The university-wide undergraduate graduation ceremony will be held in Hilton Coliseum at 2 p.m. on Dec. 18, and the graduate college ceremony is at 8 p.m. on Dec. 17 in Stephens Auditorium.

Debbie Lettow, record analyst in records and registration, said there will be about 1,300 undergraduates and 350 graduate students graduating this semester.

Registrar Kathy Jones said the only significant difference between last fall’s ceremony and this year’s ceremony will be a new tradition that began last spring.

“[ISU] President [Martin] Jischke and members of the platform will stay after the ceremony and meet the graduates and their families,” Lettow said.

Jones said those people attending the ceremony are encouraged to come down afterward to speak to faculty and deans and to take pictures.

“It extends the time not of the ceremony but of the celebration,” Jones said.

The speaker at the graduate college ceremony will be Lloyd L. Anderson, a Charles F. Curtiss distinguished professor in agriculture and animal science.

He will be speaking on “The Road Ahead.”

Dean L. Ulrichson, president of the Faculty Senate and chemical engineering professor, will be speaking at the undergraduate ceremony on the topic of “Are you Y2K compliant?”

Individual college ceremonies are as follows:

Dec. 17

• College of Business, 5 p.m. in Hilton Coliseum.

• College of Education individual reception for master’s and Ph.Ds, 9:15 p.m. to 10:15 p.m. in the first floor lobby of the Scheman Building.

Dec. 18

• College of Agriculture, reception at 8:15 a.m. and ceremony at 9 a.m. in Stephens Auditorium.

• College of Design, reception at 9:30 a.m. and ceremony at 10 a.m. in the Atrium of the College of Design.

• College of Education, ceremony at 11:30 a.m. and reception at 12:45 p.m. in Stephens Auditorium.

• College of Family and Consumer Sciences, reception at 8:30 a.m. and ceremony at 9:30 a.m. in the Sun Room of Memorial Union.

• College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, 9:30 a.m. in Hilton Coliseum.

• College of Engineering, 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in the Iowa State Center with commencement, reception and informal recognition program.