The university is conferring a total of more than 3,300 degrees and certificates and more than 1,900 students are expected to attend the traditional two commencement ceremonies at the KFC Yum! Center. Interim UofL President Lori Gonzalez will lead both ceremonies, which mark the return of spring commencement exercises to the downtown arena since they were canceled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Last spring, exercises were held outdoors in historic ceremonies at Cardinal Stadium.

Slaw, of Atlanta, served one combat tour in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army and was introduced to UofL when he served at Fort Knox. 

“I knew the school to have an excellent reputation for working with veteran students,” said Slaw, now a captain in the Army Reserve.

He said he will tell his fellow graduates to “remember the little kid inside of you who once dreamed of this day … this is only the beginning!”

In nominating Slaw to be speaker, Crystal Rae Coel, the law school’s assistant dean for student affairs and diversity, called him “one in a million.”

“He is a selfless, never tired, power-through leader with a wealth of knowledge and service,” Coel said. 

Reflecting on his law school experiences, Slaw added he “never expected Covid-19 to be added to the list of struggles one must endure during law school.”

However, he added, “our burdens fail in comparison to those who have lost loved ones during this pandemic.”

Slaw was featured in a recent UofL Magazine story about the longtime partnership between the law school and Louisville’s Central High School. He hopes to be a congressman someday as well as run an equal housing nonprofit. 

Slaw said he valued his experiences as part of the Student Bar Association and the Student Government Association while at UofL.

“They allowed me to learn the inner workings of both student government and collegial administration while serving others,” he said. “This service to others is where the value in the experience can be found.”

The May 14 ceremonies at the KFC Yum! Center will be as follows:

• 10 a.m.: College of Arts & Sciences, Brandeis School of Law, Kent School of Social Work & Family Science, Graduate School, School of Dentistry, School of Medicine, School of Nursing and School of Public Health & Information Sciences.
• 3 p.m.: College of Business, J.B. Speed School of Engineering, College of ����ֱ�� & Human Development, School of Music.

For more, visit .

After graduating, Midle will return to her alma mater, South Oldham High School in Crestwood, Kentucky, to teach mathematics.

“I hope to stay there and help the students grow and give back to a community that gave me everything,” she said. 

The university is conferring a total of more than 3,300 degrees and certificates and more than 1,900 students are expected to attend the traditional two commencement ceremonies at the KFC Yum! Center. Interim UofL President Lori Gonzalez will lead both ceremonies, which mark the return of spring commencement exercises to the downtown arena since they were canceled in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Last spring, exercises were held outdoors in historic ceremonies at Cardinal Stadium.

Midle said she plans to give her fellow UofL graduates a message of “new beginnings.” 

“I hope to provide my fellow graduates with a sense of hope and accomplishment as we enter this new chapter in our lives,” she said.

In their nomination letter, College of ����ֱ�� & Human Development associate professors Sue Peters and Shelley Thomas praised Midle for overcoming the challenges of becoming a teacher during a pandemic that upended school schedules and locations and left few true classroom experiences to learn from.

“Piper, however, learned how to adapt to the challenge, going above and beyond to refine her teaching skills. This is representative of the commitment to academic excellence and student engagement that she shows on a consistent basis,” they said.

Midle said UofL was a perfect fit for her as someone who grew up right outside of Louisville in Pewee Valley. A lifelong Cardinal fan with an older brother who graduated from UofL last year, she wanted to support the teams she had always loved as part of the Marching Band and the Pep Band. She played both flute and saxophone in the Cardinal Marching Band beginning in her freshman year.

“Some of my favorite experiences have been through band and the College of ����ֱ�� & Human Development,” Midle said. 

She loved traveling to away games to other cities with the band, she said, and she was disappointed they missed out on so many travel opportunities in 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic. But some of her most treasured band memories were a result of that difficult time. 

“While I did miss out on these opportunities, I was given different opportunities to work closer with my CEHD peers as well as provide nursing homes and hospitals with free performances to try to raise spirits and show our support of those on the frontlines during this time,” she said.

The May 14 ceremonies at the KFC Yum! Center will be as follows:

• 10 a.m.: College of Arts & Sciences, Brandeis School of Law, Kent School of Social Work & Family Science, Graduate School, School of Dentistry, School of Medicine, School of Nursing and School of Public Health & Information Sciences.

3 p.m.: College of Business, J.B. Speed School of Engineering, College of ����ֱ�� & Human Development, School of Music.

For more, visit .