Gear up for college graduations: More than 1,200 expected to graduate from area schools

2510377+050716.N.BP_.BSUGRADUATION.jpg — BSU graduates march into the Sanford Center for the university's 97th commencement ceremony on Friday. (Jillian Gandsey | Bemidji Pioneer)

By Joe Bowen

April 27, 2018 at 4:20 PM

BEMIDJI -- More than 1,200 students are set to graduate from Bemidji-area colleges and universities this spring.

At Red Lake Nation College, that means seven graduates will formally accept their two-year associate鈥檚 degrees at a lakeside ceremony May 10. Five of those students earned 4.0 GPAs and will each give a short valedictorian speech.

鈥淲e think it鈥檚 one of the most beautiful settings of any graduation,鈥� said Dan King, the college鈥檚 president.

And at the other end of the class size spectrum, Bemidji State University will take over the Sanford Center as it graduates about 1,000 students May 4. Author and longtime BSU professor Will Weaver is set to deliver the commencement address.

Here鈥檚 a rundown of the area鈥檚 higher education graduation ceremonies, organized by date:

Bemidji State University 2 p.m. Friday, May 4, at the Sanford Center, 1111 Event Center Dr., NE, Bemidji, MN. Staff expect to graduate about 1,000 seniors, and have scheduled noted author and emeritus professor Will Weaver to speak.

Northwest Technical College 7 p.m. Friday, May 4, also at the Sanford Center. More than 200 students are scheduled to graduate, and the commencement speaker is Jerry Bauerly, a retired Minnesota lawmaker and businessman.

Oak Hills Christian College 10 a.m. Saturday, May 5, at Evangelical Free Church of Bemidji, 115 Carr Lake Rd., SW, Bemidji, MN. College leaders expect to graduate 22 Oak Hills students and a pair of Mokahum Ministry Center students. The commencement speaker will be Martin Giese, the school鈥檚 president.

Red Lake Nation College 11 a.m. Thursday, May 10, at Red Lake Nation College, 23750 MN-1, Red Lake, MN. Five of seven graduates will deliver valedictorian speeches in lieu of a commencement address.

Leech Lake Tribal College 10 a.m. to noon Saturday, May 19, at Veterans Memorial Grounds, 16599 69th Ave. N., Cass Lake, MN. Students and staff have yet to select a keynote student speaker or commencement speaker, respectively, tribal college staff said. Thirty-six students are set to graduate, and a powwow is scheduled afterward.