More than 11,000 students are expected to graduate from the University of Florida during its 2026 spring commencement ceremonies scheduled for Wednesday, April 29, through Monday, May 4. 

UF’s university-wide commencement ceremony will take place at 7 p.m. on Friday, May 1, at Steve Spurrier-Florida Field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (157 Gale Lemerand Dr. in Gainesville). 

Chris Malachowsky, a UF alumnus and the namesake for Malachowsky Hall, will address graduates at the university-wide ceremony on Friday night. 

Malachowsky cofounded NVIDIA, a technology company that started in 1993, “that helped pioneer accelerated computing and modern artificial intelligence,” according to an April 6 UF press release. 

In 2020, Malachowsky donated UF’s first AI supercomputer, setting the university on a path to become the U.S.’s leading institution in implementing AI across its curriculum.  

Dr. Skip G.N. Garcia, a renowned pulmonary physician-scientist and pioneer of advanced therapies for lung disease, will speak to graduates at the Doctoral Commencement Ceremony at 9 a.m. on Thursday, April 30, in the Stephen C. O’Connell Center (250 Gale Lemerand Dr. in Gainesville).  

According to the UF release, Garcia has held academic leadership roles at the University of Chicago, Johns Hopkins University and other institutions. He currently serves as the Wertheim professor of Molecular Medicine and the associate vice president of Research at UF. Garcia is also the founding director of the Center for Inflammation Sciences and Systems Medicine at UF Wertheim Scripps Research Institute in Jupiter.  

“Chris Malachowsky and Dr. Skip Garcia are trailblazers whose remarkable accomplishments have improved countless lives and changed the world for the better,” UF interim President Donald Landry said in the release. “I’m thrilled that the members of the Class of 2026 will get to hear the stories and benefit from the insights of Mr. Malachowsky and Dr. Garcia as they celebrate their UF graduations.” 

According to a Monday UF press release, the spring 2026 graduates will represent 49 states and 105 countries.  

The youngest graduate is 18 years old and will earn a Bachelor of Science in psychology. UF’s oldest graduate is 75 and will receive a Master of Science in medical sciences.  

The spring 2026 class also includes the first three graduates from UF’s Hamilton School for Classical and Civic Education. Established in 2023, “the Hamilton School advances research and teaching focused on the foundations of democratic citizenship and the great works of Western and American thought,” according to the Monday release.  

In the event of rain at the university-wide commencement ceremony, graduates will be provided with a clear poncho to wear over their robes. UF will communicate with the graduates and the public if lightning or severe weather causes the university-wide ceremony to be postponed or cancelled.  

For more information on the spring commencement ceremonies, including schedules and livestream details, visit the UF commencement website.