Critics at the school question whether Cheney sets a good example for graduates, citing his promotion of faulty intelligence before the Iraq war and his role in the CIA leak scandal.

The university, which is owned by the Mormon church, has "a heavy emphasis on personal honesty and integrity in all we do," said Professor Warner Woodworth.

"Cheney just doesn't measure up," he said.

The students are so upset, they have raised enough money to put on their own commencement off the school property:

PROVO — The group of students planning an alternative to Brigham Young University's commencement next week have found a home — at Utah Valley State College in Orem.
      Vice President Dick Cheney will speak Thursday at BYU's commencement in the Marriott Center at 4 p.m. and former Green Party presidential candidate Ralph Nader will speak at UVSC's McKay Events Center at 7:30 p.m. Cheney's invitation to speak sparked protests in several quarters.
      The alternative commencement group plans to attend Cheney's speech, then travel down University Parkway to hear from Nader, former U.S. Senate candidate Pete Ashdown and former Amnesty International director Jack Healey, said BYU student and event organizer Eric Bybee.
      The students have raised $9,000 to pay for speaking fees, transportation and rental of the McKay Events Center. They said Friday in a press release that they need to raise another $11,000.
      Nader lowered his speaking fee to $12,000 from $15,000. He had refused to speak at an outdoor venue, and the alternative commencement group was frustrated in its attempts to find a building in Provo to handle what it hopes will be 2,500 to 5,000 visitors, including busloads of Salt Lakers protesting Cheney's presence on the BYU campus.