William Woods University’s graduation ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. in Cutlip Auditorium — inside McNutt Campus Center, or “the dome” — on campus. The traditional Ivy Ceremony will take place prior — at 9:15 a.m. at Senior Lake.
William Woods selected Gina Loudon, class of 1990, to give its commencement address. Loudon is an author, anchor, columnist, talk show host and news commentator.
During her commencement address, Loudon said she plans to discuss the concept of freedom and to encourage students to do something that makes them uncomfortable — which she said is important for college graduates.
“We tend to gravitate to places where we’re comfortable. We tend to pick schools for reasons that are comfortable to us, things that we are familiar with, things that we know well,” Loudon said. “Everything after college becomes a situation which you might not be comfortable with. Students getting their minds ready to be uncomfortable is one of the most important things they can do.”
Loudon graduated from William Woods in 1990 with a degree in psychology and a minor in education. She was president of Psi Chi National Psychology Honor Society. She was also recording secretary of Alpha Chi Omega.
Later, she earned a master’s degree in counseling education from Saint Louis University as well as a master’s degree in human and organizational systems. Later, she pursued her Ph.D. in human development from Fielding Graduate University.
