Capturing commencement memories to last a lifetime
Lucas Lovig, left, and Roger Suski, members of information technology's audiovisual live events team, work together to set up the video control center in advance of commencement ceremonies on Saturday inside Hilton Coliseum. Photos by Christopher Gannon.
Big smiles and tears of joy will be on display this week during Iowa State's commencement and convocation ceremonies. And there at the Iowa State Center capturing memories to last a lifetime will be information technology's (ITS) audiovisual live events team.
Watch the livestreams
Livestreams are an option for the five graduate, undergraduate and veterinary medicine ceremonies.
Roger Suski, information technology multimedia events supervisor, leads the team responsible for livestreaming and recording the three undergraduate ceremonies, Graduate and Veterinary Medicine college commencements, five college convocations and an engineering department celebration this week. In addition to putting the feed on the big board in Hilton Coliseum, the team includes the closed captioning of graduation ceremony speakers' remarks with the livestreams.
Suski and media production specialist Lucas Lovig are the events team that draws help from eight student workers to pull off the events each fall and spring. They test the equipment a few weeks before and put it in place at Hilton and Stephens Auditorium during finals week. Suski's team also works with the registrar's office when a teleprompter, PowerPoint presentation or other equipment is required for the events.
The live events team began providing coverage of spring and fall commencements in 2023 at the athletics department's request. It was a natural fit after the two worked together to livestream the spring 2021 events from Jack Trice Stadium during the pandemic.
"It is gratifying to be a part of supporting the most important mission of Iowa State, graduating outstanding students," Suski said.
Lucas Lovig works to calibrate a video camera with student employee Brenna Akason in advance of this weekend's commencement ceremonies.
Capturing the moment
At Hilton, Suski operates two robotic cameras and also serves as director in the control station coordinating and communicating with four other camera operators. One stationary camera and three studio-style cameras -- which allow operators to be mobile while filming -- also are used. Suski said it takes about 3,000 feet of cable running from the control point to the cameras in Hilton. In Stephens Auditorium, three robotic cameras cover the two commencement ceremonies and college convocations.
The cameras are in locations to capture the opening procession, speakers, students crossing the stage to receive their diplomas and the ISU Brass Ensemble performance. Suski asks some of the camera operators to relocate during an event to capture different moments and provide variety for the livestream.
"We also surf the crowd of graduates for interesting cap designs," Suski said. "When our camera operators find one, we can take the image to the big screen and the livestream."
One challenge is finding enough staff to cover all the events with ITS' student employees taking most of the camera operator shifts. Three student employees will graduate during the undergraduate ceremonies on Saturday.
"The Saturday of spring graduation is the most challenging," Suski said. "The day begins at 7 a.m., and we have to support the overlapping 9 a.m. ceremonies with the College of Design convocation at Stephens and the first undergrad ceremony at Hilton. The day will end at about 9 p.m."
Other events
The events team doesn’t just handle ISU commencements and convocations. It supports Ames and Ankeny high schools' graduation ceremonies at Hilton, ISU Fashion Show, Special Olympics opening ceremonies and the Iowa Board of Regents livestream when the group meets on campus.
Community will celebrate an estimated 4,770 graduates this weekend
Students celebrated at the end of their December 2024 commencement ceremony in Hilton Coliseum. Archive photo by Christopher Gannon.
The university community will celebrate spring graduates with commencement and college ceremonies May 15-17. An estimated 4,770 students are expected to complete degrees this semester. That includes an estimated 3,955 undergraduate students, 528 students earning a master's degree, 138 students earning a Ph.D. and 149 Doctor of Veterinary Medicine candidates.
They'll be honored during five commencement ceremonies over three days:
- Graduate College, May 15 (7 p.m., Hilton Coliseum)
- Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, May 16 (1 p.m., Stephens Auditorium)
- Colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Business, May 17 (9 a.m., Hilton Coliseum)
- Colleges of Design, Engineering, May 17 (2 p.m., Hilton Coliseum)
- Colleges of Human Sciences, Liberal Arts and Sciences, May 17 (7 p.m., Hilton Coliseum)
Iowa State is implementing additional security measures, including walk-through scanners and a clear-bag policy, for all commencement ceremonies. Guests are encouraged to arrive early and use the north, south and lower west entrances of Hilton and the north and southwest entrances at Stephens. The university also offers a livestream for each ceremony.
