BHSU modifies Fall Commencement plans

Black Hills State University will have three commencement ceremonies on Saturday, Nov. 21 at the Donald E. Young Sports and Fitness Center to honor the 2020 graduates.

BHSU President Laurie S. Nichols said, “Commencement is an important milestone and we are committed to honoring our graduates with a number of modifications to the usual ceremony.”

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, rather than having one ceremony for the entire group of BHSU graduates, a separate commencement ceremony will be held for each College. The schedule is as follows:
  • 9 a.m. for the College of Business and Natural Sciences. The speaker will be Dr. Holly Downing, professor emeritus, who served as an administrator and professor of biology, animal behavior and entomology at BHSU. She earned a bachelor’s degree in zoology and a master’s and doctorate in entomology.
  • 12 noon for the College of Liberal Arts. Erin Broberg, communications specialist with the Sanford Underground Research Facility, who graduated from BHSU with a bachelor’s degree in communications, will speak at the ceremony.
  • 3 p.m. for the College of Education and Behavioral Sciences. Dr. Ryan Young will be the speaker. Young, learning specialist with Technology and Innovation in Education (TIE), graduated from BHSU with a bachelor’s degree in human services and sociology and went on to earn graduate degrees in education and leadership.
Attendance will be restricted. Graduating students along with a limited number of family members and faculty and staff will be in attendance.  The commencement ceremonies will be livestreamed at www.BHSU.edu/Commencement.

The Spring 2020 Commencement Ceremony was cancelled due to the pandemic. Spring and summer graduates are invited to participate in these fall ceremonies.