“Commencement is the culmination of the hard work of our students and the support of their families and our faculty and staff,” said SEMO President Dr. Carlos Vargas. “We are proud to celebrate this special day with them and to help them begin the next chapter of their bright futures.” 

Commencement by the Numbers

• Total Degrees for Spring & Summer Graduates: 723
  • Undergraduate: 528
  • Master’s: 189
  • Specialist: 6
• Graduating with Honors: 232
  • Summa Cum Laude: 56
  • Magna Cum Laude: 73
  • Cum Laude: 95
  • Jane Stephens Honors Program: 8
• Graduating with 4.0 Cumulative GPA: 73
  • Undergraduate: 58
  • Master’s & Specialist: 15

Commencement Ceremony Details

Saturday, Dec. 14 

• 10 a.m. Ceremony – Speaker: Dr. Joni Hand
  • Harrison College of Business & Computing
  • Holland College of Arts & Media
  • College of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

• 2 p.m. Ceremony – Speaker: Dr. Jason Wagganer
  • College of Education, Health & Human Studies
  • College of Humanities & Social Sciences

About the Speakers

Dr. Joni M. Hand is a professor in the Department of Art and Design at Southeast Missouri State University. She has been with SEMO since 2012. Hand’s research focuses on late medieval manuscripts in Northern Europe and female patronage.

She has written a book on manuscripts in the Charles Luce Harrison Collection, Special Collections and Archives and Kent Library. She has played an instrumental role in the development of a teaching collection of medieval manuscript fragments and objects. Hand is an active member for the Institutional Center for Medieval Art and continues to engage in both scholarly and artistic communities.

In addition to her academic work, Hand is a practicing artist, working in mixed media, oils and graphite. Her current artistic work explores physical and metaphysical journeys, guiding viewers through pilgrimages with the use of objects, images or drawings she incorporates. The destination of each work is individual to the viewer and different each time the work is viewed.

Hand’s academic and creative contributions have been recognized with several honors, including the Honors Award for Outstanding Scholarship and Creative Activity from the College of Liberal Arts, the Honors Award for Outstanding Service from the Holland College of Arts and Media, and most recently, the Provost’s Award for Promoting Engaged Learning.

In 2022, Hand received a summer research grant from the Provost’s Office. This grant allowed her to spend four weeks in San Gemini, Italy studying medieval book binding and preservation through the San Gemini Preservation Studies Program at the International Institute for Restoration Preservation Studies.

She is currently coordinator of the gallery at Catapult Creative House and serves as the secretary of SEMO’s Arts Council.

Dr. Jason Wagganer is the chair of the Department of Allied Health, Kinesiology and Sport Sciences at Southeast Missouri State University. He has been with SEMO since 2010. His primary area of academic focus is exercise physiology with a line of research in body composition changes over time in Division I athletes. 

Wagganer is a Certified Exercise Physiologist (EP) and Fellow through the American College of Sports Medicine. He was also selected as an American Kinesiology Leadership Institute Fellow in 2023. He is active in the Central States Chapter of the American College of Sports Medicine, currently serving as the executive director.

Wagganer has published 15 peer-reviewed journal articles in publications such as The Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness and Journal of Strength and Conditioning. He has also contributed to a book and published 75-plus conference proceedings. 

Wagganer currently serves as the chairperson of the Board for the Prevention Resource Center, is a member of the communication and marketing committee for the American Kinesiology Association, serves as an invited reviewer for multiple peer-reviewed professional journals, and sits on several external advisory boards.

Wagganer has a Ph.D. in exercise physiology from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. He holds an M.S. in nutrition and exercise science and a B.S. in health management: fitness and sports medicine both from Southeast Missouri State University.

For more information on SEMO’s spring commencement or to view the livestreams of the ceremonies, visit semo.edu/commencement.