Campus News

Rockford University will hold its 164^th commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 12, 2 p.m. at the Coronado Performing Arts Center, 314 N. Main St. in downtown Rockford. The University will award undergraduate and graduate degrees to 351 students from 16 states and 17 countries.

Bern Sundstedt, alumnus from the class of 1977 and Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Rockford University will address the 2018 class of graduates. Through his more than four decade relationship with the University, Sundstedt has been an integral connector to individuals who represent 11 decades of University life.

Sundstedt holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in acting from Rockford University and went on to attend Yale University’s Drama School, from which he graduated in 1981 with a Master of Fine Arts degree. Upon graduation he set off on a national tour of Othello which culminated in a four month run on Broadway. The years following, led to stints off-off-Broadway and in regional theatre and television.

Returning to Rockford in the early 90s, Sundstedt joined his alma mater in 1994 as Director of Grants, while also periodically teaching the advanced acting sequence as an adjunct instructor. Having taken on positions of increasing responsibility in Alumni and Development, he has served as Vice President for Institutional Advancement for the past eight years and will be resigning his position at the end of this academic year.  

Tickets are required to attend the ceremony, and are limited to degree candidates and their guests. They will not be available at the door of the Coronado.

Rockford University is a four-year, co-educational institution founded in 1847 offering undergraduate and graduate degrees in traditional liberal arts and professional fields. The University offers approximately 80 majors, minors and concentrations, including the adult accelerated degree completion program for a B.S. in Management Studies. Through its Graduate Studies department, degrees are extended to include the Master of Business Administration (MBA), Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT), and a Master of Education in Urban Education (ME.d). Rockford University is home to one of only 11 Phi Beta Kappa (PBK) chapters in Illinois, the most prestigious honor society in the United States. Rockford University is also named by The Princeton Review as a Best Midwestern College. Rockford University currently serves approximately 1,300 full-and part-time students.