Current Students
Honors Convocation
Honors Convocation is a formal program welcoming freshmen to the Judy Genshaft Honors College, the University of South Florida, and the start of their university careers.
A UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH FLORIDA TRADITION
This festive ceremony takes place in the beginning of each Fall semester and has been held every year since the founding of the college. Beyond welcoming students, each USF campus has its own, unique convocation events and traditions.
WHEN AND WHERE
St. Petersburg campus:
Friday, Aug. 25 | 3 p.m. | Convenes at Snell House
- Keynote speaker: Peter Kageyama, urbanist and author
Tampa campus:
Friday, Sept. 8 | 2 p.m. | Judy Genshaft Honors College Atrium
- Keynote speaker: Sylvia Thomas, vice president for Research & Innovation and president & CEO of the USF Research Foundation, Inc.
Sarasota-Manatee campus:
Tuesday, Sept. 19 | 2 p.m. | Selby Auditorium
BE A PART OF CONVOCATION
TAMPA CAMPUS
Marking an inspiring commencement to the Honors journey, the Tampa convocation ceremony serves as a welcoming introduction for first-year students to our vibrant USF community. Honors students will convene at the Judy Genshaft Honors College building to engage in a ceremony led by the Honors dean and distinguished university leaders. During the ceremony, they will discover many of the unique opportunities that await them as students, including engaging in events like the annual Grand Challenge Competition.
ST. PETERSBURG CAMPUS
University of South Florida St. Petersburg’s Honors College Convocation tradition is to make beautiful music together! Honors students and faculty use a mix of fun, found instruments like tambourines, maracas, and kazoos to announce their presence on campus, as they march from the historic Snell House courtyard to the University Student Center for an interactive convocation gathering that fosters a sense of community among the incoming class.
SARASOTA-MANATEE CAMPUS
In keeping with the intimate feel of University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee’s campus, parents and current students join their Convocation ceremony. Then, as the ceremony closes, each new student receives a small white stone as a symbol of the foundation of their college education. At Honors Graduation a few years later, students write their names on the stone and return them to a vase, as a visual representation of the legacy they leave behind at USF Sarasota-Manatee campus.
Learn more about the freshman experience at the Judy Genshaft Honors College: