CENTENNIAL GRADUATION 2013
UDM Law's Centennial Graduation 2013
In recognition of UDM Law's Centennial, this year's Graduates wear a Centennial pin on the right side of the academic gown, as if it were a name tag, for both Baccalaureate and Graduation. Graduates pick up the Centennial pin at either the Baccalaureate Mass or Graduation check-in.
Baccalaureate Mass—Thursday, May 9, 2013
The Baccalaureate Mass for the Class of 2013 will take place on Thursday, May 9 at 5:00 p.m. at Saints Peter and Paul Roman Catholic Church. Rev. Simon J. Hendry, S.J., Superior of the UDM Jesuit Community and Director of the Catholic Studies Program at UDM, will preside. Graduates attending Baccalaureate wear their graduation academic attire, including their hoods, and gather by 4:45 p.m. in the first-floor hall opposite the SBA office to line up for the procession. A light reception for graduates and their guests with the Dean, Faculty, and Administration follows Baccalaureate at the School of Law. Graduates and guests may park in the Larned and Christ Church parking lots.
Graduation Ceremony and Reception—Friday, May 10, 2013
Graduation takes place on Friday, May 10 at 5:00 p.m. in Calihan Hall on the McNichols Campus of the University of Detroit Mercy. UDM Law's 2013 Graduation Speaker is Mrs. Debbie Dingell, the president of D2 Strategies and chairwoman of the Manufacturing Initiative of the American Automotive Policy Council. She is an active civic and community leader in both Michigan and Washington, D.C. as well as a national advocate for women and children. She completed a more than 30-year career at GM as a senior executive where she headed the GM Foundation and public affairs.
The Calihan Hall northeast doors open at 4:00 p.m. for guests with tickets. There is no admittance to the Hall before 4:00 p.m. except for graduates checking in at the northwest entrance. All guests should be seated by 4:50 as the ushers stop seating guests at that time to make way for the academic procession. The Graduation ceremony lasts about two hours.
The University and the School of Law will hold a Reception for graduates and their guests immediately following the ceremony at the Fisher Fountain, just north of the Student Center on the McNichols Campus. We recommend that graduates and their guests not move their vehicles between Graduation and the Reception. We also suggest that guests bring umbrellas in the event of rain.
Each graduate may request as many tickets as needed for Graduation and the Reception. Graduates pick up their tickets beginning Monday of the week of Graduation (May 6th) in the Student Service Center. Admission is by ticket only, including children. Please contact Elizabeth Hallack in the Student Affairs Office (313-596-0287, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) with any questions about tickets.
Graduate Check-in
All graduates must check in at the Calihan Hall northwest entrance by 4:00 p.m. Graduates may not carry any items (purses, umbrellas, etc.) with them in the academic procession. Graduates need to leave any personal belongings (purses, umbrellas, etc.) with family members.
Graduation Attire
Tams, hoods, tassels, and gowns will be mailed to the address graduates list on their Herff Jones web order. International students are advised to have their academic attire sent in care of Judy Smiley, Student Service Center, UDM Law, 651 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit, MI 48226. Graduates may pick up the class composite photo and their Graduation tickets the week before Graduation in the SSC. Graduates who requested accommodations for guests with special needs will also receive a parking permit for the lots adjacent to Calihan.
Hooding Ceremony
Graduates process with hoods on the right arm. Please make certain that the hood is unbuttoned in the back and that the narrowest part of the hood with the loop on the end is facing the outside of your arm. Please remember to place the tassel on your tam on the left side of the tam, over your left ear for both Baccalaureate and Graduation.
Once the invited speakers have made their remarks, the President of the University will confer the Juris Doctor degree on the class as a whole. The graduates will then proceed in single file to the stage. Each graduate will hand his or her 3 x 5 card to the Reader. As the reader announces the graduate's name, the graduate should ascend the stairs/ramp. The graduate will continue forward and then stop in front of the professors who are assisting with hooding. The graduate should extend the hood to the first professor, then turn and face the audience. After a graduate receives his/her hood, he/she will walk partway across the stage to receive the diploma folder from the President, be congratulated by Dean Semple, and have an official photo taken by GradImages.
Hooding Ceremony - Alumni Family Member Hooding Directions
Once the invited speakers have made their remarks, the President of the University will confer the Juris Doctor degree on the class as a whole. The graduates will then proceed in single file to the stage. Each Alumni family member should walk with their graduate until they reach the Reader, at which time the graduate will hand his or her 3 x 5 card to the Reader. As the reader announces the graduate's name, the Alumni family member and graduate should ascend the stairs/ramp together, with the Alumni family member walking in front of the graduate. The Alumni family member should stop approximately three feet before reaching the faculty members assisting with hooding. There will be a mark on the stage indicating where the Alumni family member should stop and wait.
The graduate will continue forward and then stop in front of the professors who are assisting with hooding. The professors will step aside to make room for the Alumni family member, who will step forward. The graduate should offer the hood to the Alumni Family member (by extending the arm over which the hood has previously been draped), then turn and face the audience. With the assistance of the professors, the Alumni family member will hood the graduate by placing the hood over the graduate’s head and draping it upon the graduate’s shoulders. After a graduate receives his/her hood, the Alumni family member should proceed across the stage and descend using the stairs/ramp on the opposite side from the side he or she ascended. The graduate will walk partway across the stage to receive the diploma folder from the President, be congratulated by Dean Semple, and have an official photo taken by GradImages. The Alumni family member should return to the audience by walking across the floor in front of the stage.
