TCC Holds First In-Person Commencement Ceremony In Two Years

Tulsa Community College returns to in-person commencement after two years.

Friday night, hundreds of students walked across the stage inside the Expo Square Pavilion. TCC has more than 850 graduates this semester, and walking across the stage is optional. To allow everyone to spread out, there were ceremonies at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m., based on the graduate's Academic School.

This is the first in-person and indoor commencement for TCC since December 2019. Last year, the college also had a drive-through commencement because of the pandemic.

The commencement meant a lot to many students, especially 21-year-old Ninemi Ortiz. In her senior year of high school, she was diagnosed with a form of tissue cancer in her left knee and went through radiation treatment.

The cancer came back a year ago while Ortiz was attending TCC, and she had surgery to remove it.

“It's just exciting to get to walk today because I didn't really get to walk my senior year,” said Ortiz. “I was kind of in a wheelchair limping, so this is really exciting for me."

TCC told News On 6 it is focused on growing the number of people who earn a degree through its programs.