These are 2024′s Mass. college and university commencement speakers

2024 graduations in Greater Boston

Babson College

Undergraduate Commencement

• When: Saturday, May 11 at 9:45 a.m.
• Where: The Babson College campus in Wellesley
• Who is Speaking: Arthur M. Blank, a co-founder of The Home Depot and a university alunmus. Blank also owns and operates a portfolio of businesses including PGA Tour Superstore, the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons, and Major League Soccer’s Atlanta United FC.

Graduate Commencement

• When: Saturday, May 11 at 2:45 p.m.
• Where: The Babson College campus in Wellesley
• Who is Speaking: Eric Johnson and his daughter Erin Tolefree, a first joint commencement speaker address at Babson College. Johnson is the chairman of Baldwin Richardson Foods — an ingredients manufacturer for food and beverage companies and one of the largest Black-owned businesses in the food industry. He is also a Babson University trustee and alumnus. Tolefree is the president and CEO of Baldwin Richardson Foods.

Bentley University

Undergraduate

• When: Saturday, May 18 at 10 a.m.
• Where: Football Field at South Campus in Waltham
• Who is Speaking: New Balance President and CEO Joe Preston. Bentley University said Preston has grown the Boston-based sportswear company into a $6.5 billion brand and has been with New Balance for 29 years.

Graduate

• When: Friday, May 17 at 4 p.m.
• Where: Bentley Arena at South Campus in Waltham
• Who is Speaking: Procter & Gamble-Gillette Vice President Karan Dyson. Bentley University said Dyson has held leadership at the company for 27 years and is also the company’s director of campus recruiting at Tuskegee University, her alma mater, where she has brought hundreds of diverse students into full-time and summer intern roles.

Brandeis University

• When: Sunday, May 19
• Where: Gosman Sports and Convocation Center at Brandeis University in Waltham
• Who is Speaking: Award-winning documentary filmmaker Ken Burns and higher education leader Ruth Simmons, will both speak at the university’s commencement. Burns is known for his documentaries such as “Brooklyn Bridge,” “The Civil War” and “The U.S. and the Holocaust.” Simmons has been the president of three universities, including Smith College in Northampton and Brown University in Providence, R.I., where she was the first African American woman to head an Ivy League university, Brandeis said.

Curry College

• When: Sunday, May 19 at 9:30 a.m.
• Where: Xfinity Center in Mansfield
• Who is Speaking: Rev. Michael Curry is the presiding bishop and primate — or most senior bishop — of The Episcopal Church. He is the Church’s first African American presiding bishop and previously served as the 11th bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina and as a priest in parishes in Maryland, North Carolina and Ohio. He is known for his social justice advocacy in the areas of immigration policy, marriage equality and racial reconciliation, according to St. George’s Episcopal Church, and has helped establish summer camps, day care networks and other educational opportunities for children.

Emerson College

• When: Sunday, May 12 at 10:00 a.m.
• Where: The Agganis Arena in Boston
• Who is Speaking: Randy Barbato is a multiple Emmy award winner, acclaimed director, producer and co-founder of “World of Wonder” (WOW) — the multi-platform entertainment company he founded in 1991 alongside his creative and business partner Fenton Bailey. Since then, the duo has been behind the Emmy Award-winning “RuPaul’s Drag Race” (MTV) and “Million Dollar Listing” (Bravo) LA & NY franchises, as well as numerous award-winning documentaries. WOW has reshaped international pop culture, earning 33 Emmys, inspiring two Oscars, and creating the global network WOW Presents Plus across 190 territories.

Emmanuel College

• When: Saturday, May 18 at 11:00 a.m.
• Where: The Fenway Campus of Emmanuel College in Boston
• Who is Speaking: Jack Connors, Jr. is a founding partner of Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos, Inc., a full-service marketing communications company. Under his leadership, Hill Holliday evolved from a one-room shop to one of the top 20 advertising firms in the United States. Early in his career, Mr. Connors became interested and active in the philanthropic life of the city of Boston, serving on boards and leading civic campaigns.

Fisher College

Undergraduate

• When: Saturday, May 11
• Where: The Back Bay Events Center at 180 Berkeley St. in Boston
• Who is Speaking: Sal’s Pizza founder Sal Lupoli. Lupoli first opened the local chain in Salem, New Hampshire in 1990, and has grown it into one of the largest retail franchise and wholesale operations nationwide with more than 100 locations and products in 2,000 schools and grocery stores, Fisher College said. He later founded The Lupoli Companies, a commercial real estate firm that has created multipurpose real estate projects in gateway cities across the state including Lawrence’s Riverwalk.

