Faculty Marshal Training and Information
(see this instructional video for example)
Thank you for committing to represent your college at this Spring’s commencement ceremony! A brief, mandatory training is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 15th, 2025, for all marshals.
Please be at your assigned college in the Derek Fisher Court of the Jack Stephens Center by your assigned time. Upon arrival at Fisher Court, please visit the information table to sign in.
Ceremony Date & Times:
Saturday, May 17, 2025
First Ceremony:
9:30 a.m.
Graduating students include undergraduates from the College of Business, Health & Human Services and the Donaghey College of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics.
The doors will open at 8:00 a.m. for the 9:30 a.m. ceremony. Faculty Marshals should arrive by 8:00 a.m.
Second Ceremony:
2:00 p.m.
Graduating students include undergraduates from the College of Humanities, Arts, Social Sciences, & Education, and graduate students from all three colleges.
The doors will open at 12:30 p.m. for the 2:00 p.m. ceremony. Faculty Marshals should arrive by 12:45 p.m.
Student marshals will direct graduates to sign in and then you will pass out a preprinted card that will be used for pictures and the announcement of the names of the graduates as they walk across the stage.
There will be two student marshals each assigned to the academic colleges with undergraduates. The Graduate School will only be assigned two faculty marshals.
Please ensure students in your college section keep the announcement card until they are ready to cross the stage. At that time, a commencement worker will take the card and give it to the stage announcer.
DO NOT ALLOW STUDENTS TO PROCESS INTO THE JSC WITHOUT THEIR ANNOUNCEMENT CARD!
For the students in your college who will be recognized for university academic honors during the commencement ceremony, the printed card they obtain from you or one of the other marshals will automatically have those honors listed.
This card is identical to the other printed cards except the honors will also appear with their name. The students are not to write on or make adjustments to the card.
They will only announce honors for students who have honors preprinted on these cards.
Once students sign in and obtain their printed cards from their faculty marshal, they may choose to line up at the back of Fisher Court for additional commencement photos.
Photos will also be taken of students during the commencement ceremony as they receive their diploma covers on stage. Students will receive proofs of their photos soon after the commencement ceremony via their ualr.edu email. At that time, they may order pictures if they choose.
If a student arrives at commencement without full regalia, they may purchase these items from the bookstore table in the Derek Fisher Court.
Please direct both international and domestic students to meet with the ceremony announcers at the Fisher Court information table if there are concerns that their names may be challenging for the announcers to pronounce.
Listen Closely to the Announcements in Fisher Court
The announcer will countdown time to the commencement procession.
You will be needed to assist in lining up the students as time for the procession approaches.
Please group the students in approximate alphabetical order regardless of the major (i.e., all students with last names beginning A, B, C, etc. You will not need to alphabetize these students within their letter.)
There are two faculty marshals per college.
The two faculty marshals should decide who will be the “Banner” marshal during the ceremony, and who will be the “Diploma” marshal.
As the banner marshal enters the Jack Stephens arena floor from the tunnel, they must watch for commencement staff who will hand them the banner.
Please identify yourself by waving your hand when you see the staffer with the banner. (The instructional video does not show this step.)
The banner marshal will take the college banner to the stage at the beginning of the ceremony.
You will be met by a commencement staff member who will place the banner behind the stage.
The banner marshal will return to the college area and remain standing until all students in their college are seated and then will take the first seat on the beginning row of the college (reserved for them by the diploma marshal).
When the students proceed to the stage, the banner marshal will remain in the college area to guide students back to their seats.
As the banner is being taken to the stage, the diploma marshal will lead the students to their seats.
The diploma marshal will reserve the first seat for the banner marshal on the beginning row of the college (the diploma marshal will be seated in the second seat of the first row of the college).
When it is time for the students to proceed to the stage to receive their diploma covers, the diploma marshal will lead them.
Once the students are at the stage area, this marshal will walk in front of the stage to the opposite side where they will assist the students and congratulate them when they leave the stage.
The diploma marshal will be present at the stage to assist in guiding students in returning to their seats.
If you have questions while serving in Fisher Court, please see the commencement workers at the information table.
Once the student procession into the arena starts, the commencement volunteers assisting in seating you will be unable to answer your questions at that point in the ceremony.