Approximately 2,100 students are expected to participate in UNLV's 2003 spring commencement on May 17. Judy Belanger, executive director of student enrollment & financial services, estimates that 2,200 students are eligible to participate in the ceremonies.

UNLV will hold two separate spring graduation ceremonies. The 9 a.m. ceremony will be for graduates of the colleges of Business, Education, Engineering, and Hotel Administration. Students graduating from the colleges of Fine Arts, Health Sciences, Liberal Arts, Sciences, and Urban Affairs, as well as the William S. Boyd School of Law, will participate in the 2 p.m. ceremony.

Both ceremonies will be held in the Thomas & Mack Center. No tickets are required.

Participating graduates and guests attending the ceremonies are asked to arrive one hour before the scheduled start time. All bags brought into the center are subject to search.

Guests with disabilities are asked to use the main Thomas & Mack Center entrance, located near the box office on the ground floor. They should bring only one guest with them to this entrance. Ushers at the entrance will escort them to the special reserved section.

Graduating students should go to the Cox Pavilion Arena (upstairs), which may be accessed three ways: through the Thomas & Mack Center concourse, from the stairs on the east side of the building, or from the stairs on the west side of the building.

Following each ceremony, individual college receptions will take place. Location information on each reception will appear in the program distributed at commencement or may be obtained by calling the individual colleges.
During the ceremonies, an honorary doctor of sciences degree will be bestowed posthumously on U.S. Navy Commander William C. "Willie" McCool. The son of UNLV faculty members Barry and Audrey McCool, he died Feb. 1 when the Space Shuttle Columbia exploded.

An honorary doctor of humane letters degree will be bestowed upon Anthony Zuiker, creator and executive producer of the television programs CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and CSI: Miami.

Being named as Distinguished Nevadans are Tony Alamo Sr., senior vice president at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino; William E. Martin, chairman, president, and CEO of Nevada State Bank; and Donald D. Snyder, president of Boyd Gaming Corp.

A hotline message containing additional details about commencement may be reached by calling 895-3229. Information is also available on the commencement Web site: http://commencement.unlv.edu/.