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Bowie State student says family denied entry to graduation
A Bowie State University student says she was forced to walk across the stage without her family watching despite the fact that they had tickets to the winter commencement ceremony.
BOWIE, Md. - A Bowie State University student says she was forced to walk across the stage without her family watching despite the fact that they had tickets to the winter commencement ceremony.
Aja Williams graduated Friday and says many families were refused entry to the room where the ceremony took place after university officials said the room was at capacity.
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But people with tickets were supposed to be let in, according to a university spokeswoman.
The school typically has overflow rooms for additional guests without tickets.
Bowie State University sent the following statement to FOX 5:
"As is customary for our commencement ceremonies, we welcomed a large number of enthusiastic family members to celebrate our graduates on Friday. While tickets were required for admittance into the main venue, we have learned that some person without tickets were trying to gain entry. We are reviewing our processes to make any needed adjustments to prevent this from occurring in the future. We very much regret that anyone experienced distress on this very important day for their family. We made every effort to accommodate ticketed family members while also providing video viewing in other locations on campus for those without tickets."
Williams says she hopes the university will choose a bigger venue for future ceremonies.
"We spend thousands of dollars here, hundreds of hours studying and I just want them to realize that they need to be worried about accommodating the students first," said Williams.