Fuchs, Clinton to give spring convocation exercises

The University of Chicago is pleased to announce that its spring convocation speaker, who is by tradition a member of the University faculty, will be joined by the president of the United States at the College commencement ceremony.

Professor Elaine Fuchs, a highly respected scientist and the Amgen Professor in Molecular Genetics & Cell Biology and Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, will give a speech titled “Entering a New Millennium: Lessons of the Past for Science and Education.”

President William Jefferson Clinton “will speak to the American people about the changing economy and the challenges we face in the post-cold-war era,” according to the White House.

Professor Fuchs will speak at three of the four University’s commencement exercises on Friday, June 11, and Saturday, June 12. Clinton will speak only at the commencement for the undergraduate College on Saturday. In addition, James E. Schrager, Clinical Professor of Entrepreneurship and Strategy in the Graduate School of Business, will deliver the convocation address to the Graduate School of Business on Sunday, June 13.

The University is honored to welcome the President and is very pleased that he will be speaking to its students.

The ceremonies are scheduled to take place outdoors in Harper Quadrangle, which is named for the University’s first president.

The University of Chicago holds commencement ceremonies four times a year, one session at the conclusion of the summer, fall and winter quarters, and four sessions in the spring. The guest speaker is always a member of the University faculty.

According to tradition, the president of the University personally presents each degree candidate with his or her diploma. The ceremony is directed by the University Marshals, a group of faculty members and students appointed by the president for their excellent scholarship and leadership in the University community.

The University awards honorary degrees at its commencement exercises, but without exception awards them only for scholarship of the highest order.

Few non-University faculty members have addressed the University’s commencement audiences in recent years. Exceptions include alumna Katharine Graham, chairman of the Washington Post Company, who joined faculty member Cass Sunstein in 1996, and alumnus Ramsey Clark, who joined Dean of the College Roger Henry Hildebrand in 1970.