Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, December 19, 1993 TAG: 9312190123
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C3 EDITION: STATE
SOURCE: MICHAEL CSOLLANY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Carolyn Agnew, an executive secretary in the president's office at Virginia Tech, said a parent of a student who was graduated Saturday called her and said the closest available hotel room he could find was in Roanoke.
Virginia Tech officials knew the winter commencement ceremony had gotten more popular since its inception four years ago, but not that popular.
It turns out there were rooms available in Radford and Shawsville, but most of the hotels and restaurants in Blacksburg were booked solid.
The ceremony has grown from approximately 200 graduates filling Burruss Hall Auditorium to capacity in 1990 to more than 1,000 graduates filling the Cassel Coliseum's floor Saturday.
The floor was not large enough for all of them, so students in the colleges of Forestry and Wildlife Resources and Human Resources occupied a few of the lower stands.
More than 5,000 family members and friends descended upon Blacksburg to share in the festivities, and Blacksburg businesses said they are grateful for the business at a typically slow time of year.
"Generally speaking, this is not a busy time of year - after finals are over. There are fewer conventions. Businesses are slowing down for the holidays . . . We welcome winter graduation for two reasons: because it creates a whole new weekend's worth of business, and, two, because it reduces demand around spring graduation," said Beth Ifju, director of marketing at the Blacksburg Marriott.
Ifju said the Marriott has been booked for six to eight weeks.
"It is a big increase over last year. We did not sell out last year," said Chris Malloy, general manager of the Comfort Inn in Blacksburg.
While acknowledging growth, university officials think the number of students attending the winter ceremony has peaked.
Ed Henneke, acting dean of engineering and chairman of the 1993 Commencement Committee, said schools of similar size have peaked at similar times after beginning winter ceremonies for students who complete requirements mid-year.
Henneke said the ceremony was not initiated because of an increase in the number of mid-year completions.
"It was initiated by President McComas. He recognized that we had a lot of students graduated in the fall, and they were leaving Tech without a ceremony or anything," he said.
These students had the option of either attending the spring ceremony or simply receiving their diploma in the mail.
Several speakers took a moment to recognize Tech's new president, Paul Torgersen, and extend good wishes to former President James McComas, who did not attend.
"[McComas] has made an enormous contribution to the development of highter education, and I am deeply sorry that he is unable to be with us here today," said keynote speaker John Kelly, provost of University College Dublin in Ireland.
by CNB