Undergraduate Commencement
The 2026 Whitworth University Commencement Weekend (May 16-17) will be held on Whitworth's campus.
Sunday, May 17, 10 a.m.
Whitworth Pine Bowl
300 W. Hawthorne Road
Spokane, WA 99251
Whitworth's undergraduate commencement ceremony is a ticketed event. Only ticketed guests will be allowed to attend the commencement ceremony.
Each participating graduate will automatically receive six guest tickets for the ceremony. Tickets are mobile and will be distributed digitally to graduates via their Whitworth email the week before commencement. Students needing additional guest tickets should check with fellow graduates to see if they have tickets they are not planning to use.
Each ticket can only be used once and will automatically become void after being scanned. No re-entry to the ceremony is allowed. Children under three years old will not need a ticket as long as they remain on an adult’s lap for the duration of the ceremony.
The gates to the bleacher and field seating will open at 9 a.m. Guests should not congregate before the gates open as this may block vital entryways for setup or the Loop Road.
Guests will be seated on the field of the Pine Bowl, as well as in the stadium stands. There will be ample accessible seating for any guests with disabilities on the field; no special tickets or reservations will be needed. We ask that guests who can safely navigate stairs enter through the east gates and choose bleacher seating, allowing guests in need of seating without stairs to use the north gate and field seating.
Parking on campus is limited and will be restricted on Sunday, May 17. All vehicles parking on campus will be required to show the commencement weekend parking passes. Accessible parking will be available for guests with disabilities and a parking pass along Graves Gym and the WALT. An updated map will be available in 2026 – in the meantime, please see the 2025 Commencement Weekend Parking Map for general parking information.
Each participating graduate will receive two commencement parking passes that will allow for parking on campus on Sunday. Parking passes will be distributed to day students at the Senior Celebration in early May.
The commencement ceremony is held outside, rain or shine. We strongly encourage all guests and participants to check the weather forecast and come appropriately attired (weather-friendly clothing, hats, sunscreen, water, etc.). Water is allowed into the ceremony, and all are encouraged to bring water with them.
Prior Moments Photography is the official Whitworth commencement ceremony photographer. They will take photos as graduates walk across the stage, as well as during the ceremony in general. Photos will be available for purchase in June 2026 on their website.
The ceremony will be livestreamed for those unable to attend on the Whitworth University YouTube channel.
Official events will take place Saturday, May 16-Sunday, May 17. The schedule of official 2026 Commencement Weekend will be available soon – the schedule of events from the 2025 ceremony can be found here as a reference. Individual departments may also be hosting events for graduates and their families. Please have your graduate contact them directly for more information.
To ensure a safe and pleasant ceremony for you and your guests, the following will not be permitted at the commencement ceremony:
As May is a busy month for the city of Spokane, we highly recommend that guests who will be traveling to commencement book accommodations soon. A list of nearby hotels is available here.
Whitworth will follow all public health guidelines in place at the time of Commencement Weekend.
If you have additional questions, please check out the Commencement FAQs page.