The following message is from Marshall University:

“HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – Marshall University has announced it has tentatively rescheduled its spring commencement ceremony for 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 8, in Huntington.

University officials said the exact location will be announced early this summer, but the most likely venue is the Mountain Health Arena. If health guidelines and social distancing requirements prevent using the arena, an outdoor location may be used.

Originally scheduled for Saturday, May 2, the ceremony was canceled to help reduce the spread of COVID-19, as directed by public health guidelines for large gatherings. Seniors graduated on time because their degrees were conferred in May—only the official ceremonies were postponed. During the last week of April, Marshall celebrated its graduating students during a weeklong social media campaign complete with video messages from their college deans and other top officials at the university.

 “We are very hopeful the pandemic situation in late summer will allow the university to move forward with the Aug. 8 commencement,” said Dr. Sonja Cantrell-Johnson, Marshall’s registrar. “The Class of 2020 is one of the most resilient classes in the history of our university and we want to honor them with a traditional commencement event.”

If the Aug. 8 date is not possible because of continuing public health concerns, the university will honor the Class of 2020 at a later date in the fall or at the Winter Commencement in December.

Spring 2020 graduates should continue to monitor their official Marshall e-mail accounts for details. Updates also will be posted online at www.marshall.edu/commencement.”