San José State University Commencement & Honors Convocations Records

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San José State University Commencement & Honors Convocations Records

MSS-2009-02-03

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Table of contents

Series I: Academic Senate Commencement Committee Series I: 1925-1978 (bulk 1956-1968) 1956-1968

Physical Description: 5.0 boxes

Series Scope and Content Summary

This series contains correspondence, manuscripts, programs, and scrapbooks from the San José State University Academic Commencement Committee. Letters inviting commencement speakers and copies of university presidents' speeches are also included.

Minns' Evening Normal School held commencement ceremonies in 1861 and 1862 with two graduating classes. After the institution became the California State Normal School, the first commencement was held on May 14th, 1863. The San José State University Commencement & Honors Convocation Records indicate that the school had winter, spring and summer commencement ceremonies each academic year until the 1971-1972 term. Today, commencement at San José State University occurs once in the spring.

Arrangement

This series is arranged chronologically by date.

Box 1

Commencement Program Scrapbooks 1925-1956

Box 2

SJSU Presidents' Commencement Reports 1953-1964

Box 3-5

Commencement Programs, Correspondence & President's Reports 1951-1978

Series II: Academic Affairs: Commencement & Honors Convocation Series II: 1889-2018

Physical Description: 9.0 boxes

Series Scope and Content Summary

This series contains correspondence, clippings and programs from the Honors Convocation. Programs, negatives and negative indexes from commencement are also part of the series. The extensive date range of commencement programs shows the growth of the student population and the evolution of the university's academic programs. Accrual in Feb 2023 added programs from the SJSU Annual African American Commencement (later renamed to Black Grad) and the SJSU Annual Chicano Commencement.

The Honors Convocation was inaugurated in 1962 by the Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Xi and Phi Beta Kappa Faculty Club honor societies. According to the Office of the Provost, Honors Convocation is intended to recognize President's and Dean's scholars. President's scholars are undergraduate students who have earned a 4.0 grade point average at San José State University in at least two contiguous semesters of the three semesters prior to the Honors Convocation. Dean's scholars are undergraduate students who have earned a 3.65 or higher grade point average at San José State University in at least two contiguous semesters of the three semesters prior to the Honors Convocation.

Arrangement

This series is arranged chronologically by date.

Box 6

Commencement & Senior Week Programs 1889-1980

Box 7-9

Commencement Programs 1924-1925, 1938-1998

Box 10

Commencement Programs & Photographs 1949, 1965, 1987, 1998, 2003-2008, 2010, 2017, 2018

Box 11

Commencement Photographic Negatives & Graduate List 1991-1999

Box 12

Honors Convocation & Commencement Programs 1980-2009

Box 13-14

Honors Convocation Clippings, Programs & Correspondence 1962-1996

Box 15

African American & Chicano Commencement Programs 2010-2018

Series III: Academic Affairs: Commencement & Honor Convocation Negatives 1990-1999

drawer 4, 5 & 6

General Commencement Negatives 1990-1999

drawer 6

College of Social Work Commencement 1996, 1997, 1999

drawer 6

Black Students Ceremony 1999

Collection Contents

Series I: Academic Senate Commencement Committee

Series II: Academic Affairs: Commencement & Honors Convocation

Series III: Academic Affairs: Commencement & Honor Convocation Negatives