MTSU prepares to celebrate over 2,375 grads at spring 2025 commencement May 9-10

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — More than 2,375 new graduates are expected to soon cross the stage of Murphy Center May 9-10 to celebrate spring commencement at Middle Tennessee State University.

Graduate and undergraduate students in the Jennings A. Jones College of Business, College of Education and College of Media and Entertainment will receive their degrees beginning at 3 p.m. Central Friday, May 9, the first of three public ceremonies in Hale/Earle Arena inside Murphy Center at 2650 Middle Tennessee Blvd.

The Saturday, May 10, morning ceremony begins at 9 a.m. Central and includes students in the College of Basic and Applied Sciences and University College. Then at 2 p.m. Central on Saturday, May 10, students in the College of Behavioral and Health Sciences and College of Liberal Arts will receive their degrees.

Of the 2,378 students set to graduate in the spring Class of 2025, 1,975 are undergraduates and 403 are graduate students, including 360 master’s candidates, 21 education specialist recipients and 22 doctoral candidates. In addition, 18 graduate students and one undergraduate student will receive certificates, according to the Registrar’s Office.

All ceremonies will be open to the public. For those unable to attend in person, the ceremonies will all be airing live both days on the university’s livestream channel, on True Blue TV and on the university’s Facebook page and YouTube channel.

Stacks of diploma covers like these will be on hand during Middle Tennessee State University’s 2025 spring commencement ceremonies set for May 9-10 inside Murphy Center on the MTSU campus in Murfreesboro, Tenn. More than 2,375 graduates will receive their degrees. (MTSU file photo by J. Intintoli)

Speaker information

• Alumnus Rob Payne, owner of Payne Analytics, will share words of wisdom for the Friday, May 9, ceremony. Payne received his B.S. in animal science from MTSU in 1997, then earned his master’s in 2000 and Ph.D. in animal nutrition in 2004 from Louisiana State University.

His company specializes in providing nutrition design and consulting to the animal production and pet food industries. Before starting Payne Analytics, Payne served 20-plus years in various regional and global nutrition, marketing, and business roles for Cargill Animal Nutrition, Elanco Animal Health, and Evonik Animal Nutrition.

Cameron Sexton, Tennessee Speaker of the House — Cameron Sexton

• Tennessee House of Representatives Speaker Cameron Sexton will give keynote remarks for the Saturday, May 10, morning ceremony. Speaker since 2019, Sexton is a conservative member of the Republican Party, representing District 25, which includes portions of Cumberland and Putnam counties.

Elected to the House in 2011, Sexton rose through the House ranks through hard work, strong leadership, and his willingness to fight for conservative policy initiatives. As speaker, Sexton has been a staunch advocate for cutting taxes, promoting probusiness policies, and strengthening the state’s economic standing. He continues to be a vocal advocate for law enforcement, first responders, and victims of crimes.

• Wrapping things up will be alumna and accomplished media executive Tracey Rogers at the afternoon ceremony Saturday, May 10. Rogers, who has a degree in broadcast journalism from MTSU, serves as vice president with Nexstar Media Group Inc., working with multiple media markets.

Rogers served as vice president and general manager of WKRN-TV, the ABC affiliate in Nashville and also has held the position of vice president and general manager at WMC-TV, the NBC affiliate in Memphis, and KAIT-TV, the ABC affiliate in Jonesboro, Arkansas. She has been awarded three Emmy awards, four Associated Press awards, and two Murrow awards.

MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee will briefly address each group of graduates after welcoming them and their guests.

Middle Tennessee State University President Sidney A. McPhee encourages the fall 2024 graduating class during the morning commencement held inside Murphy Center on the MTSU campus in Murfreesboro, Tenn. Spring 2025 commencement ceremonies are set for May 9-10. (MTSU file photo by Cat Curtis Murphy)

Clear bag policy, streaming, parking details

For those attending commencement ceremonies in person, please note that a clear bag policy is in effect at Murphy Center as follows: Bags that are clear plastic, vinyl, or PVC may not exceed 12-by-6-by-12 inches. Gallon Ziploc bags are allowed. Small clutch purses no larger than 4.5-by-6.5 inches will also be allowed in addition to a clear bag.

Friends, families and supporters who can’t attend in person can watch the ceremonies free and live on True Blue TV, at www.mtsu.edu/live and https://facebook.com/mtsublueraiders. Online commencement coverage will begin about 15 minutes before each ceremony starts.

The university will provide closed-captioning services for the live video streams as well as American Sign Language interpretation on-site at the ceremonies.

A campus map with parking information is available at http://bit.ly/MTSUParking. A seating chart of Murphy Center, including access for guests with disabilities, is available at https://www.mtsu.edu/murphycenter/facilities/.

Driving directions, along with more extensive graduation details for students and guests, are available anytime at https://mtsu.edu/graduation.

MTSU’s spring semester ends Thursday, May 8. The summer semester begins May 19.

With spring 2025 graduates, MTSU will have awarded approximately 190,000 degrees to its students, including associate, bachelor’s, master’s, educational specialist and doctoral degrees, since its 1911 founding.

For updates on MTSU anytime, visit https://mtsu.edu or https://mtsunews.com.

— Jimmy Hart (Jimmy.Hart@mtsu.edu)