold ceremonies in an outdoor venue.

One thousand six hundred and ninety-seven students are scheduled to cross the stage during six ceremonies on Friday, April 30, and Saturday, May 1, at the Patriot Plaza. Students who completed degrees in spring 2020, summer 2020 and fall 2020 as well as spring 2021 will participate.

“We are happy to once again host commencement exercises and celebrate together with our students and their families,” said Amir Mirmiran, PhD, UT Tyler provost and executive vice president for academic affairs. “Procedures are in place that follow CDC guidelines so that we can do so safely.”

Masks will be required for everyone participating in and attending the outdoor ceremonies. Social distancing will be practiced in the standing and seated areas.

Scheduled ceremonies are:

Friday, April 30

  • 9 a.m. College of Nursing and Health Sciences (undergraduate)
  • 1 p.m. College of Nursing and Health Sciences (professional and graduate), College of Arts and Sciences, School of Community and Rural Health and School of Medical Biological Sciences
  • 6 p.m. College of Education and Psychology

Saturday, May 1

  • 9 a.m. College of Engineering and Ben and Maytee Fisch College of Pharmacy
  • 1 p.m. Soules College of Business (graduate)
  • 6 p.m. Soules College of Business (undergraduate)

Commencement speakers will be:

Julie Philley, MD, University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler executive vice president for health affairs. A native East Texan, Philley returned to Tyler in 2012 to continue her research efforts in nontuberculous mycobacterial disease and bronchiectasis. She is also the principal investigator for a $2 million grant from the National Institutes for Health for convalescent plasma research to combat the COVID-19 pandemic.

Archie Holmes, Jr., PhD, UT System executive vice chancellor for academic affairs. Holmes joined the UT System in October 2020 and provides oversight and guidance for the eight UT System academic institutions, which enroll more than 220,000 students and have produced nearly 59,000 graduates. Prior to joining the UT System, he was the vice provost for academic affairs at the University of Virginia and was a faculty member at both the University of Virginia and UT Austin. Over his career, Holmes has co-authored more than 110 referred technical articles and 70 conference presentations and has received numerous awards for his teaching and advising activities.

Leon Leach, PhD, experienced healthcare executive. Leach joined the UT MD Anderson Cancer Center in 1997 where, for two decades, he was responsible for their business and financial functions. Upon retiring from MD Anderson in 2017, Leach continued to serve the University of Texas as a consultant instrumental in the acquisition of East Texas Medical Center and the formation of UT Health East Texas. He currently serves on the finance committee of the Memorial Hermann Health System Board of Directors, is chairman of the BH Carroll Theological Institute Board of Governors and serves on the boards of FaithSearch Partners and Island of Packet Yachts.

For more information about UT Tyler commencement, visit uttyler.edu/commencement.

With a mission to improve educational and healthcare outcomes for East Texas and beyond, UT Tyler offers more than 80 undergraduate and graduate programs to 10,000 students. Through its alignment with The University of Texas Health Science Center at Tyler and UT Health East Texas, UT Tyler has unified these entities to serve Texas with innovative medical research, medical education and excellent patient care. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News & World Report as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.