Shelbie Harris
Staff Writer
Before receiving their degrees, crossing the stage, shaking hands with university officials and leaping from the familiar college life to the unknown professional world, students from Idaho State University’s graduating class of 2015 will symbolically salute the completion of their college experience with the annual March Through the Arch celebration at noon on Friday, May 8 at the Swanson Arch and Hutchinson Quadrangle.
Smiles will be shared, tears will be shed, but most of all, students will march.
In addition to students actually marching through Swanson Arch, signifying the end of their collegiate career, 10 selected students participated in this year’s graduation video series titled March to the Arch, organized by ISU’s Marketing and Communications Digital Media Coordinator McKenna Bailey and Videographer Martin Baker.
“March to the Arch is something very unique to ISU,” said Baker. “The journey to the arch itself is a very emotional moment, passing though the arch coming out the other side as a graduate. You’re leaving the university and heading out into the future.”
The series followed 10 students throughout their final semester at ISU and Baker said the basis for the video was to document students getting ready for college graduation and the roller coaster of emotions that follow.
Uploaded to ISU’s YouTube channel, the videos consist of clips filmed by the participants covering a wide variety of topics including looking back on their experience at ISU and looking forward to their future plans.
The series will end by showcasing the individuals at graduation.
“I love the video series,” said 2015 Outstanding Student Award recipient for Fine Arts and Humanities in the College of Arts and Letters Daniel Shelden. “I think it is so much fun and gives a chance to relate how incredibly stressful, and joyous and crazy this whole graduation thing really is. I think it’s so interesting to see the comparison between all the different types of students and how even though we all take very different journeys, the goal is all the same: graduation.”
Shelden will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theatre. At the end of his career at ISU, he will have participated in almost every production in the Department of Theatre and Dance for his four-year tenure.
Kendall Rahill will graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in General Studies with an emphasis in Graphic Design, Marketing and Art. He participated in the video series as well.
“The video series wanted to document the lives of seniors as they’re graduating,” Rahill said. “College is a different experience from life in the first place, but that last half of the last semester is even more difficult.”
Also on Saturday, May 9 individual colleges or division events will take place providing recognition to students who have achieved various professional achievement awards.
The official commencement ceremony for the class of 2015 will take place at Holt Arena beginning at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 9.
“I am so incredibly torn about how I feel with graduation,” said Shelden. “I think there is some obvious excitement that comes along with the idea of finally being done with school, but shortly after there’s this incredible sense of foreboding that makes me think what I should do next. I’ve been so good at being a student I’m not entirely sure if there’s anything else that I can do.”