Honorary degrees, speakers
Larry Buss and John "J.R." Robinson will receive honorary degrees this weekend. Alumnus Buss, who earned a bachelor's degree in agricultural engineering, is a leader in Iowa agriculture for his innovative approaches to farming. He also is recognized for flood mitigation efforts along the Missouri River and his work as chief of hydrologic engineering for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Buss will receive an honorary Doctor of Science degree at the Saturday morning ceremony.
Iowa native Robinson is a globally recognized drummer who's been instrumental in more than 50 Grammy Award-winning records, contributed to more than 30 No. 1 hit records and was recognized among Rolling Stone's "Top 100 Drummers of All Time." Robinson will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree at the Saturday evening ceremony.
Featured speakers for the five commencement ceremonies are:
- Distinguished Professor of agronomy Patrick Schnable will speak at the Graduate College ceremony. Schnable directs the Plant Sciences Institute that fosters collaborations between plant scientists, engineers and data scientists. He also co-leads the Genomes to Fields Initiative.
- Veterinarian Karen Shaw Becker will speak at the College of Veterinary Medicine ceremony. Dr. Becker is a New York Times best-selling author and animal advocate. As the world's most followed veterinarian on Facebook, she provides practical health information for pet owners.
- Entrepreneur Roger Underwood will speak at the morning undergraduate ceremony. He cofounded Becker Underwood in 1982 to develop a specialty colorant to mark herbicide application, resulting in more efficient farming practices. Underwood earned a degree in agricultural business from Iowa State.
- Retired global business executive Thomas Bluth will speak at the afternoon undergraduate ceremony. Bluth earned an electrical engineering degree with honors from Iowa State. For 13 years of his career, he served as senior vice president and corporate officer for Caterpillar.
- Distinguished Alumnus Thomas Smith will speak at the evening undergraduate ceremony. Smith's passion for innovation in geoscience began early in his career. He and his wife, Evonne, founded Seismic MicroTechnology, which developed one of the first PC-based software platforms that became the world's leading PC geoscience application.
College celebrations
The six undergraduate colleges also will honor graduating students at their own convocations and receptions on Friday and on Saturday morning. Follow the links to livestream websites or reception details.
- College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, May 16 (9 a.m., Hilton Coliseum)
- College of Human Sciences, May 16 (1 p.m., Hilton Coliseum)
- Ivy College of Business, May 16 (4 p.m., Hilton Coliseum)
- College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, May 16, 7 p.m., Hilton Coliseum)
- College of Design, May 17 (9 a.m., Stephens Auditorium)
- College of Engineering, locations and start times vary by department
Parking information
Parking is available between Hilton Coliseum and Jack Trice Stadium and in the lots north of Hilton and the Scheman Building. Additional parking is available at Jack Trice Stadium and the Maple Willow Larch residence complex. Handicap parking is available in lot C2, directly south of Hilton. Parking map
Kristen Constant reappointed as vice president and CIO
President Wendy Wintersteen has appointed Kristen Constant, vice president for information technology services and chief information officer, to a second five-year term, effective July 1 and pending approval by the Iowa Board of Regents.
Constant has served in the role since 2017, first as interim for two and a half years, before being permanently appointed in July 2020.
Kristen Constant
Wintersteen commended Constant for guiding the complex, multi-year endeavor to fully implement the university's new enterprise management system, Workday, and for initiating sustainment and continuous improvement efforts.
"Kristen has been an extraordinary leader during this time of rapid technological change," Wintersteen said. "Her thoughtful, collaborative and forward-thinking approach has helped the university harness technology to maintain a high quality learning environment, support student success and enhance all aspects of our mission."
