Selection Guidelines for Spring Commencement Speaker

SFSC is seeking a student speaker for the spring Commencement ceremony that will be held on Tuesday, May 7, 2024, in the Alan Jay Wildstein Center for the Performing Arts on the Highlands Campus. The student speaker must be eligible to graduate by the end of the spring term. Student speakers may be nominated, but must still apply.

Forms are available on Brightspace, Panther Central, and in any director or dean’s office.

March 20, 2024 – Applicant information and speech outlines are due
March 25, 2024 – The Selection Committee will name finalists
April 1, 2024 – Finalists will present speeches to Selection Committee
April 8, 2024 – The selected speaker is notified

Applicants must follow the 2024 Student Speaker Guidelines and include the following information in their email submission:

  • The student’s name
  • The student’s SFSC I.D. number
  • Complete address of residence
  • Phone number
  • Email address
  • Degree or certificate being awarded
  • Graduation date

Only one student speaker will be selected by the Selection Committee for the Commencement Ceremony.

Speech Requirements

The speech should be limited to 10 minutes.

Applicants must select their own topics. They may wish to make points that are relevant to college graduates. Some possible topics might be the value of education, specifically at SFSC; the role that education will play in the graduates’ futures; or ways that education changes people’s lives, etc. These are only examples.

Speeches should contain appropriate examples, stories, and instances of humor suitable for a commencement ceremony and an audience that includes the graduates, small children, senior adults, the SFSC District Board of Trustees, the president, faculty, and staff.


For additional information, interested students should contact Dr. Mark Bukowski, dean, student services Mark.Bukowski@southflorida.edu or SFSCStudentServices@southflorida.edu.