Television personality Oprah Winfrey likely is the most recognizable commencement speaker scheduled for a Georgia college, but plenty of other well-known people are set to deliver addresses.
Winfrey will speak at Agnes Scott’s commencement. Winfrey is an actress, former talk-show host and businesswoman. Speakers for other Georgia colleges and universities range from presidents to media personalities. Graduation ceremonies will run pretty much throughout May, with some schools holding ceremonies over multiple days.
Georgia State University, which has not announced a speaker, will hold ceremonies over a week because the school could not find a suitable location for a single ceremony. Its traditional site, the Georgia Dome, is in the early stages of demolition. The former Turner Field is under renovation for use as the school’s football field. Philips Arena is unavailable because of the NBA playoffs.
That left the school forced to schedule a series of ceremonies at Georgia Tech’s McCamish Pavilion. Ceremonies are scheduled by degree, and in some cases, by alphabetical order.
Georgia Tech also will use the pavilion for its own ceremonies. Juan Carlos Verala, the president of Panama, will deliver the undergraduate address. Steve Wrigley, the chancellor of the University System of Georgia, will deliver the graduate address.
Sportscaster Ernie Johnson will deliver the University of Georgia’s undergraduate address, and Marshal Shepherd, a professor and a meteorologist at the Weather Channel, will deliver the school’s graduate address.
Natasha Trethewey, a former U.S. Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize winner, will deliver Emory’s address.
Earl Lewis of the Mellon Foundation will speak at Clark Atlanta.
A number of colleges have not announced a commencement speaker.
Graduation schedule
* University of Georgia, May 5, Undergraduate: Ernie Johnson, Graduate: Marshall Shepherd.
* Georgia Tech, May 5, Undergraduate: Panama President Juan Carlos Verala, Graduate: Steve Wrigley.
* Georgia State, May 8-12. No speaker announced.
* Emory, May 8, Natasha Trethewey.
* Kennesaw State, May 9-10. No speaker announced.
* Agnes Scott, May 13, Oprah Winfrey.
* Oglethorpe, May 13. No speaker announced.
* Georgia Gwinnett, May 18. No speaker announced.
* Morehouse, May 21. No speaker announced.
* Clark Atlanta, May 21, Earl Lewis.
