MONTGOMERY, Ala. ----- A total of 26 current or former student-athletes earned degrees from Auburn University at Montgomery during the Fall Commencement ceremonies, held Saturday, December 10, in the AUM Gymnasium.
 
In total, 497 AUM students earned diplomas at the ceremony. Included in that total were student-athletes or coaches from nine of AUM's varsity sports.

The commencement's distinguished speaker was Mr. Jeff Bates, a Distinguished Senior Lecturer in the AUM College of Business.

Mr. Bates earned his bachelor's degree from the University of Montevallo in 1987 and his master's degree from Auburn University at Montgomery in 1991. He has been an entrepreneur for most of his life, opening and operating numerous businesses, but his most favored occupation has always been working the classroom and with students.
 
Mr. Bates was promoted to the rank of Senior Lecturer this year and was recognized as the Distinguished Lecturer for AUM for 2015-18. He has served as a guest lecturer at universities in Mexico, Korea and China. He has led study-abroad classes to Mexico and Europe. In addition, he has led student groups on trips to meet the President of the Chicago Federal Reserve, the Vice President of the Atlanta Federal Reserve, and the Director of Systemic Risk at the London School of Economics.
 
Mr. Bates is now in his 17th year teaching at AUM and has served on numerous committees. He helped to establish the guidelines and procedures for AUM's Study Abroad program. He has served as the Economic Analyst for Alabama News Network since 2008 and has been quoted in the Montgomery Advertiser, Huntsville Times and USA Today.

Following the commencement exercise, all graduates and their families were invited to a reception hosted by AUM Acting Provost Dr. Joy Clark in Taylor Center.

A complete list of the graduating student-athletes is listed below.
 

Name	Sport	Degree Earned
Clark Gray	Baseball	Bachelor of Science in Education
Richard Nason	Baseball	Bachelor of Science in Education
Matt Miller	Baseball	Bachelor of Arts in Interdisciplinary Studies
Cody Rush	Baseball	Bachelor of Science in Education
Bryan Young	Baseball	Master of Business Administration
Kevin Franklin	Baseball	Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts
Hagar Caro	Women's Tennis	Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
Zach Sollie	Men's Cross Country	Bachelor of Science in Education
Krishnan Patel	Men's Soccer	Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
Daniel Grobelny	Men's Soccer	Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
Ben Koch	Men' Soccer	Bachelor of Arts in Fine Arts
Kendall McCardell	Women' Soccer	Bachelor of Science in Education
Lila Remache	Women's Soccer	Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
Stephanie Anes	Women's Soccer	Bachelor of Science in Education
Courtney Omodei	Women's Soccer	Bachelor of Science in Education
Chloe Crook	Women's Soccer	Bachelor of Science in Education
Nicole Letford	Women's Soccer	Master of Business Administration
Shanice Burnette	Women's Basketball	Bachelor of Science in Education
Tristen Harrell	Men's Basketball	Bachelor of Science in Justice & Public Safety
Katie Brinkman	Softball	Bachelor of Science in Education
Jennifer Jenkins	Softball	Bachelor of Science in Education
Taylor Powell	Softball	Bachelor of Science in Business Administration
Claire Wilson	Softball	Bachelor of Science in Justice & Public Safety
Ashlee Craig	Softball	Bachelor of Science in Nursing
Othmane Lalami	Men's Tennis	Master of Business Administration
Luis Vivas	Men's Tennis	Bachelor of Science in Education