It takes many people to make a major event like UNM’s commencement ceremony run smoothly. Among those people are 15 commencement marshals who work with University Secretary and Chief Marshal Vivian Valencia to keep the spotlight on the graduates while the complex machinery of the ceremony runs invisibly in the background.
Photo: Randy Boeglin, dean of Students
Dean of Students Randy Boeglin has served as a commencement marshal for 12 years, almost as long as he’s been dean. He has been at UNM for 35 years.
Boeglin is one of the marshals that have the mammoth task of coordinating the student processional. He said the marshals play a multiplicity of roles to make a seamless event for graduates and their families and friends.
“It’s a moment of tremendous celebration for students and families,” he said. “Marshals need to exude that sense of celebration.”
The experience can also help marshals renew their sense of purpose at the university. “It reminds me that students are the essence of what we do,” Boeglin said, adding that one can lose sight of that in the grind of daily tasks. “The university is an opportunity factory. We’re here to unleash students’ potential.”