The University of Georgia will welcome its newest alumni Dec. 15 as more than 1,700 undergraduates and 1,100 graduate students-for a total of more than 2,800-have met requirements to walk in the university's fall Commencement ceremonies.

The undergraduate Commencement ceremony is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. in Stegeman Coliseum, and tickets are required. Commencement candidates are allowed six tickets per student. The graduate ceremony, which doesn't require tickets, will follow at 2:30 p.m.

In the interest of public safety, the 2017 fall Commencement ceremonies will follow the Southeastern Conference Clear Bag Policy.

University System of Georgia Chancellor Steve Wrigley will deliver the fall undergraduate Commencement address.

As the 13th chancellor of the USG, Wrigley oversees 28 public colleges and universities with an $8.8 billion annual budget, more than 48,000 faculty and staff, and 320,000 students. Prior to becoming chancellor, Wrigley served as executive vice chancellor of administration for the USG from June 2011 until his appointment as chancellor. Wrigley formerly served as senior vice president for external affairs, as well as vice president for government relations, at the University of Georgia. He also served as director of the Carl Vinson Institute of Government.

During his career, Wrigley has worked on a number of key issues, including the creation of the state lottery and the HOPE Scholarship, along with campus consolidations within the USG.
Wrigley earned his undergraduate degree from Georgia State University and his doctorate in history from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. He and his wife, Lynne, have two children and reside in Clarke County.

Samuel Peraza, who will receive his bachelor's degree in public relations from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication, is the student speaker for the undergraduate ceremony. In addition, the university will give two posthumous degrees to Virginia Katelyn Chandler, a bachelor's degree in biochemistry and molecular biology and genetics, and Bridget Ariel Thompson, a bachelor's degree in Spanish.

Eleven students will be recognized as First Honor Graduates during the undergraduate exercises for maintaining a 4.0 cumulative GPA in all work attempted at UGA as well as all college-level transfer work prior to or following enrollment at the university.

Of the 1,155 graduate students eligible to walk at the 2:30 p.m. ceremony, 321 are doctoral candidates and 834 are receiving their master's or specialist degrees.

Dr. Lisa K. Nolan, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, will deliver the Commencement address at the graduate ceremony.

Nolan was professor and Dr. Stephen G. Juelsgaard Dean of the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine prior to her appointment at UGA in July 2017.

Previously, Nolan was founding director of the Great Plains Institute of Food Safety at North Dakota State University and chair of the department of veterinary microbiology and preventive medicine at Iowa State. Her research focuses on bacterial diseases that impact animal health, human health and food safety. Her patents include a vaccine and a biomarker to assess avian Escherichia coli virulence. Nolan earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from UGA as well as her M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in medical microbiology. She earned her bachelor's degree in biology from Valdosta State College, now Valdosta State University.

Because Commencement falls on a Friday, a routine UGA workday, parking patterns on South Campus near the coliseum will be adjusted. The South Campus parking deck (S-11), Carlton Street parking deck (S-15) and Foley Field/Magill Tennis Complex lot (S-14) will be open at no charge for visitors and guests. Parking for guests with disabilities is available in the Hoke Smith Annex lot (S12). The McPhaul Center lot (S-10) and the Coverdell lot (S-16) will be reserved for members of the Commencement platform party.

The ceremony will be streamed live at http://commencement.uga.edu.