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Special Needs or Accommodations

Special Needs or Accommodations

Accommodations are made for both graduates and guests with special needs. Please contact the Commencement Committee to discuss needs beyond those identified here.


  • Graduates needing accommodations for the processional, floor seating, or recessional must contact the Commencement Committee.
  • Graduates in wheeled chairs should enter the Coliseum from the south entrance in the breezeway to avoid pedestrian traffic on ramps at other entrances. Seating arrangements at the end of a row will be made for graduates in wheeled chairs.
  • Arrangements, such as but not limited to limited walking requirements and preferential seating, will be made for graduates with other physical mobility challenges.
  • Elevators are available on the east and west sides of the Coliseum. Guests needing elevator access should enter the Coliseum using one of those entrances.
  • Upper level seating areas at the Coliseum feature landings where guests in wheeled chairs or guests unable to use stairs to access seating areas may sit during the ceremony. Space on these landings is limited, so guests wishing to sit on landings are encouraged to arrive early. Seating in these areas is first-come, first-serve.
  • Accessible, unisex restrooms for guests with special needs are available on both the ground and mezzanine levels of the Coliseum.
  • Information on lodging in the Lake Charles area is available from the Southwest Louisiana Convention and Visitors Bureau. The Comfort Suites hotel on Martin Luther King, Jr., Highway offers a special "Friends and Family" rate for guests staying overnight in Lake Charles for a McNeese State University event. To take advantage of this opportunity, make reservations with the hotel directly by telephone at 337.436.6400 or online at Comfort Suites' Web site. (Note: If making reservations by telephone, mention the event to receive the discount. If making reservations online, use the link in the preceding sentence; the reservation page it accesses is configured to show availability with the "Friends and Family" rate.)