Convocation

Convocation is the ceremony whereby you are initiated into Columbia. At this point, you have less than four years to go until Commencement!

Bollinger makes a speech. Quigley makes a speech. The dean of SEAS, whoever this is now, makes a speech. Colombo makes a speech. None of them actually says "welcome". There's a procession with lots of flags. Parents succumb to heat stroke.

Convocation is nowhere near as important as graduation. Some people don't even bother going.