The change accommodates one of the largest graduating classes ever at the college
The College of Southern Nevada (CSN) will hold two graduation ceremonies on Monday, May 15 at the Thomas & Mack Center to better accommodate the college’s large graduating classes.
With 3,830 graduates earning 3,906 degrees and certificates this year, based on preliminary data, the Class of 2023 is one of the largest in college history. Official numbers for spring 2023 will be available once grades are final. In the last decade, CSN has seen more than 25,000 students earn their degrees and certificates and go on to fuel the growth and diversification of the Southern Nevada economy.
Student Commencement Speaker Aerin Shaylie Agbilay will be a highlight of the ceremony. Originally from Hawaii, she is a CSN High School student — she earns college and high school credit simultaneously via CSN classes — who will receive her associate degree one week before she receives her high school diploma. She plans on attending UNLV.
“We are not earning our degrees on a silver platter; we have worked for it beyond measure, and we’ve grown and changed over our time here,” she will tell graduates at the ceremony. “Life will always make us struggle for what we want. But we have support systems here, our friends, our family, our faculty. They are proud of you. I am proud of you.”
In addition, Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford and Nevada Secretary of State Francisco V. Aguilar are scheduled to deliver the keynote speeches at the two ceremonies: Ford in the morning and Aguilar in the afternoon. Board of Regents Chair Byron Brooks is also scheduled to address the morning ceremony, with Regent Michelee Cruz-Crawford in the afternoon.
More than 90 percent of CSN’s graduates remain in Nevada after graduation, electing to either continue their education by transferring to a four-year institution or join the workforce and fuel the region’s economy.
Media are invited to attend the ceremonies. Interviews with college officials and outstanding graduates are available. To coordinate interviews, please email csnnews@csn.edu.
What: CSN’s 51st Annual Commencement Ceremony
When: 10 a.m. & 5 p.m. Monday, May 15
Where: Thomas & Mack Center