Among Constant's other accomplishments are implementing ServiceNow as an IT service management platform, establishing a universitywide artificial intelligence task force, developing a centralized research storage solution, simplifying the university's application portfolio, migrating numerous paper processes to electronic formats to enhance efficiency, and strengthening information and cybersecurity.
As part of the reappointment process, direct reports, senior administrators and other campus leaders provided feedback on Constant's performance. They praised her as a hard worker, knowledgeable collaborator, and active communicator and listener who provides constructive feedback and constantly seeks opportunities for improvement.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to serve a second term as VP and CIO," Constant said. "The progress we have made in implementing cutting-edge technologies and improving our IT services has been a collective effort. I am committed to fostering a collaborative environment where we can further harness the power of technology to serve students, faculty and staff."
Constant joined the Iowa State faculty in 1992. She holds the rank of Morrill Professor and is the Wilkinson Professor of Interdisciplinary Engineering. In 2020, she was named a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a distinguished lifetime honor within the scientific community.
Strategic plan funds rejuvenate child care facilities
Lacey Maxwell, lead teacher at ISU Child Care Center at Veterinary Medicine, joins 3-year-old children for a painting activity. Photos by Christopher Gannon.
When Amamchukwu Ilogebe was considering where to pursue his Ph.D. back in 2020, finding the right fit was important -- not only for himself, but for his young family.
Ilogebe and his wife, Ujunwa, along with their three young sons -- all under age five -- were living in North Carolina at the time. The couple knew that finding access to affordable, reliable and high-quality child care would play a key role in deciding their next move.
"I had offers from a number of strong schools in my field, including Iowa State," said Ilogebe, who is now a Ph.D. student in materials science and engineering at ISU. "I felt great about the Ph.D. program here, but Iowa State's child care services really helped my wife and I make the final decision to come to Ames. ISU stood out and made us feel supported."
Iowa State has three campus child care centers, all of which are accredited by the National Association for the Education of Young Children and participate in Iowa Quality 4 Kids, Iowa's voluntary quality rating and improvement program. ISU community members are granted priority enrollment at each of the centers.
Maintaining high-quality centers is a priority for university human resources (UHR), which contracts with vendors to offer child care services at two of the campus facilities. And with an investment made through the university's 2022-31 strategic plan, both facilities have benefitted from a series of upgrades and improvements.
The first, University Community Childcare (UCC), opened in 1971 north of campus along Stange Road and is operated as a non-profit agency. The second, ISU Child Care Center at Veterinary Medicine (Vet Med), opened in 1997 and is operated by the Bright Horizons corporation.
ISU's third facility, the Child Development Laboratory School in the Palmer Building on central campus, is part of the College of Health and Human Sciences and as such, is not under the purview of UHR.
Planning for the future
When the Iowa Board of Regents approved Iowa State's 2022-31 strategic plan in June 2022, President Wendy Wintersteen announced an initial $10.5 million investment in nine projects that addressed one or more of the plan's five aspirational statements. It included $600,000 for renovations at two campus child care facilities, UCC and Vet Med, to serve ISU families with young children.
These initial funds -- plus $442,000 in other university funds -- were used to make playground improvements, install building security upgrades and replace HVAC systems at both centers.
Additionally, $540,800 in strategic plan funding awarded for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 was used to make lighting upgrades and classroom improvements at the two locations.
Now, just shy of three years later, the renovations are nearly complete and offer improved learning, safety and comfort for the children of ISU faculty, staff and students.
"We are so appreciative of the wonderful improvements we've been able to make at the ISU Child Care Center at Veterinary Medicine and University Community Childcare," said Cris Broshar, who serves as ISU's child care and family services coordinator and director of the university's Child Care Access Means Parents in School program.
Broshar manages UHR's contracts with the two child care centers and was responsible for overseeing the recent renovations.
"Our goal is to serve as a model of high-quality child care while providing crucial support for parents who are working and learning throughout the Iowa State community," Broshar said. "These improvements help make that possible."