Graduate

• When: Wednesday, June 26
• Where: Fisher College’s Alumni Hall in Boston
• Who is Speaking: Chief Frank Frederickson, the director of government affairs for the Massachusetts Fraternal Order of Police. Fisher College said that in his 45 years of public service in law enforcement, Frederickson has “tirelessly” combatted human trafficking, the opioid epidemic and violent crimes.

Franklin Cummings Tech (Benjamin Franklin Cummings Institute of Technology)

• When: Saturday, May 18 at 10 a.m.
• Where: The Franklin Cummings Tech Auditorium in Boston
• Who is Speaking: Joyce and Bill Cummings, the co-founders of the Cummings Foundation, one of the largest private charitable foundations in New England. Bill Cummings is also the founder of the suburban Boston commercial real estate firm Cummings Properties, Franklin Cummings Tech said. The school was renamed to Franklin Cummings Tech after the couple’s foundation made a $12.5 million commitment to it in 2021.

Harvard University

• When: Thursday, May 23 at 9:30 a.m.
• Where: Tercentenary Theatre at Harvard University in Cambridge
• Who is Speaking: Maria Ressa, a journalist, media entrepreneur and leading advocate for freedom of the press. Ressa is co-founder and CEO of Rappler, a digital news outlet in the Philippines focused on investigative journalism, editorial independence, and stories that hold government leaders and institutions accountable by providing a platform for citizen engagement.

Lesley University

• When: Saturday, May 18 at 10 a.m.
• Where: The Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston’s Seaport
• Who is Speaking: Sy Montgomery, a renowned naturalist who has been called by the New York Times as one of the “finest chroniclers of the natural world.” Montgomery is also a conservationist and the author of 34 books for adults and children, according to Lesley.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

• When: Thursday, May 30 at 3 p.m.
• Where: Killian Court at MIT’s campus in Cambridge
• Who is Speaking: Dr. Noubar Afeyan, an inventor, entrepreneur and the co-founder of Moderna, as well as the company’s chairman. Afeyan co-founded Moderna through his venture capital firm Flagship Pioneering, MIT said — along with more than 100 other science-based companies. Afeyan an alumnus and earned a Ph.D. in biochemical engineering in 1987 from the university. He also previously taught at MIT for 16 years.

Northeastern University

Undergraduate

• When: Sunday, May 5 at 4 p.m.
• Where: Fenway Park in Boston
• Who is Speaking: NASA astronaut Pam Melroy. Melroy is a “trailblazing astronaut” who has traveled to space three times and is one of only two women to have commanded a space shuttle mission. Melroy is also a retired U.S. Air Force combat pilot and officer, Northeastern said.

Olin College of Engineering

• When: Friday, May 10 at 2:30 p.m.
• Where: The Great Lawn tent at Olin’s campus in Needham
• Who is Speaking: Dr. Freeman A. Hrabowski III, president emeritus of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Olin College said Hrabowski’s research and publications focus on science and math education, with a special emphasis on minority participation and performance.

Regis College

• When: Saturday, May 11 at 10 a.m.
• Where: The Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston’s Seaport
• Who is Speaking: Alix Dorsainvil, a nurse, humanitarian and an alumna from the class of 2014. Dorsainvil and her young daughter were kidnapped in Haiti during the summer of 2023 and released after almost two weeks in captivity. Dorsainvil has served as a nurse for El Roi Haiti, a Christian humanitarian aid organization in the island country, Regis College said. She first visited Haiti during her time at Regis following the country’s catastrophic earthquake in 2010.

Suffolk University

Sawyer Business School (Combined Graduate & Undergraduate)

• When: Sunday, May 19 at 9 a.m.
• Where: Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston’s Seaport
• Who is Speaking: Robert Wolf, a presidential advisor who has held appointments under Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, the former chairman and CEO of UBS America, and president and COO of UBS Investment Bank.

College of Arts & Sciences (Combined Graduate & Undergraduate)

• When: Sunday, May 19 at 1:30 p.m.
• Where: Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston’s Seaport
• Who is Speaking: Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly Budd. Budd is the 38th chief justice of the court, and the first Black woman to hold this position as well as its youngest chief justice in more than a century.

