Ceremonies to mark the conclusion of our graduates’ time in law school will begin with the David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony on Friday, May 12 at 2:00 p.m. and will conclude with the conferral of degrees by President Mason at the University Commencement on Saturday, May 13 at 10:00 a.m.
The Hooding Ceremony will be held in the Theater of the Arts. The University Commencement will be held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. The combined events will hereinafter be referred to as “Commencement Weekend.”
Point of Contact: Erica Smith (she/her), Dean of Students and Loretta Young-Jones (she/her), Staff Assistant for Student Affairs.
Graduating Class Meetings
Please save the date for the upcoming Graduating Class Meetings:
- Tuesday, March 21 at 5:00 p.m. – Click here to join the meeting
- Wednesday, April 12 at 5:00 p.m. – Click here to join the meeting
- Thursday, May 4 at 5:00 p.m. – Click here to join the meeting
Graduation Regalia (Tam, Gown, Tassel and Hood)
Only degree candidates who have been approved for graduation by the Office of the Law School Registrar are permitted to purchase regalia. To be approved to participate in Commencement Weekend, a student must have a final passing grade for Law & Justice (if applicable to your cohort) and be on track to have a minimum of 80 earned credits at the end of the Spring 2023 semester.
Full regalia attire (Tam, Gown, Tassel, and Hood) must be worn during Commencement Weekend. The regalia being ordered is rental and must be returned according to the instructions provided by Herff Jones. To purchase your regalia, please visit http://herff.ly/udclaw and follow the steps below:
- Click SHOP
- Read the congratulatory message.
- You may order a package and/or individual products.
- Make your selections and complete the required and applicable information.
- Carefully review your order and check out.
- The order will be shipped directly to you and will include a shipping label for the return of the rental regalia.
For best prices, order by Wednesday, April 5. Deadline to order is Monday, April 17. Orders placed after this date may incur additional fees. Please allow three weeks for shipping and receipt of regalia. Herff Jones will send you the tracking details as soon as the order is shipped to the email you provided on your order.
Immediately upon receiving your order, please make sure that you received your full regalia (tam, gown, tassel and hood). If you are missing anything, please contact Herff Jones customer service at 1-800-837-4235.
If you incur trouble with the website, please contact the Law School Registrar’s office at lawregistrar@udc.edu.
Headshot for the Hooding Ceremony
Graduates will need to submit a headshot for the Hooding Ceremony. Headshots must meet the following specifications:
- Graduate must be dressed in business attire
- Image should be from the chest up
- JPG or PNG format
- Sized 1280 x 720
- Stylized photographs will NOT be accepted
- File should be labeled “Lastname_Firstname”
Examples of properly framed and sized headshots
Upload your file using the Dropbox link. Deadline to upload is Monday, April 5.
Headshots do not need to be taken by a professional photographer so long as they meet the specifications above. For students who wish to have professional photos taken, the Law School has secured a professional photographer to take headshots of our graduates at the Law School on Friday, March 24 from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. To sign up for a slot, please visit (Coming Soon)
David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony – Friday, May 12
The David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony will take place on Friday, May 12 from 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. at the Theater of the Arts Building. Doors will open at 1:00 p.m. Guests must arrive by 1:45 p.m. Graduates must arrive by 12:30 p.m. We anticipate that each graduate will receive fifteen (15) tickets to distribute. Please note, students are not allowed to sell or purchase tickets for Commencement Weekend.
COVID-19 Protocols
UDC has discontinued the mask mandate and maintains a mask-optional policy at all UDC sites. University guests and visitors are not required to wear masks or show proof of COVID-19 vaccination status while at UDC sites.
We will update this section if anything changes as we get closer to the David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony.
Parking
We recommend that attendees park at the Van Ness Campus Garage which is located at 4200 Connecticut Avenue NW Washington, D.C., 20008. Daily parkers may only access the garage from the Van Ness Street entrance. Daily parkers will pay the parking fare at one of the designated pay stations (located on each level of the parking garage). After paying at the pay station, patrons will use their ticket to exit by inserting the ticket into the collection machine. Lost or damaged tickets will incur a fee.
University Commencement – Saturday, May 13
Please visit https://www.udc.edu/commencement/ for information regarding University Commencement.
Commencement Weekend Livestream
Please check back for Livestream information regarding Commencement Weekend.
Commencement Weekend Related Activities
Graduates, please save the date for the following Commencement Weekend related activities:
Commencement Weekend Rehearsals
The David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony rehearsal will take place on Wednesday, May 10 from 3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. in the Theater of the Arts Building. Attendance is mandatory if you want to participate in the David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony.
The University Commencement Rehearsal will tentatively take place on Wednesday, May 10 from 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. in the Theater of the Arts Building. Attendance is mandatory if you plan to participate in the University Commencement Ceremony.
Graduates’ Celebration Dinner
The Graduates’ Celebration Dinner will take place on Wednesday, May 10 from 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at LiLLiES Restuarant & Bar which is located at 2915 Connecticut Ave, NW. We have rented out the entire Lounge/Main Room of the restaurant for this special occasion. Please note, the Graduates’ Celebration Dinner is for graduates only.
Class of 2023 Photo
The Class of 2023 class photo will take place immediately before the David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony on Friday, May 12. Graduates must arrive by 12:30 p.m. in the Black Box to take their group photo followed by lineup for the procession.
Important Dates & Timeline
- Tuesday, March 21 – 5:00pm Graduation Class Meeting # 1
- Friday, March 24 – Optional professional headshots
- Wednesday, April 5 – Deadline to order Graduation Regalia for best prices and Deadline to Submit Your Headshot for the Hooding Ceremony
- Wednesday, April 12 – 5:00 p.m. – Graduation Class Meeting # 2
- Monday, April 17– Deadline to order Graduation Regalia
- Thursday, May 4– 5:00 p.m. – Graduation Class Meeting # 3
- Wednesday, May 10 – 3:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.– Mandatory Hooding Rehearsal at the Theater of the Arts Building
- Wednesday, May 10 – 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.– Tentative University Commencement Rehearsal at the Theater of the Arts Building
- Wednesday, May 10– 6:00 p.m. – 7:03 p.m.– Graduates’ Celebration Dinner (Graduates Only) at LiLLiEs Bar & Restaurant.
- Friday, May 12 – 2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. – David A. Clarke School of Law Hooding Ceremony at the Theater of the Arts Building. Graduates must arrive by 12:30 p.m. in the Black Box for lineup and group photo.
- Saturday, May 13 – 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. – University Commencement will take place at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center. Graduates must arrive by TBD.
FAQs
Who do I contact if I have questions about eligibility for Commencement exercises?
Please contact the Office of the Law School Registrar.
Are students allowed to sell or purchase tickets for Commencement Weekend?
No. Students are not allowed to sell or purchase tickets for Commencement Weekend.
Are students allowed to leave the Hooding Ceremony or the University Commencement early?
No. Students are expected to stay for the entire Ceremony out of respect for the other graduates.