For Immediate Release
May 19, 2010
Contacts: Neil Tickner, 301 405 4622 or ntickner@umd.edu

UM Commencement 2010: Media Information

Media Note: A free, live, real-time digital feed of the commencement ceremony to the Verizon AVOC switch in Washington, D.C. will be available. Additionally, the ceremony will be cablecast on the university's cable TV station and will be streamed live on the university Web site. Details at the bottom of the page.

WHAT:

More than 7,100 University of Maryland students will be joined by family and friends on Thursday, May 20, 2010 to celebrate Maryland's main commencement ceremony. Victoria Reggie Kennedy, widow of U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy, will be the featured speaker. Among the celebrated graduates are student medalist Sarah Peitzmeier and student commencement speaker Onyinyechi Ekeand (highlighted below), UM Fulbright Scholars and Terp basketball players Greivis Vasquez, Eric Hayes and Landon Milbourne.

	Vicki Kennedy will be the main commencement speaker. She is an attorney and widow of the late Sen. Edward Kennedy.

Degrees will be presented to 7,144 graduates, including 5,148 bachelor's candidates, 1,520 master's candidates, and 476 doctoral candidates. Criminal justice and economics are tied for the greatest number of undergraduate degrees (457 each), while business and management account for the leading graduate degrees (431). The greatest number of doctorates (38) are in the field of electrical engineering.

WHO:

Victoria Reggie Kennedy, widow of U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy, will be the featured speaker. She is an attorney, as well as an advocate for women, children and families, particularly in the areas of economic opportunity, health care, violence prevention and homelessness. Kennedy is founding president of Common Sense about Kids and Guns, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works to reduce gun deaths and injuries. She practiced law in the private sector for nearly two decades, with a special emphasis on the regulation and operations of financial institutions. Mrs. Kennedy played an active role in the re-election campaigns of her late husband, who served in the Senate for 47 years and died in August 2009.

This year's student medalist is Sarah Peitzmeier. The 20-year-old Silver Spring native conducted complex research on the role of milk proteins in modulating autoimmune diseases; played Chopin's sonatas on the piano with great skill; and also found time to prepare fine French pastry, volunteer at a sexual assault hotline and maintain a 3.99 grade point average. A double major in cell biology and molecular genetics and music performance, Peitzmeir did graduate-level research in immunology as a sophomore. Her independent lab work earned Peitzmeier a $7,500 Barry M. Goldwater scholarship, awarded to undergraduates who excel in math, engineering and the sciences. She was also selected as a finalist for the 2010 Rhodes and Marshall scholarship programs, two of the nation's most competitive scholarships.

Student Commencement speaker, Onyinyechi Eke, moved with her family from Nigeria four years ago. Her goal: to become a doctor and return to Nigeria to fix what she describes as its "broken" health care system. Onyinyechi received honors from the College of Chemical and Life Sciences and the Office of Multi-Ethnic Student Education, and Maryland Delegate and Senatorial scholarships. On campus she worked in a research lab performing DNA analysis on a hybrid species of roundworm. She's involved in her community through America Reads, America Counts and HOPE worldwide, which offers low-income youth after-school activities.

WHEN:

Thursday, May 20, 2010
8:00 p.m. Procession begins
8:20 p.m. Formal program begins

Individual college ceremonies will take place on Friday, May 21 at various times and locations. Details online here.

Among the speakers on Friday at the individual college ceremonies will be the head of the Office of Personnel Management, John Berry. He'll speak at the School of Public Policy commencement at 4 p.m. Details here.

WHERE:

Comcast Center
The University of Maryland, College Park Comcast Center is located on Paint Branch Dr. near the intersection of Paint Branch Dr. and Route 193 (University Blvd.)
Directions online here.

MEDIA INFORMATION:

Risers and a mult-box will be available to media. Media check-in will be located on the floor of the arena, in the rear of the graduates' seating area. Only media with proper credentials will be allowed on the floor. Reserved press seating is available. Dial-up connections will be available in the Comcast press room. If you have a lot of gear, please enter through the loading dock in the back of Comcast (floor level near media check in). Parking is free on all lots and in parking garages near the Comcast Center.

MEDIA FEEDS AVAILABLE:

The University of Maryland will provide a free, live, real-time digital feed of the commencement ceremony to the Verizon AVOC switch in Washington, D.C. If you would like to receive this feed, please contact:

Tiffany Warnock-Toyryla Manager, Northeast Operations
Broadcast Services
Crawford Communications, Inc.
5901 Kingstowne Village Parkway - Alexandria, VA 22315
Traffic: 703-750-0010 - Cell: 703.342.9919
E-mail: twarnock@crawford.com

The program will also be fed to the AVOC Switch on Comcast's fiber line from College Park via video circuit# 36TVGA51696.

Additionally, the ceremony will be cablecast on UMTV, the university's cable TV station (Channel 72 in Prince George's County and Channel 40 in Montgomery County). The University of Maryland also will provide a real-time stream of the event on the commencement website here.

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