May 2025 Celebration
The VCU School of the Arts is pleased to hold an in-person commencement celebration honoring both undergraduate and graduate students:
Thursday, May 8, 2025
1:00 p.m.
Altria Theater
6 N. Laurel St, Richmond, VA 23220
Schedule:
12:00 p.m. — Doors Open
12:30 p.m. — Graduate and Faculty Line-Up
1:00 p.m. — Celebration Start Time
3:00 p.m. — Celebration End Time
Tickets
Graduates may bring up to four guests to the in-person celebration, which will also be livestreamed. Online ticket distribution will begin April 10. Graduates will receive information by email with instructions for reserving tickets and accessing the livestream.
Questions
For more information about the VCUarts commencement celebration, please see the commencement FAQ. If you have additional questions, please contact the Dean’s Office at arts@vcu.edu or 804-VCU-ARTS.
Photography
A professional photographer will photograph graduates after they have crossed the stage. A proof of this photo and information about purchasing will be sent to the email address provided on the reader form that graduates fill out upon arrival.
Regalia
Keynote Speaker
Gordy Haab (B.M. ’00)
Gordy Haab (B.M. ’00) is a Grammy and Ivor Novello-winning composer for film, video games and television. His recent work includes the critically acclaimed Indiana Jones and the Great Circle and the highly anticipated Creation of the Gods II: Demon Force. Haab is renowned for scoring AAA video games like Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, Star Wars: Squadrons, Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, Halo Wars 2 and Star Wars: Battlefront I and II, as well as the Chinese blockbuster film Fengshen – Creation of the Gods: Kingdom of Storms, which earned $400M in its home territory before its 2023 North American release.
In 2024, Haab won a Grammy and an Ivor Novello Award for Star Wars Jedi: Survivor (co-composed with Stephen Barton). He also received a BAFTA nomination as well as his second SCL Award for Best Interactive Score, and won Music of the Year, Audio of the Year and Best Original Soundtrack Album at the G.A.N.G. Awards. In 2022, Haab received the inaugural Music City Maestro Award from the Society of Composers and Lyricists.
Haab is a three-time recipient of ASCAP’s Composers’ Choice Award for Video Game Composer of the Year. He was featured in Variety’s list of “Top 10 Composers to Watch,” and Billboard proposed that Haab could be the “Heir Apparent to John Williams.”
Haab received a bachelor’s degree in Music Composition from the Virginia Commonwealth University School of the Arts (VCUarts) in 2000 before graduating from the University of Southern California, where he received his master’s in Scoring for Motion Pictures, Television and Other Media. While he learned from many composers in university and conservatory settings, Haab says that most of his music education simply comes from “playing in hundreds of rock bands and being an avid fan of Hitchcock, Kubrick, Lucas and Spielberg films … ‘B’ Horror Movies of the 70’s and 80’s … and all of their great scores.”
- Aaron Anderson, Ph.D. – Dec. 2024
- Amber Esseiva (B.A. ’12) – Dec. 2024
- Joshua Boone (B.F.A. ’10) – May 2024
- Charles Watlington (B.F.A. ’02) – Dec. 2023
- Jordan Bruner (B.F.A. ’06) – May 2023
- Janelle Washington (B.F.A. ’99) – Dec. 2022
- Valerie Cassel Oliver – May 2022
- P. Muzi Branch (B.F.A. ’80, M.A.E. ’86) – Dec. 2021
- Samantha Speis (B.F.A. ’05) – May 2021
- Sophia Li (B.A. ’13) – Dec. 2019
- Elizabeth Turk – May 2019
- Jason Butler Harner (B.F.A. ’92) – Dec. 2018
- Bobby C. Martin Jr. (B.F.A. ’99) – May 2018
- Ashley Hawkins (B.F.A. ’07) – Dec. 2017
- Michael Hearst (B.M. ’95) – May 2017
- Noah Scalin – Dec. 2016
- Jarvis Jefferson (B.F.A. ’82) – May 2016
- John Paolini (M.F.A. ’93) – Dec. 2015
- Anne Holton – May 2015
- Eric Booth – Dec. 2014
- Andy Stefanovich – May 2014
- Stephen Nachmanovitch – Dec. 2013
- Teresita Fernández (M.F.A. ’92) – May 2013
- Elizabeth King – Dec. 2012
Resources for Recent Grads
Commencement FAQ
Thursday, May 8, 2025 at 1:00 p.m.
