Seniors await graduation after Spring Graduation Expo

The 2017 Spring Graduation Expo was held in the student union ballroom on Tuesday, Feb. 21 as many students eagerly took their first step towards becoming graduates of Nicholls State University.

Seniors of all majors who are candidates for graduation are invited to attend the Spring Graduation Expo. Students can purchase caps and gowns, personalize and order announcements, have photos taken and are provided information relating to post-graduation topics.

The Nicholls Alumni Federation sponsors the exposition and Sodexo provides the refreshments.

Dozens of seniors lined up in the Ballroom. Their smiling faces seemed to brighten the room. Nearly the entire room had a collective sigh of relief knowing May 13, the date of the spring graduation ceremony, is right around the corner.

Deante’ Baham, mass communication senior from Baton Rouge, said attending the grad expo was a testament to his hard work.

“It feels surreal attending the grad expo; it felt like I just started college out as a freshman and here I am already graduating in two months,” Baham said. “It just felt amazing to see how far my hard work has brought me so far.”

Yuri Brown, a business administration senior from Lafayette, had been looking forward to the Grad Expo since the beginning of the semester.

“[The Expo] just makes you feel a step closer to May,” Brown said. “It feels good being able to say you’re near the finish line.”

The Grad Expo is considered to be like picture day in grade school. Most seniors came ready for the camera, prepared to take their first college graduation photos of the semester. Students had the option to take a free graduation photo with Candid Campus Photography. This was the only opportunity for graduating seniors to have their photo taken for the upcoming yearbook.

“It was a journey for everyone to get to this point, and I think being here makes you understand that we are all one step closer to accomplishing one of our goals,” Brown said.

The expo began with seniors signing in at a registration table and taking a #ColonelPride selfie. From there, students took their photo and enjoyed some of the refreshments.

The Bookstore provided an area where students were measured and had the option to purchase gowns and other Nicholls gear.

The other booths available at the expo included Nicholls Career Services, Graduate Studies, Alumni Federation, a Liberty Mutual Insurance representative and Balfour. Balfour provided personalize graduation announcements and class rings.

At the Nicholls Career Services and Graduate Studies booth, representatives informed students about possible graduate school, careers, internships and answered general questions that the graduating seniors had.

For some students, the expo made the process of graduating college seem even longer and made them more eager to cross the stage.

Breon Porter, management senior from Raceland, said after spending time at the expo, walking across the stage and receiving her degree were all she’d be able to think about.

“I wasn’t expecting much from the expo, because there’s nothing that can make me more eager to finally get my degree,” Porter said. “I’m just ready to graduate.”

Although the journey isn’t finished just yet, the expo is a reminder to see it all the way through.

“It’s just one more thing that reminds me to work hard,” Baham said. “It reminds me that I have to give these last two months everything I have in order to walk across that stage on May 13.”