Approximately 2,000 students are expected to participate in UNLV's spring commencement on May 15. Several local business and civic leaders will be among those honored during the event.

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, liberal arts, sciences, urban affairs, and the division of health sciences, 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.

Reception information is provided by each college. Commercial photographers will be available to take family/group portraits for one hour after each ceremony and will be located on the Thomas & Mack Center concourse near the entrance to the Cox Pavilion.

During the ceremonies, Joyce Mack and Lynn Bennett, both community leaders and university benefactors, will be honored for their contributions to UNLV and Southern Nevada . Mack will be awarded an honorary doctor of laws degree and Bennett will receive the President's Medal.

Being named as Distinguished Nevadans are local businessman Madison B. Graves II; Las Vegas entertainers Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Horn; real estate developer Kent (Tim) Hafen; educational leader Michael Kinnaird; President and Chief Financial Officer of Mandalay Resort Group Glenn Schaeffer; and former UNLV basketball coach Jerry Tarkanian. Several outstanding graduates will also be honored during the ceremony.

Additional commencement information is available on the Web at <a href="http://commencement.unlv.edu/">http://commencement.unlv.edu/</a>.