UT grads reach milestone after protest clashes on campus
AUSTIN, Texas (KXAN) — The largest class of University of Texas students in a decade reached their grand achievement this week, despite concern that ceremonies could be called off like those at other universities where police have clashed with pro-Palestine demonstrators in recent weeks.
The concern follows the April 24 protest hosted by the school's Palestine Solidarity Committee when waves of law enforcement descended on the campus-- resulting in a violent confrontation between officers and demonstrators-- which ended in dozens of arrests.
Ceremonies began Thursday and continued through Saturday evening. Students who graduated Saturday morning could be seen snapping photos with family and friends near the iconic UT tower, the same site where the troubling conflict happened just two weeks ago, sparking debates over free speech and the right to protest on college campuses.
Jessica Joy was among the 10,800 graduates the university honored this week. She said the graduation itself was a memory she'll cherish forever; but she was cautious going into her ceremony.
"I definitely expected there to be some kind of commotion knowing how passionate our student body is and how passionate our class is," Joy said.
Reminders of the April 24 protest were around on the day of UT's main commencement ceremony at Darrell K. Royal Memorial Stadium.
A mobile billboard from UT Alumns for Fairness toted support for UT President Jay Hartzell's response to the protest by calling in DPS troopers, writing "President Hartzell kept our campus safe and open for commencement. Thank you President Hartzell, Congrats to the Class of 2024."
Arturo Flores also graduated Saturday morning and said he was more nervous about walking the stage than about his ceremony being disrupted.
He said his freshman year started during the pandemic, making for an atypical start to his studies. However, the new grad said his college experience ended just as he always hoped it would.
"I've worked so hard for this and now I'm here. So it's just a fun time for me and my family," Flores said.
We asked the university if any special security measures were in place for Saturday's main commencement ceremony.
"While we cannot comment on police tactics, the University routinely has extensive safety and security protocols in place for all large-scale events, including our main graduation ceremony inside Royal-Memorial Stadium. Security protocols for the DKR commencement are unchanged from previous years. We have always had disruption protocol, even if it has not been posted on a commencement webpage," a university spokesperson said in a statement.