TCC's spring 2024 commencement marks 'historic moment' before official TSC name change

Tarah Jean, Tallahassee Democrat
TCC Commencement Ceremony Fall 2023.
TCC Commencement Ceremony Fall 2023.

As Tallahassee Community College prepares for an evening of pomp and circumstance, this spring’s commencement marks its final graduation ceremony before officially becoming Tallahassee State College in July.

The commencement celebration will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday at Florida State University’s Tucker Civic Center, where 1,375 graduating students will receive their degrees.

“We are so proud of our graduates,” TCC President Jim Murdaugh said in a prepared statement. “It has been an honor to be part of their educational journey. This graduating class marks a historical moment as the last graduating class of Tallahassee Community College.”

During a Board of Trustees meeting on campus, TCC President Jim Murdaugh signs a resolution on April 15, 2024 in recognition of the rebranding of the college as it will be named Tallahassee State College beginning July 1, 2024.
During a Board of Trustees meeting on campus, TCC President Jim Murdaugh signs a resolution on April 15, 2024 in recognition of the rebranding of the college as it will be named Tallahassee State College beginning July 1, 2024.

The graduation ceremony comes just a few weeks after Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the state legislation that will allow TCC to be renamed Tallahassee State College in the college’s efforts of having the new name match its increased national recognition.

TCC alumna Dana Brooks, a shareholder with Fasig Brooks Law Offices, will deliver the keynote address as the commencement speaker.

Dana Brooks
Dana Brooks

As an attorney, an advocate for women and a small business mentor, Brooks was named one of Tallahassee’s 25 Women You Need to Know in 2021.

Brooks has also been recognized in the past as a “Persister: A Woman Who Fights all Forms of Discrimination” by TCC for Women’s History Month, and she is an active supporter of Springtime Tallahassee, 2-1-1 Big Bend, Wakulla County Senior Center and the Tallahassee Memorial Foundation.

In addition to Brooks speaking to the graduating class Thursday evening, TCC Student Government Association President Jullion Griffin — a Jacksonville native — will give student remarks.

TCC's 2023-2024 Student Government Association President Jullion Griffin, a Jacksonville native.
TCC's 2023-2024 Student Government Association President Jullion Griffin, a Jacksonville native.

Griffin will be graduating with his peers in the spring class of 2024 and plans to transfer to Florida A&M University to major in broadcast journalism and public relations.

While TCC’s commencement ceremony will not be livestreamed, it is open to the public and tickets are not required to attend.

Contact Tarah Jean at tjean@tallahassee.com or follow her on X: @tarahjean_.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: TCC holds graduation ceremony for last time before TSC name change

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