Reciting the Prayer Inspired by St. Thomas More
All graduates stand and recite the prayer with the Graduate Prayer Reader selected during the Graduation Fair.
Graduation Ceremony Protocol
Given the solemnity of the occasion, please ask your guests to observe the following courtesies:
* Turn off all electronic devices, cell phones, and pagers.
* Please do not bring food into Calihan Hall.
* No horns or balloons are allowed in Calihan Hall for Graduation.
* Guests who wish to check a stroller may do so by stopping at the Alumni and VIP
check-in in the northeast lobby of Calihan Hall.
Accommodations
There is reserved seating for guests of graduates who requested accommodations on their Graduation Fair Information Form. Please ask an usher for assistance upon arriving at Calihan Hall. Calihan Hall does not have wheelchairs. Please contact Elizabeth Hallack (313-596-0287, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) with any questions about accommodations for Graduation.
Parking on the McNichols Campus
There is free parking for graduates and their guests in the lots accessible from the McNichols entrance to the University. Vehicles may not drop off graduates and guests at the front door of Calihan Hall. The parking lots immediately in front of Calihan are reserved for permit parking only, including those who requested accommodations.
Graduation Photography
UDM Law's Graduation photography company is Grad Images. During the ceremony, Grad Images takes three photographs of each graduate: a photo with the President and two additional photos as the graduate crosses the stage. Grad Images contacts each graduate after the ceremony about ordering Graduation photos.
UDM Law also records Graduation so that each graduate can receive a DVD of Graduation.
During Graduation, guests on the main floor may take pictures from their places, but they may not move into the aisles, around the Hall, or into the upper sections. Guests seated in the upper sections may use cameras and recorders; they may not go down to the main floor to take photos. Graduates may return to the Hall after the Recessional for photographs as well. The University photographer takes a number of photos at the Reception following Graduation.
Diplomas and DVDs
Student Services will contact graduates by mail as soon as the diplomas and DVDs arrive. May graduates can expect their diplomas in early September; July graduates in early October; and December graduates in March. If you move between now and when the diplomas are scheduled to arrive, please notify Judy Smiley ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) or Delexie Reynolds ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. ) in the SSC (Room 126) of your new address. Student Services shares graduates' address information with the Career Services and Alumni Relations offices.
Metropolitan Detroit Motels and Hotels
Visit the UDM Law website for information about hotels in downtown Detroit.
Recommended Directions to Calihan Hall
4001 West McNichols Road
Detroit, MI 48221
Map of McNichols Campus
From Metro Airport
Take I-94 East to the Lodge Freeway (M-10). Take the Lodge North to the Livernois exit. At the top of the ramp, turn right onto Livernois and proceed three-quarters of a mile North to W. McNichols (third traffic light). Turn right onto W. McNichols. The entrance is one quarter of a mile on the right.
From Downtown Detroit
Take the Lodge Freeway North out of downtown and follow the above directions from Metro Airport.
From Northwest on M-10
Driving South on the Lodge Freeway, take the Livernois exit. At the traffic light, turn left onto Livernois and proceed three-quarters of a mile North to W. McNichols (third traffic light). Turn right on W. McNichols and the entrance is one quarter of a mile on the right.
From the North on I-75
Driving South on I-75, exit Eight Mile Road and turn right off the ramp. Take Eight Mile Road West and proceed 2.5 miles to Livernois. Turn left (South) onto Livernois and proceed 2.0 miles to W. McNichols. Head East (left) onto W. McNichols and entrance is one-quarter of a mile on the right.
Recommended Directions to UDM Law and Sts. Peter and Paul Church
651 E. Jefferson
Detroit, MI 48226
From the West (From I-96E or I-94E)
Take the Lodge Freeway (M-10) South towards Civic Center/Cobo Center. Once on M-10 South, take the Larned Street exit on the left. Stay on Larned Street. Once on Larned Street, you will pass several cross streets including: Washington Boulevard, Woodward Avenue, Randolph Street, and Beaubien Street. The next cross street will be St. Antoine Street. Immediately after crossing St. Antoine Street, the School of Law will be on your right, just after Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church.
From the East (From I-94W)
Take I-75 South which will become I-375 South. From I-375 South, take the East Jefferson Avenue exit and continue on the service drive. Turn right onto East Jefferson Avenue. Turn right at the first street, St. Antoine Street. Turn right again onto Larned Street. The School of Law will be on your right, just after Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church.
From Woodward Avenue
Take Woodward Avenue south. Stay on Woodward Avenue until you reach Larned Street. Turn left onto Larned Street. Once on Larned Street, you will pass cross streets including: Randolph Street, Brush Street, and Beaubien Street. The next cross street will be St. Antoine Street. Immediately after crossing St. Antoine Street, the School of Law will be on your right, just after Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church.
From the South
Take I-75 North to M-10 South toward Civic Center/Cobo Center. Once on M-10 South, take the Larned Street exit on the left. Stay on Larned Street. Once on Larned Street, you will pass several cross streets including: Washington Boulevard, Woodward Avenue, Randolph Street, and Beaubien Street. The next cross street will be St. Antoine Street. Immediately after crossing St. Antoine Street, the School of Law will be on your right, just after Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church.
From the North
Take I-75 South which will become I-375 South. From I-375 outh, take the East Jefferson Avenue exit and continue on the service drive. Turn right onto East Jefferson Avenue. Turn right at the first street, St. Antoine Street. Turn right again onto Larned Street. The School of Law will be on your right, just after Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church.