Construction on the Events Center at California Baptist University is set to be completed by April 2017, however, it will not be open in time for the 2017 spring commencement as previously planned.
Dr. Mark Wyatt, vice president for Marketing and Communication, explained that while there is a tentative ribbon-cutting ceremony planned for May, the center will not be ready for commencement because there is too much planning left to be completed.
“The Events Center will be completed on schedule but currently it is not far enough along to make all of the necessary preparation for commencement,” Wyatt said. “In short, there is too much pre-planning remaining before we get access to the finished building.”
Chris Chan, senior biology major, said it was exciting to see the Events Center being built on campus for the past year, so it was a disappointment to find out he would not be using it for graduation.
“I’m excited for graduation but a little sad it will not be on campus,” Chan said. “I was looking forward to having a new tradition.”
He explained he does plan to come back for events in the new complex because he has two younger brothers who attend CBU.
Jefferson Fernandez, senior behavior science major, said he was preparing for graduation by lining up jobs and exploring his options.
“The main issue is having adequate time to complete arangements to hold commencement in the Events Center,” Wyatt said. “While some graduating students have been disappointed by the decision not to use the Events Center, many fully understand our predicament.”
Although the graduating class of 2017 will not receive their diplomas in the Events Center, the commencement will still be memorable for the graduates.
