Commencement 2024
What is Commencement?
Commencement is the annual ceremony at which we celebrate completion of your degree. While the commencement ceremony is not required for actual degree conferral, you are invited to celebrate your accomplishments with Humphrey School faculty, staff, fellow students, friends, and family who have enthusiastically supported your hard work and efforts.
Humphrey School Commencement Ceremony
Saturday, May 11, 2024, 4–6 p.m.
Ted Mann Concert Hall
University of Minnesota West Bank
Reception to follow
ASL and live captioning will be provided.
Registration information and additional event details will be posted at a later date.
Keynote speaker
We are pleased to announce that Melvin Carter III, mayor of St. Paul, Minnesota, will deliver the commencement address at this year's ceremony.
A lifelong resident of St. Paul, Carter was elected mayor in 2017 and reelected in 2021. He is the city's first African American mayor.
Prior to 2017, Carter was a member of the St. Paul City Council. He also served as founding board chair of the St. Paul Promise Neighborhood, director of the Minnesota Office of Early Learning, and executive director of the Minnesota Children’s Cabinet.
Carter is an alumnus of the Humphrey School, having earned his Master of Public Policy in 2011. He received the Hubert H. Humphrey Public Leadership Award in 2015.
Livestream
For family and friends unable to attend the ceremony in person, the event will be live streamed on the Humphrey School’s YouTube channel.
Eligibility
If your degree was, or will be, awarded September 2023 through August 2024 you are eligible and encouraged to participate in the May 2024 commencement ceremony.
GradFest
Graduates are encouraged to stop by GradFest 2024, March 20 and 21 at the University Bookstore in Coffman Union, to find all their commencement needs in one place—including regalia, diploma frames, announcements, and more. Find more information on the GradFest website.
End-of-Year Awards
The End-of-Year Awards and brunch will take place on the morning of commencement, May 11, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Student award recipients will be notified of their award closer to the end of the year. The awards brunch will be held in the Mondale Commons and guests are welcome to attend.
Please check back for further updates.
Contact Career and Student Success at [email protected] if you have questions.
Commencement 2023
The Humphrey School celebrated the accomplishments of our 2023 graduates at commencement on May 13, 2023. The keynote speaker was Chanda Smith Baker, chief impact officer and senior vice president of the Minneapolis Foundation. U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) also made remarks.