FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 2, 2008

Contact:
Jeff Perez, Office of Communications and Government Affairs
Office: (740) 351-3810; FAX: (740) 351-3179; Cell: (740) 352-5566
E-mail: jperez@shawnee.edu
 

(Article by Phyllis Noah, communications coordinator)

Shawnee State University commencement scheduled
(Senator Joy Padgett is guest speaker for Shawnee State University commencement on May 10)

            Shawnee State University is graduating more than 500 students at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 10 on the Alumni Green behind the James A. Rhodes Athletic Center.
Seven students will receive master’s degrees, 283 will receive bachelor’s degrees, and 213 will receive associate degrees.
            “Commencement is always an exciting time and I am very proud of all the students who have completed their degrees,” SSU President Rita Rice Morris said. “This year’s graduates are evidence of the continuing increase in quality in our programs and students with 24 percent of the class graduating with some kind of honor – 18 graduating summa cum laude, 31 graduating magna cum laude and 71 graduating cum laude. These statistics are remarkable and we are very proud of them.”
             Ohio’s 20th District Senator Joy Padgett, chair of the Senate Education Committee, will address the Class of 2008. Before taking the oath of office as senator in 2004, Padgett served as director of the Office of Appalachia where she built a team of state, federal and local leaders committed to improving life for the families throughout each of Ohio’s 29 Appalachian counties. One of her primary goals in this role was to improve the Appalachian business environment to better facilitate the retention, expansion and creation of jobs. Before heading up the Office of Appalachia, Padgett was elected to four consecutive terms in the Ohio House of Representatives.
            While serving as a state representative, Padgett led the Appalachian delegation in exploring options and initiating solutions to the challenges facing Southeastern Ohio. One such discussion led to the creation of the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio that is now actively serving the region from its headquarters in Nelsonville.