November 10, 2017 at 3:17 pm

Carpenter Named 2017 Fall Commencement Speaker

Dr. Thomas Carpenter

Ohio University announced that Dr. Thomas Carpenter, Charles J. Ping Professor of Humanities and Distinguished Professor of Classics, will serve as the University’s 2017 Fall Commencement speaker.

Carpenter, who is also the director of the Ping Institute for the Teaching of the Humanities and previously served as chair of the Classics & World Religions Department, noted that he feels truly honored to have been chosen to speak at this year’s ceremony. He has been a faculty member at OHIO for nearly 21 years.

“Dr. Carpenter is a Distinguished Professor of Classics, an exceptional teacher and scholar who is a dedicated member of the Ohio University community,” said President M. Duane Nellis. “In a time of celebration and new beginnings for our graduates, I know Dr. Carpenter will share in their excitement as the Fall Commencement speaker and look forward to hearing his remarks during the ceremony in December.”

Trained as a classical archaeologist, Carpenter holds degrees from Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University and Oxford University and is an expert in ancient Greek religion and iconography. He has published numerous books and articles, one of which, his Art and Myth in Ancient Greece, has been translated into six languages. His recent work has focused on the Italic people of 4th Century BCE Italy, and he recently co-edited the first book in English to focus on these people, The Italic People of Ancient Apulia: New Evidence from Pottery for Workshops, Markets and Customs (Cambridge, 2014).

Ceremony Details

OHIO’s 2017 Fall Commencement ceremony takes place at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 16, in the Convocation Center on Ohio University’s Athens Campus. Students who have met graduation requirements during the 2017 summer or 2017 fall semesters may participate in the ceremony. This includes students earning doctoral, professional doctoral, masters, or undergraduate degrees through any of OHIO’s degree programs on all campuses or through eLearning programs.

The addition of a commencement ceremony at the conclusion of fall semester seeks to better accommodate students’ individuals needs and respective graduation timelines. This ceremony is in addition to Ohio University’s traditional spring ceremony. For more information, visit www.ohio.edu/commencement.