College to Grant Degrees and Diplomas to 242 Eligible Students
Lake Charles, Louisiana – Friday, December 6, 2024
SOWELA Technical Community College will host its 60th Commencement ceremony on Friday, December 13. This significant milestone will include 242 eligible students receiving their degrees and diplomas.
The Commencement ceremony begins at 2 p.m. in the Lake Charles Event Center.
Principal and President Tim Barfield with CSRS, a Louisiana-based architectural, engineering, planning and consulting firm, will speak at the Commencement ceremony. Barfield has served as the Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Revenue, Executive Counsel in Governor Bobby Jindal’s Office and Executive Director of the Louisiana Workforce Commission. He has also served as board member of the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) Foundation since 2009, and from 2020 to 2023 served as a member of the Board of Trustees of SACSCOC, the leading accreditor of higher education institutions in the Southeastern United States.
Graduation includes the U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Lake Charles conducting a Presentation of Colors and School of Business and Applied Technology Dean Dr. Marie Coleman singing the National Anthem.
SOWELA’s graduation ceremony is open to the public. For information about Commencement, contact SOWELA at (337) 421-6550 or email graduationinfo@sowela.edu.
The national college review website WalletHub ranked SOWELA Technical Community College as Louisiana’s #1 community college. WalletHub’s rankings are based on “three key dimensions, including 1) Cost & Financing, 2) Education Outcomes and 3) Career Outcomes.” SOWELA ranks in the top 40% of community colleges nationally.
About SOWELA Technical Community College
SOWELA Technical Community College provides traditional, distance, and lifelong learning experiences and awards associate degrees, technical diplomas, and certificates. The College empowers learners in career and technical education and enables transfer students to pursue a four-year degree, so all learners excel as globally competitive citizens. The College has been educating the region’s workforce for 85 years.