Coleman Warren, a 2022 U of A graduate and Rhodes Scholar, will be the featured speaker at this year's University of Arkansas spring commencement ceremony. The U of A will conduct multiple ceremonies on Friday, May 9, and Saturday, May 10, to celebrate this semester's more than 5,600 graduates.

Warren will speak at the university commencement ceremony at 8:30 a.m. Saturday, May 10, in Bud Walton Arena. All other ceremonies that weekend will occur inside Bud Walton Arena or Barnhill Arena on May 9 or May 10.

Richard "Rick" Massey, director of Dun & Bradstreet Holdings Inc. and Alight Inc., will receive an honorary doctorate from the U of A during the university commencement ceremony.

Live streaming of all ceremonies will be available on the U of A YouTube channel.

About Coleman Warren

Warren is a native of Farmington and graduated from the University of Arkansas in May 2022 with bachelor's degrees in industrial engineering and political science. He was named a 2022 Rhodes Scholar and earned a Master of Philosophy in comparative social policy at Oxford University, where he studied efforts to combat inequality and poverty in developed countries and crafted a thesis that analyzed community development banks' effects on rural economic development in Arkansas and Mississippi. He now serves as the public policy coordinator at Communities Unlimited, a Fayetteville-based rural economic development nonprofit serving seven states in the South, including Arkansas.

During his time at the U of A, Warren was an honors student, volunteered his time with campus and community organizations, and was elected president of the Associated Student Government. He served as a College of Engineering peer mentor, a campus ambassador and partner with the Northwest Arkansas Food Bank, and a junior counselor for Arkansas Boys State. He also interned with AmeriCorps and Congressman Westerman's Office.

He received the Arkansas Governor's Distinguished Scholarship and the Chancellor's Scholarship as an incoming freshman, and he was the recipient of the Industrial Engineering Sophomore Scholar Award, an Arkansas Academy of Industrial Engineers Scholarship, the Gold President's Volunteer Service Award, and the Alpha Pi Mu Scholarship from the industrial engineering honors society. He was named to the Chancellor's List and was designated as a Clinton Global Initiative University Fellow. In 2021, he was also named a Harry S. Truman Scholar, and he is the only U of A student to have received both the Truman and Rhodes Scholarships.

In 2020, Warren founded Simple + Sweet Creamery, an artisanal ice cream business that has donated over 50,000 meals through the Northwest Arkansas Foodbank. In addition, he founded the Compass Foundation, a nonprofit that aims to foster rural talent by providing mentorship, workshops, and financial support to first-generation, rural students. Warren's future career plans will be in public service focused on addressing poverty and food insecurity in Arkansas.

GUEST INFORMATION

Doors will open 60 minutes prior to each ceremony and guests are encouraged to be seated 15 minutes prior to the ceremony's start. 

For ceremonies on campus, all guests will be required to enter through the south or west entrances of Bud Walton Arena and the north and upper-south entrances of Barnhill Arena.

Tickets are not required at any ceremony, but a clear bag policy will be in effect. Compact umbrellas are allowed, but balloons, wrapped packages, glass vases, and strollers are not allowed in either arena. A full list of prohibited items is available online.

Printed commencement programs will not be distributed to guests, but an online version will be available by May 6.

Free parking is available in any unrestricted parking lot on campus. Download a map of all parking areas here.  

Campus drop-off for people with disabilities is located at the south and west entrances of Bud Walton with disabled parking available in lot 310. At Barnhill Arena, parking for people with disabilities can be found in lot 303 and 304 on the west and south sides of the arena, respectively.

Commencement Schedule

Friday, May 9, 2025

Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences - 3 p.m. (Bud Walton Arena)
Speaker: Nya Kidd, senior pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design

Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food & Life Sciences - 3:30 p.m. (Barnhill Arena)
Speaker: Sally Abigail Hamm, honors student in the School of Human Development and Family Sciences in Bumpers College

Saturday, May 10, 2025

University Commencement (only graduate students recognized) - 8:30 a.m. (Bud Walton Arena)
Speaker: Coleman Warren, U of A alumnus, Rhodes Scholar, and Public Policy Coordinator with Communities Unlimited
Honorary Degree: Richard "Rick" Massey, Director of Dun & Bradstreet Holdings, Inc., and Alight, Inc.

College of Engineering - 12 p.m. (Barnhill Arena)
Speaker: John English, former U of A Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation, Dean of the College of Engineering and Head of the Department of Industrial Engineering

College of Education and Health Professions - 12:30 p.m. (Bud Walton Arena)
Speaker: Valorie Kondos Field, former Head Coach of the seven-time NCAA champion UCLA Bruins gymnastics program

Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design - 3:00 p.m. (Barnhill Arena)
Speaker: David Fitts, U of A alumnus and former NASA Chief of the Habitability and Human Factors Branch of the Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Sam M. Walton College of Business - Ceremony #1 at 3:30 p.m., Ceremony #2 at 6:30 p.m. (Bud Walton Arena)
Speaker at 3:30 p.m.: Brad Eichler, chief operating officer of Stephens Inc.

Speaker at 6:30 p.m.: Shelley Simpson, president and chief executive office of J.B. Hunt Transport Services Inc.

School of Law - 5:30 p.m. (Barnhill Arena)
Speaker: Carol Dalby, representative in the Arkansas House of Representatives, a member of the Board of Trustees for the U of A School of Law, and president-elect of the Arkansas Bar Association (starting June 2025)

More information for families and guests can be found at commencement.uark.edu.

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About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $3 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research and Economic Development News.