A baccalaureate service (or baccalaureate Mass) is a celebration that honors a graduating class from a

college A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary sc ...

high school A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...

, or

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. The event is typically a

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-based

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(ecumenical) service, though it may also be conducted with a particular tradition's liturgy, especially if the academic institution is affiliated with a certain

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such as the

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, among others. The service is held within a couple weeks of the

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/commencement ceremony, perhaps on a Sunday before, the day preceding, or immediately preceding the graduation. Speakers selected tend to be community leaders, faculty members, students, or local religious leaders, and may be elected by the graduating class. Speeches are often intermixed with musical performances, drama, and worship. A modern-day Baccalaureate address generally lasts less than half an hour. In ancient times they could last as long as four hours. The term ''baccalaureate'' may also be applied to similar, graduation-related events at some American high schools, such as presentations of awards and scholarships.

History

A claim much repeated is that "the baccalaureate service is believed to have originated at the

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in 1432 when each bachelor was required to deliver a

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as part of his academic requirements." However, it was "examinatory sermons" that were required of all Oxford bachelors before their "inception" or commencement; these were mentioned in a 1311 statute. The American baccalaureate service is an outgrowth of the baccalaureate sermon. The earliest known held in the

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is at the College of New Jersey (now

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) in 1760. Because of

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rulings such as Lee v. Weisman (1992) regarding the

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at public school graduation ceremonies, baccalaureate services are usually unofficial, school-sponsored events at American public schools. However, many have student-initiated services at private facilities not paid for with government funds, and as such are fully permitted by law. School-sponsored baccalaureate services for American public schools, on school grounds, occur rarely, though private schools affiliated with a denomination often hold them in the school's

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References

Graduation Academic culture Education in the United States Religion and education Christian events Catholic liturgy {{US-edu-stub