UTSA graduates share stories of personal triumph
(May 11, 2017) -- The excitement is building as UTSA graduates make their final plans for Commencement Day. More than 4,000 Roadunners will walk the stage at one of three UTSA spring Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 13 and Sunday, May 14 at the Alamodome.
One shining example among this semester's graduates is master's student Brooke Balbuena, who has a passion for music. Prior to studying piano performance and pedagogy at UTSA, Balbuena served seven years with the United States Army. She credits UTSA music faculty with strengthening her teaching methods.
"Faculty members in the music department are caring and supportive. They will go out of their way to help students succeed," said Balbuena. "The faculty at UTSA are world-class. I would encourage anyone interested in music to become a Roadrunner."
Another outstanding graduate is women's studies/humanities double major Richard Giddens, Jr. The non-traditional Honors College student's desire to help others drew him to the UTSA Women's Studies Institute. Giddens researched the lives and experiences of queer Mexican-Americans in Texas as a UTSA undergraduate. He's branching off his top-tier experience at UTSA this fall where he will begin a new adventure pursuing his Master's of Philosophy in Multidisciplinary Gender Studies at Cambridge University in England.
Caleb Thurmon is taking his UTSA education into the classroom to inspire the next generation of students through his teaching.
"Being at UTSA has been the greatest blessing in my life," said Thurmon. "Knowing that you can impact a student's life and be someone that they will remember as a positive influence—that's got to be one of the best feelings."
UTSA graduates, family members and friends are encouraged to share their stories on social media using #UTSA and #UTSAgrad17.
UTSA is ranked among the top 400 universities in the world and among the top 100 in the nation, according to Times Higher Education.
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Events
The UTSA Office of Undergraduate is proud to celebrate National Undergraduate Research with an annual event sponsored by the (OUR) featuring students will showcase undergraduate student research and creative endeavors from all disciplines across campus.
Various LocationsDía en la Sombrilla, formerly Fiesta UTSA, is a festival hosted each spring as a part of Fiesta® San Antonio events. Sponsored by Roadrunner Productions, the event features music, food, confetti, games, event t-shirts, and more.
Sombrilla Plaza and Central Plaza, Main CampusFiesta Arts Fair features contemporary art from more than 100 artists from across the U.S., Fiesta favorite foods, drinks, live music by local and regional performers, and a Young Artists Garden providing opportunities for budding artists to learn, explore and express their creativity.
UTSA Southwest CampusJoin the PEACE Center and Wellbeing Services for Denim Day, a day of learning about the importance of consent and why we wear denim on the last Wednesday of the month each April during Sexual Assault Awareness Month. Stop by our Denim Day display to take a photo in front of our Denim Wall, spin the "Is It Consent?" Wheel, and get a Concha or goodie.
Student Union Window Lounge, Main CampusLearn to use Zotero®, a citation manager that can help you store and organize citations you find during your research. Zotero can generate bibliographies in various styles, insert in-text citations and allow you to share sources with collaborators.
Virtual EventThis event is to achnowlege the graduating seniors and induct the new cohart of scholars to our program.
North Paseo Building (NPB 5.140,) Main CampusCelebrate the accomplishments of College of Education and Human Development, College for Health, Community and Policy, College of Sciences and University College.
Alamodome
