Campus & Community

As daffodils pop out of the ground and magnolias start to bloom, so too grows our excitement to celebrate the Class of 2024. May 15 marks a historic first for Columbia: two University Commencement ceremonies, one in the morning and one in the evening, allowing for ample time to recognize our growing student body and community.

However, Commencement does not stand alone. While May 15 may mark the largest celebration of Columbia's graduates, the day is also surrounded by more than a week of graduation festivities, from class days and multicultural ceremonies to the baccalaureate service and other events.

You may have some questions as we prepare to celebrate, so Columbia News is here to help with six things you should keep in mind this extra special graduation season.

On April 4, 1949, the newly formed North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), represented by delegates from the US, Canada, and ten European countries, signed a collective security pact. Four years after the end of a war that killed thirty-nine million Europeans, the twelve nations negotiated an all-for-one, one-for-all agreement with the declared intention to check Soviet expansion, bolster Europe’s defenses, and prevent German remilitarization.

At Columbia, President Dwight D. Eisenhower ’47HON, the five-star general who led the Allied invasion of Europe during World War II, was closely following events. Eisenhower had become president of Columbia less than a year earlier, succeeding Nicholas Murray Butler, who resigned in 1945 after forty-four years.

MAY 9 - 13

Columbia University Film Festival (CUFF) is excited to bring five days of dynamic programming highlighting the thesis work of the Film MFA Program. We are having the screenings on campus at the Lenfest Center for the Arts. Join us for Screenwriting Night which will open our festival at Playwright’s Horizons, and Awards Night will close the festival at the Paris Theater to acknowledge the winning films. 

Not only are we offering these in-person events and screenings, we are also offering a chance to watch the films virtually on the Eventive platform. Tickets for Screenwriting Night, Awards Night, and a virtual screening pass are all $15.