Event Details
- Date: Saturday, May 17, 2025
- Time: 4:00-6:30 p.m.
- Location: Illini Union: Rooms A, B, & C
Graduating students are invited (but not expected) to wear traditional dress to the Ceremony, in place or in addition to the cap and gown. Regalia is also welcome; keep in mind you will be blanketed during the Ceremony.
Registration Deadline: Friday, April 25, 2025, 11:59 p.m. CT
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Amanda Cheromiah (Laguna Pueblo), Executive Director, Center for the Futures of Native Peoples at Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Biography: Dr. Cheromiah is from the Village of Paguate located on the homelands of Laguna Pueblo in New Mexico. Her names are Kah-ow-dthu-ee and Sippun (Inupiaq name meaning "Big Guns") and her clans are shaska sinah hanu (Roadrunner & Turkey People). She is the Granddaughter of six relatives who attended the Carlisle Indian Industrial School: Mary Bailey Seonia (enr. 1885) | Howice Seonia (enr. 1895) | Benjamin Seonia (enr. 1904) | Joseph Ross (enr. 1904) | Charles Brown Analla (enr. 1914) | William Seonia (enr. unknown) | and she honors Lewis Tewanima (enr. 1907). Because of them, she works, lives, heals, feed the spirits, prays and thrives in the heart of the beast -- Carlisle, PA. She believes one of the greatest gifts she has as an educator, mentor, and sister is the ability to build the confidence of People through storytelling, kind words, and digital media. Amanda cares deeply about giving back to her Indigenous Community and transforming spaces through visual narratives and Indigenous-focused scholarship and methodologies. Dr. Cheromiah earned her PHD in higher education from the University of Arizona (Tucson) in 2021. Authenticity is important. Learn more about Dr. Cheromiah at https://amandacheromiah.com/" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(33, 37, 41); text-decoration: underline; transition-duration: 0.3s; transition-timing-function: ease; transition-property: color;">amandacheromiah.com, connect with her on TikTok | Instagram | X | LinkedIn @drcheromiah. Contact via email at cheromia@dickinson.edu" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(33, 37, 41); text-decoration: underline; transition-duration: 0.3s; transition-timing-function: ease; transition-property: color;">cheromia@dickinson.edu.
Congratulatory Ceremony Program
The program involves sharing knowledge, words of encouragement, and traditional forms of honoring as graduates prepare for a new journey ahead. Additionally, the impact of higher education on Native, First Nations, and Indigenous communities is emphasized.
- Welcome
- Grand Entry Procession
- Invocation
- Flag Song & Veteran Song
- Recognition of Place
- University Leadership Welcome
- Keynote Speaker
- Presentation of Graduates
- Honor Song
- Closing Remarks
- Round Dance
- Prayer for Meal
- Native-themed Buffet Dinner