Graduation events set at Northern this weekend

Montana State University-Northern will hold its 68th graduation ceremony Saturday in the Armory Gymnasium.  

This year’s commencement speaker will be U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke. In March Zinke became the first Montanan to ever serve in a presidential cabinet when he was confirmed by the U.S. Senate to his current post.

A native of Whitefish, Zinke is a retired Navy SEAL commander whose service has included tours in Afghanistan and Iraq. He served in the Montana Senate from 2009-2012, before he was elected to Montana’s only U.S. House seat in 2014 and re-elected last year.

A release from Northern’s office of University Relations said 347 students will be eligible for degrees, though that number will not be final until spring semester exams are completed just before commencement.

Doors will open Saturday at 9 a.m and the processional will start at 10 a.m. A university release suggested people come early and enter the gymnasium through the north central entrance. Admission is free and open to the public.

Lower bleacher seats will be reserved for handicapped attendees, but there will be no reserved seating for individuals, the release says. A reception will take place on the lawn outside the gym after the ceremony.

Northern students are reviving the use of the first fully new building on campus, Donaldson Hall, with the Bow Tie Ball, a formal party sponsored by the Northern Student Senate.

It starts at 7 p.m. in Donaldson Commons. Tickets are $25 per person and $40 for a couple. Refreshments will be served and a DJ will provide music. All proceeds will go to fund the renovation of Donaldson Hall, which has been out of use and awaiting repairs for some 10 years.

The Founders’ Excellence and Athletic Hall of Fame Dinner will be held Friday in the Student Union Building Ballroom. Gail Rader of Havre and former Montana state representative and Fort Belknap Communithy College president Margaret Campbell will receive the 2017 Founder’s Excellence awards. Steve Helm Jr., Doug Kallenberger and Mike Leinwand will be the 2017 inductees into the Athletic Hall of Fame.

Tickets to the Friday dinner are $30. Doors will open at 6 p.m and at 7 p.m the ceremony will begin. People interested in buying tickets can contact the Montana State University-Northern Alumni Foundation at 265-3711.   

Northern’s class of 1967 will be honored as part of the annual Golden Grads ceremony. The slate of activities for Golden Grads will start Friday at 11 a.m. with registration at the Vande Bogart Library.

Golden Grad and other activities will include:

Friday:

Noon: Luncheon with a welcome back to campus by Chancellor Greg Kegel.

1 p.m.: Class meeting

2 p.m.: Campus tour. Golden Grads will tour the campus in the Golden Goose, learning about the campus, its buildings and latest programs

6 p.m: Founder’s Excellence & Athletic Hall of Fame Banquet

Saturday:

9 a.m: Fitting of the gowns in Cowan Hall

10 a.m: Commencement

Noon: Commencement Lunch at the Duck Inn

7 p.m.: Bow Tie Ball