Eric Zuniga, Campus Carrier deputy news editor
With the semester coming to an end, Berry is preparing for the graduation of the Class of 2024 and wrapping up the admission process for the incoming Class of 2028.
The Class of 2024’s undergraduate commencement ceremony will take place on May 4 at 9 a.m. at Valhalla. About 470 graduates, including some Fall 2023 and Summer 2024 graduates, will be eligible to participate in the ceremony, according to Provost David Slade.
This year’s ceremony will feature student speaker Madison Clevenger and graduation address speaker Alexander Whitaker (81c), who is the president of King University in Tennessee. Whitaker, a Berry alumnus, served as Berry’s chief of staff before taking on the top position at King University.
“I can say that President Whitaker has had a very distinguished career as president at King University; he’s had a deep impact on Berry, not only as an alum but serving as chief of staff here,” Slade said. “He grew up on campus—his father was a professor at Berry College. I think it’s a wonderful way to invite a very esteemed guest who has close connections to the Berry community.”
The student speaker is selected collaboratively by the Dean of Student’s Office and the Provost’s Office. Slade said that Clevenger embodies many of the attributes the offices look for when considering students.
“We try to think about a student who has demonstrated great leadership and has been a really impactful presence in the senior class to represent the class well and to offer comments,” Slade said. “[Dean of Students Lindsey Taylor] and I thought that Madison Clevenger would be an excellent choice for that. I’m very pleased she agreed to do that.”
This year’s graduation program will be similar to years prior, with graduates lining up at Sisters Theatre at 8 a.m. and reception ceremonies being held after the event. In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held in the Cage Athletic Center, with students receiving four tickets for guests.
“Hats off to our Physical Plant folks, because they will set up Valhalla Stadium and the Cage Arena whether we need a rain plan or not,” Slade said. “We do have overflow seating where there will be a live stream that takes place.”
In addition to the main entrance and the service road gate on Opportunity Drive, the college will be opening to the public the new gate on Legacy Drive, which is typically used by WinShape employees working on Mountain Campus. This should help relieve traffic caused by ongoing construction on Highway 27, according to Slade.
There will also be slightly expanded parking at this year’s commencement. Shuttles will transport guests with disabilities to the stadium.
“We will be running a golf cart shuttle from the ADA pickup point to the stadium,” Slade said. “That’s an additional service we’ll provide this year.”
Although the ceremony begins at 9 a.m., Slade encourages guests to arrive as early as 7 a.m. to secure a parking spot.
“Sometimes you have to park a bit away and walk, and it just takes time to get onto campus,” Slade said.
For many of this year’s seniors, this commencement will be their first graduation ceremony. Most of the class graduated high school in spring 2020 at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, and lockdowns, mask mandates and quarantine policies were still in effect when they first enrolled at Berry in Fall 2020.
Slade applauds this class for their resilience in the face of the uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
“They’ve had an incredibly broad experience at Berry,” Slade said. “One of my concerns early in the pandemic was that it would truly be a disruption of Berry’s culture among students. This class has ensured that it was not a disruption. They have provided continuity for the student culture while they also may have made it their own. I think that’s really wonderful.”
At the same time that Berry is preparing to send off its graduating seniors, the college is also gearing up for the enrollment of the new freshman class. According to Vice President for Enrollment Management Andrew Bressette, about 514 students have submitted deposits at this point, a higher number than last year. The college should be on track to reach its goal of 600 to 620 admitted freshmen.
“We’ve got a ways to go, but I think it still looks good to have the entering class around 600 freshmen,” Bressette said. “We’re kind of still right in that ballpark. I think it’s still headed to a good place.”
The Department of Education’s bungled launch of a new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), however, has caused financial uncertainties for prospective students. Due to the form’s postponed opening and numerous technical errors, the enrollment team has received fewer FAFSA results with significant delays.
About 55% of the 2300 students who have been admitted to Berry and submitted the FAFSA have errors in their financial aid applications. 453 forms are missing a signature, while a combined 830 forms will require reprocessing by the Education Department over the next two months.
“We all knew this was going to be rough,” Bressette said. “The extent of the problems and the lack of transparency from the Department of Education is beyond what any of us even dreamt of as the worst-case scenario.”
With the status of most student’s FAFSAs, Bressette said that the Office of Financial Aid is still attempting to give families clear information about their aid situation.
“Berry [has been] trying to get ahead of this, communicate effectively with families and go out on a limb to make this as easy and transparent for the families,” Bressette said. “For the team here, they’ve done a lot of work over and over just to try to be agile for all the families.”
Nationwide, FAFSA filing rates are down about 30% from their levels last year. Berry has seen a smaller decrease, according to Bressette, with about 15 to 20% fewer students submitting the form.
While the FAFSA changes were intended to make college more accessible for lower-income students, the mishandled launch appears to have affected this group the most. Bressette said that Pell Grant eligibility has not risen by as much as anticipated.
“I still think that’s the group that’s going to be most impacted,” Bressette said.
Despite the FAFSA difficulties and projections of decreased college enrollment nationally over the next few years, Bressette said that Berry’s enrollment figures should remain strong.
“The colleges that can really demonstrate that you have a good community with some distinctive features that have great outcomes are going to continue to succeed,” Bressette said. “I think Berry continuing to do well with its students helps us to continue to attract more students.”
Slade believes that Berry’s future is still bright at this transitionary point.
“We continue to bring in people who are great fits for this place,” Slade said. “So, I feel really great about our future and our direction.”