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MUSC celebrates 175 years of commencement by Cindy Abole Public Relations As today’s graduates are conferred in the company of faculty, alumni, staff, family and friends, they part with valuable learning experiences and new knowledge that will help them step into new roles as health professionals. Each year on the third Friday in May, the grounds of MUSC’s horseshoe undergo a wondrous trans-formation, becoming  a stage of celebration and honor. The commencement ceremony remains one of few university events encompassing both students and faculty, and during today’s 175th commencement, it’s fitting to recognize the efforts of dozens of people dedicated to making this ceremony memorable. Forming a commencement committee The ceremony is the responsibility of the MUSC Commencement Committee, which handles and completes every detail relating to commencement.  2004 MUSC Commencement Committee includes (from left): Jeff Watkins, Jill Stevens, Fran Joyner, Susan Master, Betsy Waters, Robin Hardin, Brenda Marcelais, Capt. David McMakin, Barbara Glover, Bud Cooper, Julie Fessenden, Mike Schultz, Larry Owens, Jim Chisolm, Betty Bryant, Marcia Higaki, (center) Sabra Slaughter and Jim Menzel. “What we’ve managed to do is create a carefully orchestrated process,” said Sabra Slaughter, Ph.D., chief of staff, Office of the President and committee chairman. “Everyone contributes and is dedicated to the process. It works because it’s a fine example of continuous quality improvement in action.” Throughout the university’s history, the site of the ceremony has moved around the city. Venues have included the Charleston Opera House in 1889, the Simon Baruch and Memminger auditoriums, the old horseshoe facing Doughty Street, The Citadel and Gaillard Auditorium before settling at its current location, the horseshoe. As the institution grew, the job of commencement planning fell under the direction and guidance of the Office of Enrollment Services.  Today, the process operates with the timing and precision of a finely tuned orchestra, thanks to the timely guidance of Enrollment Services director Jim Menzel. But there are no stand-out conductors among this ensemble of talent. The committee succeeds because it leads itself.  “Our collective aim is to provide an academic, friendly celebration that is befitting of our graduates, their families, and the institution,” said  Menzel. “We strive to keep things simple and to create a ceremony that everyone’s comfortable with.” Creating a helpful tool For more than a decade, the commencement committee succeeded in making it all look effortless. In 1992, Menzel created and the enrollment staff produced the commencement handbook, a guide detailing everything related to the spring graduation ceremony. It includes a listing of committee members and their responsibilities, timelines, publications, commence-ment day procedures, physical arrangements and ceremony and adverse weather plans.  Student Programs director Robin Hardin prepares student ushers Lila Turner, from left, Gayden Tyler, and Julie Vasquez. “Everyone knows their responsibility and takes great pride contributing to the ceremony,” Menzel said. “Each person and group conducts their area of responsibility with a very high level of ability. The day works because everyone works together.” Commencement planning usually occurs year-round, but a lot of the collaboration  begins in January. The honorary degree committee finalizes and approves its degree recipients list; May candidate degree applications are confirmed; regalia and announcement order forms are submitted; diploma paper is ordered, etc. From that point, an ascending scale of defined activity leads to the climax of the week’s events and activities: graduation day.  Printing process Within the timeline, the enrollment staff teams with University Press to coordinate the printing of 6,000-plus commencement programs for delivery by graduation morning. Throughout the last century, the program evolved from a modest, single-sheet announcement to today’s high-quality, 40-page commemorative booklet pro-duced by a state-of-the-art press at the university's 10,000-sq.-foot facility in North Charleston. Enrollment collaborates care-fully in the high-end printing of diplomas, citation folders, certificates, special commence-ment-related booklets, and personalized announcements, now all produced in-house at a costsavings. Pressman Gordon Knight checks commencement program proofs at the University Press facility. “The printing process has evolved to become a full-service system with the ability to produce high quality products within a fast and timely schedule,” said Pat Clute, former director of University Press. “Today’s commencement program is just one example of that process, the teamwork, the effort, and commitment to making it nice.” Setting the stage Preparing the horseshoe and providing the physical arrangements for commencement is no minor task. Every detail is considered when planning to accommodate more than 5,000 people in an outdoor venue.  