Congratulations Georgia Southern University Fall 2023 Graduates! We are thrilled you have completed your journey at GS. Hopefully, Statesboro will always be your "second" home as you move forward into the world. We wish each of you tremendous success!
For your parents and relatives, we have pulled together some helpful information to make your graduation visit a wonderful one. Most of the information we are sharing has been put together by GS University and can be found here.
One ceremony will be held at Paulson Stadium in Statesboro on Thursday, December 14, at 2pm. A second will be held on Saturday, December 16, at 2pm at Enmarket Arena in Savannah. Each ceremony includes graduate and undergraduate candidates from all colleges within the university.
CLICK HERE to view the program for both ceremonies.
Live Stream of Graduation Ceremonies
The commencement ceremonies will be broadcast live on the University’s Facebook page and an embed of the livestream will also be placed on the main commencement page during the time of the ceremonies. The Facebook Live event will begin approximately 5-15 minutes before the ceremony. Due to technical constraints, some Internet Service Providers (ISPs) do not permit the use of their systems to transmit such broadcasts. Should you not be able to view the broadcast, please contact your local ISP.
Statesboro | Paulson Stadium: Thursday, December 14, 2pm
Allen E. Paulson Stadium, home of the Georgia Southern Eagles football team, is a 25,000-seat capacity stadium on the Statesboro Campus.
Address:
1332 Southern Dr.,
Statesboro, GA 30458
Directions to the Stadium
Parking and Shuttles
Parking is available at Paulson Stadium and other locations on campus. To minimize traffic congestion, carpooling is encouraged.
Shuttles will be available on commencement day. The shuttles will begin running one hour before each ceremony and run for one hour after each ceremony. Each parking lot stop is listed below:
View the parking and shuttle maps below:
Local TIP: AVOID Veterans Memorial Parkway. Park in a campus lot and shuttle in if at all possible.
Accessibility
Visitors with accessibility concerns are strongly encouraged to arrive early to the ceremony. A designated handicap parking area is available on a first-come, first-served basis. A state handicap parking permit is required.
See map below.
If one or more of your guests require accessible seating, all guests in your party should enter Paulson Stadium through the Media Gate or Gate 13 and sit together in the accessible seating area, which is located along the South Concourse adjacent to sections A and G, and along the North Concourse in sections H through P, sections 101 through 113. See map below. Reservations are not required and seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.
Due to the design of Paulson Stadium, the walkway to the concourse is an inclined distance and all who experience mobility issues are strongly advised to be prepared with mobility devices (i.e. wheelchairs, scooters, walkers) and/or personal assistance. Wheelchairs will not be available at the venue. Please come with a wheelchair if one is needed.
Additionally, guests may contact the Student Accessibility Resource Center for guest-related accessibility questions at 912-478-1566 or [email protected].
Guests Requiring American Sign Language
American Sign Language interpreting is available. Guests who need access and desire close proximity to the ASL interpreter may choose to sit in Section J of Paulson Stadium.
Ticketing
Tickets for guests are not required at Paulson Stadium. Graduates will not need tickets. Their cap and gown is their ticket.
Guest Parking, Entrance and Seating
Relatives and friends may enter Paulson Stadium through Gates 1, 5, 7, 8, 12 or 13. Guests and candidates will not be allowed to hold or reserve seats for other guests.
Gates/doors open 1 hour prior to the start of each ceremony. Please note that the ceremonies begin promptly at 2 p.m. with a processional.
Carpooling is encouraged, and shuttles are available at three locations around campus to transport guests to the stadium.
Certain items are not permitted into the stadium including: Balloons, selfie sticks, noisemakers, outside food/drinks, posters.
Concessions
Concessions will be available for food and drink purchases.
Lunch
Very few Statesboro restaurants accept reservations, and they will not seat you until your entire party is on site, especially on a busy lunch day. Take a snack and be prepared to wait. Statesboro restaurants are overwhelmed on graduation day, and many are short-staffed, because they employee students, many of which are graduating or attending graduation. Remember to be patient and show kindness to your student's home away from home!
Enjoy an Afternoon in Statesboro
The best place to pick up some local Statesboro merchandise and to learn all about the Boro is our cities official welcome center which is VISIT STATESBORO located along South Main Street.
Local TIP: Grab a bag of Cork's Kettle Corn and a jar or two of Braswell's jelly to take home a "taste" of Statesboro.
Savannah | Enmarket Arena: Saturday, December 16, 2pm
Enmarket arena is a 9,500-seat arena that is bringing a new era of music, sports and entertainment experiences for Southern Georgia.
Address:
620 Stiles Ave,
Savannah, GA 31415
Parking
Enmarket Arena Lot J is available for guests and graduates on a first come, first serve basis. Once Lot J is full, guests and graduates should use parking lot G (see diagram). Lots A and D are not available for guest or graduate parking. Parking is free and a pass is not required.
Accessibility
Visitors with accessibility concerns are strongly encouraged to arrive early to the ceremony. All guests, including ADA visitors, will enter through the main entrance at the front of the venue through the security checkpoint. Wheelchairs will not be available at the venue. Please come with a wheelchair if one is needed.
Additionally, guests may contact the Student Accessibility Resource Center for guest-related accessibility questions at 912-344-2572 or [email protected].
Guests Requiring American Sign Language
American Sign Language interpreting is available. The interpreter will be visible on the big screen from all seating areas.
Ticketing
All guests, regardless of age and including currently enrolled students, are required to have a ticket for entry to Enmarket Arena. There will be no charge for tickets.
Graduates that reserved guest tickets can print the tickets for their guests or email the tickets through the MarchingOrder system. If you are emailing the tickets to guests and sending multiple tickets to one email address, we recommend printing each ticket to expedite your entry into the ceremony.
Guests can either present a printed ticket (recommended) or display the ticket on their mobile device to be scanned. Each ticket contains a unique barcode that can only be scanned once. For this reason, it is important to print the entire PDF file to distribute multiple tickets rather than making a copy of the first page.
Graduates will not need tickets. Their cap and gown is their ticket.
Guest Parking, Entrance and Seating
Graduates and guests driving to Enmarket Arena should plan to arrive early. Parking is first come, first serve in Lot J. Once Lot J is full, guests and graduates should use parking in Lot G. Parking is free and no pass is required. Parking in Lot D is for arena staff only.
Guests may enter Enmarket Arena through the main front entrance. Tickets are required for entry. Guests and graduates will not be allowed to hold or reserve seats for other guests. Graduates will enter the arena through a side entrance. See candidate seating section for additional information.
Enmarket Arena’s policies will be in effect for the commencement ceremony, including the clear bag policy. Please familiarize yourself with Enmarket’s A to Z guide prior to the ceremony. Balloons are strictly prohibited, and other items not allowed into the ceremony include: Noisemakers, selfie sticks, outside food/drinks, posters.
Gates/doors open 1 hour prior to the start of each ceremony. Please note that the ceremony begins promptly at 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., respectively, with a processional.
Concessions
Concessions will be available for food and drink purchases.
