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CLAY AIKEN SET TO FINALLY GET DIPLOMA
« on: November 21, 2003, 07:40:33 PM »
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http://www.msnbc.com/news/996555.aspClay Aiken set to finally get diploma
‘Idol’ runnerup to graduate from UNC Charlotte next month
CHARLOTTE, N.C., Nov. 21 — It’ll be pop and circumstance at UNC Charlotte’s graduation ceremony next month, with Clay Aiken among the graduating class.THE “AMERICAN IDOL” runner-up will pick up his diploma Dec. 20, his publicist said. And for only the second time in the school’s seven-year history, graduation guests must have tickets to attend. Each ticket will be printed with a bar code and scanned at the door to prevent the use of counterfeits.
The university already has heard from television entertainment shows interested in attending, UNCC spokesman Tony Hoppa said. School officials will meet next week to determine how to accommodate the media.
Hoppa also said Aiken has asked not to perform at the ceremony and declined a seat on the stage, saying he wants to sit with his fellow students.
“He really desires to come back just as Clay Aiken,” Hoppa said Thursday. “He doesn’t want to inconvenience the rest of his classmates. He doesn’t want to inconvenience the rest of the college.”
Aiken will, however, be able to invite more guests — including family, friends and business associates — than most students, Hoppa said, and they’ll attend as guests of the chancellor. Other high-profile students, such as the senior class president and student speaker, can do the same.
“That’s not a unique thing because of Clay,” Hoppa said.
Aiken, 24, is finishing an independent study course at UNCC now, his last requirement toward a bachelor’s degree in special education.
The last time UNCC issued graduation tickets was in 1997, Hoppa said, when crowds were large and before the school began scheduling two ceremonies.