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Media advisory for general commencement coverage


May 06, 2014

Thank you for your interest. Below is the detailed information on covering ASU’s commencement ceremony on May 14.

WHAT: Thousands of Arizona State University students will participate in the spring 2014 undergraduate commencement ceremony at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14, in Sun Devil Stadium on ASU’s Tempe campus.

WHO: Guests include:

• U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan

• Honorary degree recipient and University of Maryland-Baltimore President Freeman Hrabowski, III

• Honorary degree recipient Pamela Matson, environmental science professor at Stanford University

• Honorary degree recipient Joseph Stiglitz, Nobel Prize-winning Columbia University economics professor

• ASU President Michael Crow

WHERE: Sun Devil Stadium500 E Veterans Way, Tempe, AZ 85281

CONTACT: Iti Agnihotri, ASU Media Relations

iti.agnihotri@asu.edu480.727.4058 (o); 479.236.9969 (c)

Interviews/photographing before the commencement ceremony

  • Please let ASU Media Relations know if you wish to cover the commencement ceremony by May 12 for credentialing purposes.
  • Melissa Werner, director of University Ceremonies and Protocol Officer, will be available for interviews regarding the undergraduate commencement ceremony until 3 p.m. on May 14.
  • ASU Media Relations can also arrange for interviews with graduating students.
  • Please let us know on Tuesday, May 12, if you would like to speak with Melissa Werner and/or graduating students prior to commencement to allow us to arrange interviews in a timely manner.
  • Reporting time for the press conference with U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan is 6:15 p.m. Please click here for media advisory on press conference with Secretary Duncan.
  • Media can interview and photograph before the commencement ceremony begins. Graduates will be entering the stadium from the north gate beginning at 6 p.m., which would be a good time to interview them.
  • Honorary degree recipients might be available for interviews in the Gerlach Family Coaches Suite of the Carson Center beginning from 6-6:30 p.m. Please let ASU Media Relations know if you wish to interview any of the honorees by May 12 and we will do our best to accommodate your request.
  • At 7:30 p.m., all media will need to be seated or on the camera platform, except for TV stations broadcasting live.

Parking the day of commencement

  • Media parking will be in the Stadium Structure parking garage on Veteran’s Way, directly opposite the stadium on the south side. Parking is free and will open to the public at 7:30 a.m.
  • The parking structure has a clearance of 6’6”.
  • Please carpool or take public transit if possible. There is a light rail stop beside the stadium.

Press entry

  • Doors will open for media access for a press conference with Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, as well as general commencement coverage at 6 p.m.
  • The media entrance is the southwest gate of Sun Devil Stadium.
  • There will be a table set up near the entrance to pick up your credential. You must show a press pass to receive a credential.
  • Media are subject to the same list of prohibited items that is published on the ASU commencement web site at http://graduation.asu.edu/announcements.

Television

  • The media pad outside the stadium will open at 6 p.m. for television trucks only.
  • Please let ASU Media Relations know if you wish to shoot inside the stadium prior to the commencement ceremony by May 12. We will do our best to accommodate your request.
  • There will be risers available for television and still cameras on the field. You must let ASU Media Relations know by May 12 via email if you wish to utilize space on the riser near the sideline.
  • You will be able to go live for your evening news spots, but with the exception of the cameras and personnel on the risers, you will need to be seated for the commencement exercise from 7:30 p.m. on unless you are broadcasting live.

Still cameras

  • There will be a press area for photographers near the stage in between the first section chairs. You may enter the area briefly to take pictures, but you may not remain there or block the view of the stage from the field. An ASU Media Relations Officer will be staffing the area to provide direction and assistance, if needed.

Media seating

  • Print media will be seated in Section 6 in the lower bowl on the southwest side of the stadium.
  • TV reporters and camera people, when not filming, are to be seated in Section 6.

Radio

  • Radio stations will have a press feed available at the press platform on the west side of the field.

Related links

Please click here for the general timeline of the commencement ceremony (subject to change).