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EVENT DETAILS:

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Law commencement ceremony:
9:30 – 11 a.m.
Kingsbury Hall
1395 East Presidents Circle
Salt Lake City, UT 84112
See parking information for the ceremony here.

Reception for law graduates and guests:
11 a.m. – 1 p.m.
S.J. Quinney College of Law
383 S. University Street
After the ceremony campus shuttles will take you from Kingsbury Hall to the College of Law.

 

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

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Kem is renown as much for establishing one of the most successful commercial real estate and renewable energy companies in the Mountain West as he is for his leadership and investment in building Salt Lake City into a premier city for business, the arts, health care, education, rodeo, and public policy. The Gardner family arrived in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847. Kem has built relationships, established partnerships and given back to the community he loves.

Since 1973 he has been a fixture in the development community, serving as president of The Boyer Company for 30 years. In 2004 he established Gardner Company and served as its chairman until turning over the daily management to his son, Christian in 2011. He is remaining active in the company serving as Chair Emeritus. During his 50 years in the real estate business, he has been involved in the development of some 3000 residential lots and more than 35 million square feet of corporate office and medical buildings, retail shopping centers, life-style centers, hotels, and industrial/manufacturing facilities in Utah, Idaho and Nevada.

Kem’s contributions to the community are numerous. Some of the highlights include helping to establish the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute at the University of Utah, chairing the Utah Symphony/Utah Opera board of trustees to establish a world-class symphony and a superior regional opera company, and successfully fundraising for the Intermountain Medical Center and establishing the Kem C. Gardner Transformation Center, Supply Chains, and Women and Newborn facilities. Kem was the finance chairman of the Salt Lake Olympic Bid Committee and finance chairman of the Olympic Games. He was instrumental in bringing in Mitt Romney to run the Olympic Games.

He has served as chairman of the Days of ’47 Rodeo for 11 years, building a new arena at the State Fairgrounds and elevating it to a top five professional rodeo in the nation. He has served as chair of the United Way and was the original chairman of the Salt Lake Airport Authority transforming the Salt Lake International Airport into the Delta transportation hub with the capacity to handle 26 million annual passengers. His legacy reaches into almost every segment of the community, and he continues to contribute his time and resources to lift it even higher. Kem’s focus in charitable giving has been for the arts, health care, including mental health, and education with six buildings carrying his name.

He and his wife Carolyn are the parents of seven children and 30 grandchildren.

 

MORE DETAILS:

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GUEST SEATING & TICKETS

To enter Kingsbury Hall, ALL GUESTS MUST HAVE A TICKET, INCLUDING CHILDREN. Tickets have been distributed to graduating students but extra tickets are available at the information desks inside the College of Law.

• • All guests must be ticketed – this includes children and babes in arms (venue rules, not ours). Graduating students do NOT need a ticket to attend.
  • Don’t misplace these tickets; they cannot be reprinted.

Anyone requiring an interpreter (ASL or foreign language) or reserved ADA seating, please contact Kris Monty by Friday, April 24, 2026 for proper accommodations.

PROHIBITED ITEMS AT CONVOCATION CEREMONY
Please be aware that some items will be prohibited during the convocation ceremony. You can see prohibited items here.

PARKING & SHUTTLE SERVICE

Parking
Parking will be available at the following lots:

Families/guests are encouraged to drop graduates off at Kingsbury Hall by 8:45 a.m. to prevent late arrivals for the processional line-up.

Accessible Parking
For a map of all accessible parking options on campus, visit the campus map and select the “Accessible” option from the map Features drop-down menu. Accessible parking near Kingsbury Hall is first come, first-served.

Shuttle Services
Shuttle Services will be available around the College of Law building and golf carts will be available at the Chemistry Parking Lot to shuttle people who need transportation to Kingsbury Hall. Shuttle Services and Golf Carts will be in operation beginning at 8:30 a.m. The return shuttle will be from Kingsbury Hall to the S.J. Quinney College of Law east entrance for the reception. Shuttle service will end at 1 p.m.

LIVE STREAMING
The commencement ceremony will be streamed live on the S.J. Quinney College of Law YouTube channel.

CONVOCATION PROGRAMS
Virtual programs will be available for guests. A link to the program will be available on this webpage and at the ceremony. Graduates will be provided a commemorative printed program at the Convocation Ceremony.

 

 

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