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news
Few
problems for largest graduation in 3 years
By Brian Brannon
Summer On-line Forty-Niner
Despite one heart
attack and one seizure suffered among the approximately 59,000
guests attending commencement ceremonies last week, 5,433
students walked through commencement ceremonies at Cal State
Long Beach. According to commencement records, more students
graduated in 2002 than in the past three years.
A 69-year-old woman
experienced a heart attack at 9:10 a.m. on Thursday and a
36-year-old man endured a seizure at approximately 1 p.m.
the same day, said University Police Communications Supervisor
Greg Pascal.
An on-scene doctor
from the Student Health Center resuscitated the heart attack
victim using an automatic external defibrillator supplied
by University Police, said Pascal. Both victims were transported
to Long Beach Community Hospital by units of the Long Beach
Fire Department.
Police declined
to release the victims' names, saying they were not required
to because both cases were medical and not criminal.
The emergencies
temporarily disrupted the ceremonies but once the victims
were transported commencement went on as planned.
"Other than
that, it was uneventful," said Commencement Operations
Supervisor Barbara Hall. "It went really well."
Wearing black gowns
and caps with colored tassels denoting their field of study,
bachelor's degree candidates walked across the stage to shake
hands with CSULB President Robert Maxson and finalize their
stay at CSULB. Graduates receive their degrees at a later
date.
"It all relates
to how large the freshman class was four or five years ago,"
said Hall.
The College of
Liberal Arts boasted the most graduates with 1,324, followed
by the College of Business with 1,184, the College of Health
and Human Services with 1,324, the College of the Arts with
591, the College of Education with 565 and the College of
Engineering with 427. The College of Science and Mathematics
had the smallest graduating class with only 214 graduates
walking.
The CSULB Brass
Choir performed processional and recessional music and international
flags, representing students attending CSULB from 117 foreign
countries, were displayed in the Central Quadrangle.
Screenwriter, playwright,
actor and producer Fay Kanin gave the commencement address
for the College of the Arts. She co-wrote the film Teacher's
Pet with her husband, Michael Kanin.
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