Commencement near Memorial Day is good news for local business

Visitors don't come to the Lower Shore in warm-weather months and bypass Ocean City.

So it was only natural that Pennsylvania resident Brian Dawson would spend his day off from a nearby work assignment in Ocean City.

Dawson was on assignment in Salisbury for Penntext.com, a book collection site that lets university students sell textbooks at the close of the semester for cash. Dawson wanted to see the ocean, and crack open a few hardshell crabs.

"When in Maryland, you need to get crabs," said Dawson. "I took a trip down to Ocean City when I was a child, my mom says. I don't remember it, so I'm going tomorrow on my only day off."

Area merchants hope other visitors to the region for university commencements this week stick around through the Memorial Day weekend. Spring commencements this year are among those closest to the holiday, falling right into weekend of celebration. 

The businesses anticipate that family members of graduates will hang onto their hotel rooms, launch day trips to the resort and shop and eat locally.

"Everybody should benefit," said Bradley Keech, owner at DePietro's NY Pizzeria on Milford Street in Salisbury.

Late graduation

The current academic year is the first time in more than a decade that Salisbury University commencement exercises fall on the same day and date, said Richard Culver, university spokesman.

"The calendar is cyclical and repeats itself," said Culver, adding that it was 11 years ago, in 2006, that spring commencement was the same day and date.

"In 2006, SU's spring semester started on Monday, Jan. 30; the last day of exams was Wednesday, May 24," he said. "The commencement ceremony was Thursday, May 25."

Academic calendars at area universities are aligned with the University System of Maryland's Common Calendar, and spring commencement dates fall into the equation, according to the schools.

USM campuses complete final examination periods before Dec. 23 in the fall semester and before Memorial Day during the spring session, said Kimberly Whitehead, interim provost and vice president for Academic Affairs.

UMES chose a 2017 semester calendar option that ended springtime exams by May 23. That schedule meant a commencement date of May 26, the next available Friday after final exams, she said.

"UMES typically holds its commencement on Fridays, so May 26 was the next available date," said Whitehead. "USM does not dictate commencement dates; rather, it sets parameters for when the final examination periods must conclude." 

The schedule puts more than 400 candidates for graduation and their family members and supporters in the town of Princess Anne going into the holiday weekend.

The school's 24-room on campus hotel —  which starts at $119 a night during the summertime — is also booked up, said William Robinson, UMES spokesman.

Just north, Salisbury University — which helps contribute more than $400 million into the surrounding community — is expected to continue that help through this weekend.  

The happy benefit for businesses

Keech's pizza shop faces apartment complexes for university students, and this spring semester is the first in memory that the nearly 9,000 student population was still in town entering the holiday weekend.

"This is a college town, and business drops when school closes — we lose thousands of kids and administration," he said. "Usually most of them have cleared out by now."

In 2016, SU and UMES undergraduate commencements were, respectively, May 19 and 20.

This year, as it was in 2006, Memorial Day is observed May 29, four days after SU's undergraduate commencements and three days after graduates march at UMES. Commencement day for SU graduate students is May 24. 

"Of the last 12 spring commencements, half have been scheduled within five days of Memorial Day," Culver said.

May 15 was commencement day for the University of Baltimore School of Law, the earliest among USM schools. Towson and UMES host the system's last spring ceremonies May 26.

Academic calendars are adopted two or three years in advance, according to USM.

In 2018, "our graduations will be Wednesday and Thursday, May 23 and 24," Culver said. That year, Memorial Day is observed May 28, four days after undergraduate ceremonies.

Maryland's most popular beach resort expects a holiday swell in tourists, as both celebrating graduates and early-bird summer vacationers head to Ocean City on Memorial Day weekend.

"Historically, Ocean City hosts many visitors celebrating their recent high school and college graduations," said Jessica Waters, municipal spokeswoman. "It is very likely that college graduates would extend their stay in Ocean City to not only celebrate their commencement, but also the official start of summer."

Some families plan resort vacations to coincide with other events that draw them to the region, she said. For instance, visitors to the early July Chincoteague pony penning and auction of wild ponies on the nearby Eastern Shore of Virginia stop by the resort.

"We do see families who plan their vacations to Ocean City around the time of the pony penning, and make it a day trip to experience the event," Waters said.

Signature events mark "the perfect opportunity for families to visit the beach and enjoy their favorite hobbies and activities," Waters said.