Pamplin Spring 2008 Commencement

At commencement ceremonies this spring, 802 Pamplin undergraduates and 124 graduate students (69 MBAs, 45 MACIS, and 10 Ph.D.s) received their degrees. Among the graduating students was finance major and women's softball ace pitcher Angela Tincher, who became in April just the third softball pitcher in NCAA history to record 2,000 career strikeouts. Tincher, of Eagle Rock, Va., graduated summa cum laude and plans to enroll in Pamplin's MBA program. The graduating students also included MBA recipient Brennan Shepard, of Roanoke, Va., who served as the graduate representative to the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors in 2007-2008.

The college's undergraduate commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 10, at Cassell Coliseum, began at 8:30 a.m., with an introduction by Dean Richard E. Sorensen. The national anthem was sung by Kurtis Parks (FIN '04), a member of the band, The Season, that recorded the April 16 tribute song, "Forever Changed." Welcoming remarks were given by associate professor of management Wanda Smith and outstanding senior Tatiana Mishina, a double major in accounting and information systems and finance, insurance and business law.

American Electric Power labor relations manager James E. Sullivan (ECON '73) was honored as Pamplin's Distinguished Alumnus. (Sullivan was unable to attend the ceremony for health reasons; his remarks to graduates were read by Dean Sorensen.)

Associate dean for undergraduate programs Candice Clemenz and associate dean for graduate programs Stephen Skripak read the graduates' names. Undergraduate degrees were awarded in accounting and information systems, business information technology, economics, finance, hospitality and tourism management, management, and marketing management.