Commencement Cords and Stoles

The behavioral neuroscience major emphasizes an understanding of nervous system structure and function from the molecular/cellular level to the whole organism systems level. These “myelinated neuron” cords symbolize the transmission of knowledge, fundamental principles, and abilities our graduates possess to recognize the applicability of an education in neuroscience to real world settings and their lives post-graduation.

For questions or to pick up your cord(s), contact Amara Simons at amara.simons@wwu.edu or 360-650-2148.

Celebrating our graduates in Blue Group and at the Blue Resource Center! Welcome to all, including those who identify as undocumented, mixed-student family students, and allies. 

Contact cuaresq@wwu.edu or mss.brc@wwu.edu to inquire about participating in the celebration and/or picking up a BRC cord and butterfly pin!

The Competitive Programming Club (CPC) and the Computer Science Department proudly celebrate the hard work of our members, competitors, and club leaders. Graduates who have earned a blue and black cord have dedicated countless hours to improving their problem-solving skills and growing our tech community. Together, they have represented Western Washington University at the highest levels, including the International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC), consistently bringing home medals. Through both this major event and our local quarterly competitions, we have seen the incredible results of their dedication firsthand.

Congratulations to our graduating members! Thank you for your commitment to CPC and our Computer Science community.

Next Steps for Graduates:

• Pick Up Your Cord: For questions or to collect your cord, please reach out to bedlana@wwu.edu or grangej4@wwu.edu.
• Stay Connected: Join the WWU CPC Discord to stay in touch as an alum!

Disability affinity cords from the Disability Access Center and Disability Outreach Center are available to graduating students. Cords can be picked up at the Disability Outreach Center (Wilson Library 165) Mondays - Fridays 8:00 AM - 5:00 PM. Register for the DisCo (Disability Community) Graduation and Awards Ceremony here. 

For questions or more information, email disability.outreach@wwu.edu.

The Financial Aid Department congratulates and celebrates our graduating student employees who have worked in the Financial Aid main office, Scholarship Center, or the Work Study Center. Our student employees have worked incredibly hard to learn ever changing Federal, State, and institutional regulations regarding financial aid and are often our first point of contact when fielding student and parent questions. They are an invaluable asset to our office, and we very much appreciate their hard work and dedication. 

For questions or more information, please contact financialaid@wwu.edu. 

Students participating in WWU’s International and Study Abroad program can wear stoles displaying the flags/color of their country of origin or the location of their study abroad courses. In an increasingly inter-connected world, WWU’s Office of Global Engagement aims to engage Western’s communities in thinking and acting globally. 

For more information on how to order your stole(s), visit Education Abroad.

Gold honor cords designate students graduating with magna cum laude or cum laude. Magna shall be awarded to students whose honor gpa places them at the 97th percentile or higher among graduating seniors. Cum laude shall be awarded to students whose honor gpa places them at the 92nd-96th percentile among graduating seniors. White cords are dedicated to students completing all of the requirements of the University Honors Program.

For questions or to pick up your cord(s), contact Degree Evaluation at DegreeEval@wwu.edu (gold) or WWU Honors College at honors@wwu.edu (white).

Learning Environment Action Discovery (LEAD) is a student-run restoration program in the College of the Environment. Since our founding in 1993, LEAD has continued to improve habitat in and around the WWU campus to provide ecological, social, and educational benefits to our community. To honor our hundreds of annual volunteers, we would like to provide our graduating seniors with a cord representing their service. 

Whether you've volunteered a few times or across multiple years, please email us at LEAD@wwu.edu if you are interested in receiving a cord from us.

The Morse Leadership Institute gives all its Leadership Studies minors a medallion to wear at graduation.

For questions or to pick up your medallion, contact Dr. Karen Stout a Karen.Stout@wwu.edu  or 360-650-2563.

The Powerlifting Club cords are for members who have served on the board of our club, competed at the national level in any powerlifting federation, or established state or national records in any powerlifting federation. The bright red grad cords represent the 25kg plate commonly used in competition. 

For questions or to pick up your cord(s), contact Morgan DeCaprio at decapra@wwu.edu. 

Society of Photographic Education is an organization dedicated to making the professional art world accessible to students in the form of hands-on workshops, visiting artist presentations, and opportunity to show art in professional galleries in and around the community. Any graduating senior considered an active member at the time of graduation is eligible to receive a chord.

For questions and more information please contact the SPE board at spewwu@gmail.com.

Students who have worked in a Student Engagement program office at any time during their WWU career are awarded a blue and silver cord, honoring their hard work and dedication in delivering inclusive and innovative programs for all students that enhance growth, belonging, joy, and student success. 

For questions or to pick up your cord(s), contact Jenn Cook at jennifer.cook@wwu.edu or 360-650-2390.

For the Wade King Student Recreation Center student staff, we would like to honor their hard work. They have become the backbone to this facility. Their energy, communication, and thinking skills play into their academic achievements. We would like to thank our student staff with these cords for all the work they have done and all the skills they will take with them into their future careers. 

For questions or to pick up your cord(s), contact Dane Siegfried at siegfrd@wwu.edu.