For the third year in a row, Santa Monica College’s graduation will go global.

SMC’s Commencement Exercises will be held at 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 12, on Corsair Field, and will be webcast live on the SMC Alumni webpage.

Families and friends around the world will be able to watch the ceremony and see the graduates receive their diplomas.

About 550 graduates are expected to take part in the ceremonies. California State University, Los Angeles President Dr. James M. Rosser will give the commencement address, and the SMC Foundation’s Distinguished Alumni Award will be presented to Gilda Clift Breland, an attorney who has won numerous awards for her community service and professional accomplishments.

Graduates can watch videos and read and post comments, and they and friends of SMC are encouraged to “like” the Alumni Association’s Facebook fan page and upload their graduation
photos. They can also tag their pictures to Flickr or Twitter with #smcgrad12 that will be published on the Association’s website.

After the ceremonies, the Alumni Association will give a reception on the Quad, with free hors d’oeuvres, beverages. Two photo booths will take pictures and upload them on the Alumni website. A compilation video will be available on the website about a week after graduation.

“The SMC community has welcomed students from down the street, across the country and all over the world,” according to Dr. Barbara K. Ige, assistant director of campus and alumni relations, “and we will always be here to welcome them home.”