Enrollment Services' Barbara Glover, left, and Sue Coates demonstrate proper robing techniques to staff. For 16 years, Enrollment Services' Barbara Glover manages the set-up  of rented chairs for candidate and general seating, canopies and tents for reserved seating of special guests, the president’s party, current and retired faculty, and Golden Grads alumni. She also secures audio equipment and simulcasting/taping organized by Television Services and makes preparations for a signer for the hearing-impaired, a professional photographer, and flower arrangement. She also handles staff communications and trains commencement robing staff and assistants. Contributing to the pageantry and decorum of the event is the commencement music. Members of the Meeting Street Players, a double brass quintet, provide a variety of musical selections during the pre-ceremony, procession, and recession segments. Each selection reflects the dignity and mood of the ceremony. Incorporating MUSC alumni in commencement was a change initiated in 1983. Since then, the 50-year class of each college has been formally inducted into the MUSC Golden Grads Association during commencement week and participate in the academic procession. The alumni association also presents a number of awards and scholarships during the college hooding and award ceremony. Importance of change Critical  to commencement improvements throughout the years are changes. One positive change allowed  faculty to read the graduate candidate lists. Last year, the team invited the  associate dean of students from each college to read the names of their students, creating more familiarity and personal attention for each participant.  Behind the scenes, improvements to the Enrollment Service's staff’s database management system has improved the method of tracking each student’s matriculation through the university from start to finish. Incorporating information from Colleague, the student information database, and a separate commencement database, staff can manage information that includes details from student name preferences printed on announcements and in the program to information used to prepare the color-coded line-up cards distributed to each graduate prior to the ceremony.  Their records group also works with staff from each of the six colleges to confirm final grades and to clear each candidate for graduation. In addition, it confirms the  program honors and Latin honors for undergraduates, prepares official transcripts, and distributes the official diplomas following the ceremony. “When you have all these pressure points and details converging, there’s a chance that something can go wrong,” Menzel said. ”Incorporating ideas like line-up cards and other details helps remove the pressure points in operations that are so critical to providing a ceremony that works well.”  Small touches make the difference Other improvements include adding simple but meaningful touches. Lightweight robes provide added comfort for candidates, faculty, and ceremony participants who face a morning of Charleston’s humid temperatures.  Today, graduates buy regalia instead of renting it. Following the impact of  9-11, the committee discussed including a patriotic element in the ceremony. With the group’s approval, it agreed to include the singing of  “America the Beautiful,” performed  in last year’s commencement by former MUSC Faculty Senate chair Anne Kilpatrick, Ph.D.  Every detail is an example of efficiency and quality in detail management, according to Menzel. Golden Grads wear commemorative medallions. “I don’t need to know every detail concerning each committee member’s job and contribution,” Menzel said. “One example is Cindy Garmon in Parking Management. I know that what she provides is phenomenal; she and her staff coordinate all the guest parking. It’s a great example of what people do independently within their groups. Such good work is done by Capt. David McMakin for Public Safety, Mike Schultz for Physical Plant, and Betsy Waters and Susan Master for our VIPs. But everyone is critical on this committee.”  Members contribute to a  range of important elements including constructing the graduation stage and ramps, landscaping, housekeeping, training student ushers and faculty marshals, preparing the honorary degree citations, planning for the Board of Trustees’ Honorary Reception and graduation luncheons, and organizing details at The Citadel, a designated alternative site in the event of inclement weather.  Following the ceremony, the committee regroups to assess its activities and make recommendations to improve the process for next year.  After many years, the curtain will fall on several key performers. Clute retired after 35 years of dedicated service. It is also the final commencement for Menzel. Although modest about estimating his abilities and contributions to the process, Menzel  proved to be a virtuoso in commencement planning. “Jim is a consummate events person,” Slaughter said. “He’s a skilled coordinator whose magnitude for complexity and details is evident in what he has helped accomplish. His handprint and contribution to MUSC, past and future, will be the commencement handbook. It is his legacy for a job well done.”       Friday, May 21, 2004 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to petersnd@musc.edu or catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Community Press at 849-1778.