The renovations include:
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Playground improvements: The UCC playground now features refinished cedar support columns, new sod installed after regrading was done to address draining issues, new fence gates, new mulch under play structures, new concrete pads replacing previously cracked sections, and the addition of a rubber fall-zone surface in the infant play area.
At the Vet Med center's playground, crews replaced a rotted raised wooden walkway and cracked and/or sunken concrete pads, added a dry rock creek bed and installed new fence gates. A new play structure and new mulch under all play structures were added, as was new sod after regrading was completed to address drainage issues. - Building security upgrades: Both centers received new card readers to all exterior doors to monitor access and improve security.
- HVAC system replacement: Both centers received new heating and cooling units, with the latter also adding an energy recovery ventilator to improve air quality.
- Lighting upgrades: The Vet Med center has new light fixtures throughout the entire building.
- Classroom improvements: At both centers, commercial resilient sheet vinyl flooring replaced vinyl composite tiles and solid surface countertops replaced laminate countertops. In four UCC classrooms the base cabinets were replaced. At the Vet Med center, 17 windows and two damaged exterior doors were replaced.
'A true learning environment'
Together, the UCC and Vet Med locations enroll about 150 children. Each center serves children aged six weeks through preschool, with UCC also providing services for school-age children (kindergarten through fifth grade) before and after school.
The centers are committed to offering services at an accessible cost, Broshar said, and financial support is available for income-eligible Iowa State student-families.
All three of the Ilogebes' sons attend -- and absolutely love, their father adds -- ISU's child care centers.
"I can't say enough good things about the ISU child care centers," Ilogebe said. "It's more than just child care; it's a true learning environment. The teachers are very professional and prepared for everything, and communication with parents is excellent. As an ISU student who is raising children, I am very grateful for this resource."
Samantha Secor, clinical experience coordinator for the School of Education, also recommends ISU child care services to all faculty and staff members. Both of her young children attend an ISU center.
"My husband and I moved to Ames about a year before our son was born, and like many families, we found ourselves looking for dependable child care we could trust," Secor said.
"The ISU affiliation was reassuring to us, and we quickly saw the depth of expertise the ISU child care center staff bring to their work. They create a loving, caring environment that encourages learning."
Secor said the recent renovations reflect the centers' commitment to excellence, as well as the university's commitment to providing child care services.
The demand for care is high
The Vet Med and UCC centers currently have a combined waiting list of about 350 children, which Broshar said is not unusual.
"While our centers want to serve as many families as possible, it's also important that we keep enrollment numbers at a level that allows each center to maintain the highest standard of quality care," Broshar said. "Lower teacher-to-child ratios means more meaningful and individualized interactions."
Broshar encourages families to begin exploring child care options early.
"I always recommend families begin considering their child care options and joining waitlists at our campus centers far in advance of when they need care to begin, especially if they have a child under two years of age," Broshar said. "Parents can also contact my office, and we would be happy to help you start planning for your child care needs.
"The Iowa State community is a family, and we are honored to be part of yours."
Angela Adams, director of the ISU Child Care Center at Veterinary Medicine, joins a group of children looking out one of the new windows recently installed at the center.
Keith summarizes faculty advancement data
Senior vice president and provost Jason Keith gave his first summary of faculty advancement data at the final Faculty Senate meeting of the semester May 13. The Iowa Board of Regents approved promotion recommendations for tenure-eligible faculty last month.
Among the 60 faculty, 30 received promotion to associate professor with tenure, 29 tenured faculty earned promotion to full professor and one associate professor received tenure. The list includes 25 women and 35 men. Three promotion cases were denied.
Of the 45 tenure-eligible faculty hired in fiscal year 2019, 25 received tenure this spring. Another seven faculty took advantage of tenure clock extension options, 11 left the university -- a departure rate similar to past averages -- one joined the term faculty and one had a negative preliminary outcome.
The provost's office also approved promotion for 50 term faculty. Twenty-one of the promotions were from associate teaching professor to full teaching professor, and 20 others were from assistant teaching professor to associate teaching professor.
Keith said 85 post-tenure reviews took place in fiscal year 2025, a process that occurs at least every seven years for tenured faculty.
