Carolina Nursing 2026 Spring Commencement

Celebrating graduates from August 2025, December 2025, May 2026 and August 2026! 

Reception at 5:00 p.m.
Kenan Center | 360 Kenan Center Dr, Chapel Hill, NC 27599

Ceremony at 7:00 p.m. (Graduates must arrive by 6:15 p.m.)
Dean E. Smith Center

Keynote Speaker

Brandi Newman ’01 (BSN), ’04 (MSN), senior vice president of community and strategic operations and chief of staff for consumer and social impact at Advocate Health, will deliver the keynote address at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Nursing’s Spring Commencement Ceremony on Friday, May 8, 2026, at the Dean E. Smith Center. 

Newman has more than two decades of experience in healthcare leadership, including hospital operations, nursing workforce, service line strategy, human resources and community and social impact. After her first job as a nurse at UNC Health, Newman joined Atrium Health in 2005 and assumed a succession of leadership roles where she was able to drive change and advance the health of her community and the social impact of the health system.  

Reception

Location: Kenan Center – 360 Kenan Center Dr, Chapel Hill, NC 27599
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

The SON commencement reception will be an informal time to gather with classmates, family, friends, faculty, and staff. There will be no formal program or remarks. Light refreshments and beverages will be served. There will be limited seating available.

This will be an open-house style reception with grab-and-go refreshments available. Please note that the refreshments offered are not intended to replace a full meal and that graduates and their families are encouraged to eat dinner beforehand.

Directions to the Kenan Center: After parking in the S11 Skipper Bowles Lot, make your way to the elevator at the bottom of the School of Business Parking Deck. Take the elevator to the 6th floor and walk across the walkway to the Kenan Center entrance. There will be signs and balloons to help direct you. Click here for a detailed map.

Ceremony Navigation and Parking

Due to the number of concurrent events, please allocate additional time for parking. The S11 Skipper Bowles Lot will be open to the public for commencement activities. Enter 100 Skipper Bowles Dr, Chapel Hill, NC 27514 in your GPS to get directions to the Dean E. Smith Center which is located next to the S11 Skipper Bowles Lot. Additional public parking is available in the Manning Lot and Craige Deck. View the map here.

Disability Parking

Disability parking will be available in the Williamson Lot (immediately across from Smith Center), with golf cart transportation to Entrance A. This lot requires a handicap tag or license plate for entry. Additionally, UNC bus transportation has handicap accomodations. View the map here.

Smith Center Entrances

• Students and guests enter via Entrance A 
• PhD, DNP, BSN graduates meet at Entrance C 
• MSN, PGC, ABSN graduates meet at Entrance B 

Clear Bag Policy

The clear bag policy will be enforced for all Commencement ceremonies in all venues. For more information on the clear bag policy and prohibited items, please check the Commencement website.