Fall commencement gave different colleges a chance to share their Sunday; however, graduates were also forced to share the stage they walked across.

At previous commencements, college graduates were announced one at a time from a designated side, where they would  have their moment to shine — and after paying tuition, they deserve at least that.

This fall commencement changed that, and students entering from two different sides of the stage had their names called back-to-back for the sake of time efficiency. This led to confusion in the audience on where to look for their college graduate, as their moment was even shorter than before.

While commencements run long, and having them walking across the stage at the same time saves time, this commencement still ran for over two and a half hours.

If the university wants to keep fall commencement short, holding different commencements for separate colleges would be much more respectful (not to mention that spring commencement does this anyway). But don’t shorten a student’s time to bask in their achievement.

47.9% of fall commencement graduates were first generation, meaning they were their family’s first to walk across the stage to receive their college diploma, and they deserved that spotlight.

In addition, nearly 1,300 students were eligible to walk, and those that chose to, deserved and earned their moment.

While a student’s time across the stage is short regardless, having them go at the same time, minimizes that student’s achievements. Four years or more of hard work is not something to diminish.