Hesston College will celebrate the class of 2017 during Commencement Weekend May 12 to 14.

The commencement ceremony will be at 9 a.m., Sunday, May 14, in Yost Center. Dr. Marie S. Morris, will deliver the commencement address. Dr. Morris is a 1979 graduate and the provost at Anderson (Ind.) University. She has served in cabinet-level higher education leadership for 17 years, and has also served on the Hesston College Board of Director since 2013. The service will be streamed live online at hesston.edu

Selected by their fellow graduates and faculty as student speakers will be graduates Cassidy Bontrager (Wellman, Iowa) and Jonah Short-Miller (Bellingham, Wash.).

Individual student groups will be recognized in ceremonies during the weekend.

A pinning ceremony for nursing graduates will be at 10 a.m., May 13, in the Hesston Mennonite Church Sanctuary. The ceremony marks the 50th graduating nursing class from Hesston College – 50 years of the associate degree program and the first group of baccalaureate degree nurses. A reception honoring the graduates will follow in the church’s Community Center. As in Sunday’s commencement ceremony, Dr. Morris will be the featured speaker. In addition to many leadership roles, she earned a Ph.D. in nursing administration from George Mason University (Fairfax, Va.), a master’s degree from the University of Virginia (Charlottesville) and a bachelor’s degree from Eastern Mennonite University (Harrisonburg, Va.).

Disaster Management students will be acknowledged for completion of the program at 1 p.m., May 13, in the Campus Worship Center in the lower level of Keim Center for Performing Arts Education. Paul Unruh, a 1958 Hesston Academy and 1960 Hesston College graduate, will be the featured speaker. Unruh is involved with leadership positions with Mennonite Disaster Service and volunteers on many service sites across the country.

Aviation graduates will be recognized during a 2:30 p.m. reception, May 13, in the Hesston Mennonite Church Community Center. A short program will feature Jerry Eichelberger, a 1985 Hesston graduate, who is manager of the FAA Flight Standards District Office in Wichita, Kan.

In addition to recognizing student accomplishments and graduates, the weekend will also include several performances and exhibitions.
• Art work produced by students throughout the 2016-17 year will
• Chamber Orchestra Concert featuring sophomore soloists at 7 p.m., Friday, May 12, at Hesston Mennonite Church.
• Bel Canto Singers Concert at 4 p.m., Saturday, May 13, at Hesston Mennonite Church.
• Theatre Showcase featuring a themed collection of scenes and monologues performed by the spring semester Acting I and Acting II classes at 7 p.m., Saturday, May 13, in the Keim Center
Helmuth Studio Theatre.
Sophomore music students will showcase their talent in recitals throughout the weekend. Performers include:
• Sarah Booth (Goessel, Kan.), voice, and Kathryn Leichty (Harrisonburg, Va.), voice, at 8:30 p.m., Thursday, May 11, at Hesston Mennonite Church.
• Olivia Copsey (Goshen, Ind.), voice, and Emily Griffioen (Belmond, Iowa), flute, at 9 p.m., Friday, May 12, at Hesston Mennonite Church.
• Adele Hofer (Denver, Colo.), voice, at 11 a.m., Saturday, May 13, in the Keim Center Helmuth Studio Theatre.
• Morgan Leavy (Telford, Pa.), music cabaret, at 1 p.m., Saturday, May 13, in the Keim Center Helmuth Studio Theatre.

An informal come-and-go “Go Everywhere” reception for all students, families, faculty and staff will be from 8 to 9 p.m., Saturday, May 13, in the lower level of the Keim Center for Performing Arts Education. This will also be a time for attendees to offer words of blessing and appreciation for transitioning interim president Ben Sprunger.

See a full weekend schedule online.