Weekend of activities planned as part of Commencement 2002.

CONTACT:  Cecelia Malhotra, registrar, at 304-424-8222.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

West Virginia University at Parkersburg will award 175 degrees and certificates at Saturday’s (May 18) 31^st annual spring Commencement.

The 2 p.m. exercises will be held in the College Activities Center. Participating in the ceremonies will be more than 120 members of the Class of 2002.

The Commencement address will be delivered by Jimmy Colombo, mayor of Parkersburg and a 1969 graduate of the Parkersburg Center of West Virginia University, which later became WVU Parkersburg.

WVU Parkersburg President Erik Bitterbaum will preside over the ceremonies and award two honorary doctor of humane letters' degrees.  Recipients are artist and philanthropist Madame Shao Fang Sheng of Williamstown and Parkersburg native David Moses, founder and chief operating officer of Gaussian Inc., a computational chemistry software company.

A reception for the graduates, their families and college faculty will be held following Commencement in the cafeteria.

As part of Commencement weekend activities, pinning ceremonies for the college’s 2002 Nursing graduates will be held at 7 p.m., Friday (May 17) in the activities center. Also, WVU Parkersburg’s College Chorale will present its spring concert at 6 p.m., Sunday (May 19). The free program will be held at the Christ United Methodist Church.