Hundreds of new Watts College alums celebrate during fall ceremony
Balloons descend on graduates from the ceiling of Desert Financial Arena in Tempe at the close of a recent convocation of the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions. Photo by Marielle Rua/ASU
Hundreds of new graduates celebrated their first day as Arizona State University alumni Dec. 17 at the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions fall 2024 convocation ceremony.
Representatives of the college’s leadership, faculty and staff, along with families and friends, gathered Tuesday evening at ASU’s Desert Financial Arena in Tempe to celebrate the hard work of 574 graduates from the Watts College’s four schools.
According to university figures, the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice presented the most fall 2024 graduates, 236, followed by the School of Social Work with 164, the School of Public Affairs with 120 and the School of Community Resources and Development with 54.
An estimated 300 graduates participated in person while many others joined through a livestream of the ceremony.
The college’s online graduates totaled 385 during the fall, while 189 immersion (in-person) students also earned diplomas. Five Watts College grads were also enrolled in Barrett, The Honors College.
ASU officially conferred eight doctoral degrees to Watts College graduates this week, one from the School of Community Resources and Development, three from the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice and two each from the School of Public Affairs and School of Social Work.
The university conferred 252 master’s degrees and 317 bachelor’s degrees upon Watts College graduates at university commencement ceremonies held a day prior in Tempe.
School director, outstanding graduates lead procession
Tuesday’s convocation began with a procession of Watts College faculty, led by college marshal Professor Christine Buzinde, director of the School of Community Resources and Development.
The college’s five fall outstanding graduates also served at the head of the procession as student marshals, each carrying a colorful gonfalon behind Buzinde. Representing their schools were: Nicole Caceres for the School of Public Affairs; David Scott for the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice; Derek Wilson for the School of Social Work; and Candice and Crystal Sipe of the School of Community Resources and Development.
Candice and Crystal Sipe also sang both the national anthem and the ASU alma mater.
Associate Dean Chandra Crudup later introduced the outstanding graduates with individual accounts of their academic journeys.
In addition to Crudup, other members of the college’s executive leadership team formed the core of the platform party: Dean Cynthia Lietz, Senior Associate Dean Joanna Lucio, associate deans Kelly Bricker, Megha Budruk and William Terrill, and Watts College Chief Operating Officer Janet Mullen.
Joining the deans were the directors of the Watts College’s four schools: Buzinde from the School of Community Resources and Development; Beth Huebner from the School of Criminology and Criminal Justice; Elizabeth Lightfoot from the School of Social Work; and Shannon Portillo of the School of Public Affairs.
In her opening remarks, Lietz praised the graduates’ dedication to making the world a better place.
“You chose to pursue your studies in an academic program from one of our four schools because of your commitment to serve, your desire to build stronger communities and your passion for making a positive impact on the world,” Lietz said. “Your spirit of service is a point of pride for the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions.”
Lietz closed the ceremony observing how the graduates’ journeys remind their professors, families, friends and society of how deeply personal their passion for public service truly is.
“Their stories also affirm our belief that hands-on, service learning is an essential part of preparing the next generation of public servants,” she said. “And, they have shown us that excellence, diligence, collaboration and courage are essential ingredients to our ability to improve the well-being of people living in our local communities.”
Hundreds of maroon and gold balloons fell from the rafters at the end of the roughly 90-minute ceremony, a convocation tradition. A band played ASU’s fight song, “Maroon and Gold,” as the balloons floated into the outstretched hands of jubilant graduates and their friends and families, who tossed them about as they departed the arena.
View the fall 2024 Watts College convocation in its entirety on ASU Live.
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