New leaders
Senate president Rahul Parsa (finance) passed the gavel to 2025-26 senate president Meghan Gillette (human development and family studies), and Michael Olsen (mechanical engineering) assumed the role of president-elect.
Other business
Senators approved:
- A resolution (PDF) -- written by faculty governance leaders at universities in the Big Ten Academic Alliance -- in support of the core mission and shared values of higher education in the United States. The resolution passed in a paper-ballot vote of 49-13.
- The 2025 spring graduation list, with more than 4,700 students expected to earn degrees this semester.
- An interdisciplinary major (PDF) and minor (PDF) in digital storytelling -- a Degree of the Future -- in the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication and the music and theatre department. Students will learn to create compelling content for/with digital technology, design digital narratives for business, news media, entertainment or social impact, and evaluate and utilize social media analytics.
- A policy change in the course catalog to the summer academic standards (PDF) that no longer puts a student on academic probation if their summer grade dropped their cumulative GPA below 2.0.
- A course catalog policy to grant degrees to students facing extraordinary circumstances (PDF). An example could be a student with a terminal illness or one who has suffered a critical injury that would hinder their ability to complete graduation requirements.
- Changes to the faculty conduct (PDF) policies and procedures in the Faculty Handbook. The first ensures faculty know which offices, councils and individuals can assist them in dealing with a formal complaint. Another extends the time (PDF) allowed to notify the senior vice president and provost of alleged misconduct, and ensures faculty know they can respond to a complaint in writing immediately. The final changes (PDF) clarify investigation procedures, tighten some timelines for responses and define who can request extensions.
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Replacing the Faculty Handbook section on faculty salary policies and procedures (PDF) to reflect current practices and add three new sections on:
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Options for other salary increases, beyond performance-based and meritorious adjustments.
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The process faculty can request for a review of their salary.
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Definitions of terms used in faculty salary discussion.
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Senators rejected a proposed change that graduate program specializations (PDF) need to be approved only by the offering program. Senators don't want to remove their role until a different process is developed.
Award for Interdisciplinary Team Research
Recognizes an interdisciplinary team (two or more faculty researchers) with outstanding achievements that has made a significant contribution to the university's research and scholarship mission through successful interdisciplinary collaborations.
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Soynomics team
- A.K. (Danny) Singh, professor, agronomy; G.F. Sprague Chair in Agronomy; associate dean for research and discovery, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
- Aditya Balu, data analyst, Translational AI Center
- Liang Dong, professor, electrical and computer engineering; Vikram L. Dalal Professorship
- Baskar Ganapathysubramanian, professor, mechanical engineering; Joseph and Elizabeth Anderlik Professorship in Engineering
- Adarsh Krishnamurthy, associate professor, mechanical engineering
- Fernando Miguez, professor, agronomy
- Daren Mueller, professor, plant pathology, entomology and microbiology
- Matt O'Neal, professor, plant pathology, entomology and microbiology; Henry A. Wallace Endowed Chair for Sustainable Agriculture
- Soumik Sarkar, professor, mechanical engineering
- Arti Singh, associate professor, agronomy
- Talukder Jubery, research scientist, Translational AI Center
- Greg Tylka, Morrill professor, plant pathology, entomology and microbiology
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Dairy Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza team
- Todd Bell, professor, veterinary pathology
- Eric Burrough, professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- Phillip Gauger, professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- Luis Gimenez-Lirola, associate professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- Pat Gorden, professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- Phillip Jardon, clinical associate professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine
- Ganwu Li, professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- Drew Magstadt, clinical associate professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- Rahul Nelli, research assistant professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- Ariel Nenninger, assistant professor, veterinary pathology
- Chris Siepker, clinical assistant professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
- David Verhoeven, assistant professor, veterinary microbiology and preventive medicine
- Jianqiang Zhang, Lora and Russ Talbot Endowed Professor in Veterinary Medicine; professor, veterinary diagnostic and production animal medicine, Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory
See the full list of recipients of 2025 University Awards for faculty and staff.