Schedule:
12:00 p.m. — Doors Open
12:30 p.m. — Graduate and Faculty Line-Up
1:00 p.m. — Celebration Start Time
3:00 p.m. — Celebration End Time
The VCUarts commencement celebration will be held at Richmond’s Altria Theater (6 N. Laurel St.).
Graduates should plan to arrive 30 minutes prior to the event start time for line-up in the lower level of the Altria Theater.
Upon arrival, you will complete a form to have your name called during the ceremony.
Yes. All graduates who attend the VCUarts commencement will have their names called when they walk across the stage.
All May 2025 graduates that checked out on eServices by the deadline stated in the academic calendar will be printed in the program. Please contact your departmental advisor for questions about the graduation checkout process.
Graduates may reserve up to four tickets for guests to attend the in-person celebration at the Altria Theater. Ticket distribution will begin April 10. Graduates will receive information by email with instructions for claiming tickets.
We will also offer a livestream of the celebration for guests who are not able to attend in person. A link will be shared with graduates and will also be displayed on the VCUarts website.
No—you may attend one, both or neither.
It depends on your degree and major. This chart outlines the hood and tassel colors that will be present during our commencement.
| Degree | Major | Hood Color | Tassel Color |
| Bachelor of Arts | Art History | White | Black |
| Fashion | Brown | Black | |
| Film | White | Black | |
| Music | Pink | Black | |
| Theatre | Brown | Black | |
| Bachelor of Fine Arts | Art Education | Brown | Black |
| Communication Arts | Brown | Black | |
| Craft and Material Studies | Brown | Black | |
| Dance and Choreography | Brown | Black | |
| Fashion | Brown | Black | |
| Graphic Design | Brown | Black | |
| Interior Design | Brown | Black | |
| Kinetic Imaging | Brown | Black | |
| Painting and Printmaking | Brown | Black | |
| Photography and Film | Brown | Black | |
| Sculpture | Brown | Black | |
| Theatre | Brown | Black | |
| Bachelor of Music | Music | Pink | Black |
| Master of Art | Art History | White | Black |
| Master of Art Education | Art Education | Brown | Black |
| Master of Fine Arts | Design | Brown | Black |
| Fine Arts | Brown | Black | |
| Theatre | Brown | Black | |
| Master of Music | Music | Pink | Black |
| Ph.D. | Ph.D. | Royal | Old Gold |
A cap and gown are required for graduates. A professional photographer will take photos as you cross the stage. Proofs will be share with the graduate by way of the email they provided on the registration form.
If you are unable to attend the Grad Fair or visit the bookstore, please order your regalia online at balfour.com/vcu. Shipping charges will apply to all internet orders.
Learn more about the university’s commencement on their website.
Yes. With questions regarding accessibility, please contact arts@vcu.edu or 804-VCU-
Complimentary parking is available at the VCU West Main Street Parking Deck (801 W. Main St.).
No; however this distinction will be indicated on your diploma and on your transcript.
No. Diplomas will be mailed to the address provided during graduation checkout. To receive your diploma, you must meet all financial obligations to the university. Please contact the Office of Records and Registration at 804-827-1673 or graduation@vcu.edu with any questions.
The School of the Arts takes great pride in recognizing its graduates. If you have any questions or need more information, please contact the Dean’s Office at arts@vcu.edu or 804-VCU-