Suffolk Law School

• When: Sunday, May 19 at 5:30 p.m.
• Where: Leader Bank Pavilion in Boston’s Seaport
• Who is Speaking: Josh Koskoff, a plaintiff attorney who successfully sued Remington and right-wing radio host Alex Jones on behalf of the families of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn. Koskoff is also an alumnus of Suffolk Law.

Tufts University

• When: Sunday, May 19 at 9 a.m.
• Where: The Green, an academic quad at Tuft’s campus on the town line between Medford and Somerville, between Ballou Hall and Bendetson Hall
• Who is Speaking: Fiona Hill, a foreign intelligence advisor and author. Hill is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and previously served in three different bipartisan U.S. presidential administrations, providing expertise on Russian-American relations, according to Tufts.

Wentworth Institute of Technology

• When: Saturday, April 20 at 9:30 a.m.
• Where: Boston Park Plaza Hotel, 50 Park Plaza at Arlington Street in Boston
• Who is Speaking: Carla Gautier Castro, an architect focused in sustainability as well as a social advocate. Gautier Castro is a third-generation Puerto Rican, and a two-time Wentworth alumna, receiving her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the school in 2016 and 2017 respectively, according to Wentworth.

2024 graduations in Central Massachusetts

Anna Maria College

• When: Monday, May 13 at 10 a.m.
• Where: The DCU Center in downtown Worcester
• Who is Speaking: Dr. Eric W. Dickson, the president and CEO of UMass Memorial Health, the largest not-for-profit health care system in Central Massachusetts, with $4.1 billion in annual revenue, 2,100 physicians and 17,000 employees, according to Anna Maria College. Dickson is also a professor of emergency medicine at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School.

Clark University

• When: Monday, May 20 at 10 a.m.
• Where: The DCU Center in downtown Worcester
• Who is Speaking: Dr. Robert D. Bullard, often called “the father of environmental justice,” according to Clark University. Bullard is a the distinguished professor of urban planning and environmental policy at Texas Southern University, where he founded and directs the Bullard Center for Environmental and Climate Justice. Bullard is also the co-founder of the HBCU Climate Change Consortium and the National Black Environmental Justice Advisory Council. He has published 18 books.

College of the Holy Cross

• When: Friday, May 24 at 10:15 a.m.
• Where: The DCU Center in downtown Worcester
• Who is Speaking: Dr. Laurie Leshin is the director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the former president of Worcester Polytechnic Institute. She is a distinguished geochemist and space scientist and the first woman to lead JPL in its 87-year history. She is also Vice President and Bren Professor of Geochemistry and Planetary Science at the California Institute of Technology, which manages JPL for NASA, and continues to serve as co-investigator for two instruments on NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover. At JPL, Leshin oversees Earth and Space science research, space technology development, and more than 40 active space missions in Earth Science, Astrophysics and Planetary Science to help humanity better understand Earth’s changing climate, expand knowledge about our solar system and beyond, and seek to answer the most fundamental questions like, “Are we alone in the universe?”

UMass Chan Medical School

• When: Sunday, June 2 at 11:30 a.m.
• Where: UMass Chan Medical School – under the tent, on Campus Green #2
• Who is Speaking: Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, the 73rd governor of Massachusetts and the first woman and first LGBTQ+ person to be elected to the position.

Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI)

Undergraduate

• When: Friday, May 10 at 2 p.m.
• Where: DCU Center, 50 Foster Street, Worcester
• Who is Speaking: Nancy M. Pimental was an executive producer and writer for the hit Showtime series “Shameless” for 11 years—work that earned her a Gracie Award celebrating exemplary programming created by women, for women, and about women. The WPI chemical engineering graduate has written more than 20 television and movie scripts and was nominated for Emmy awards for her work as a co-host of the game show “Win Ben Stein’s Money” and as a writer on the hit animated television series “South Park.” She wrote the fan-favorite movie “The Sweetest Thing.”

Graduate

• When: Thursday, May 9 at 5 p.m.
• Where: The DCU Center in downtown Worcester
• Who is Speaking: Greg Tucker has spent nearly two decades successfully leading and growing multi-billion dollar organizations. He is the founder, vice-chairman and chief executive officer of ProAmpac, a privately held, $2.4 billion flexible packaging company. Tucker was a standout soccer player at WPI; he is in the university’s athletic hall of fame, and his scoring records remain unbroken. The WPI mechanical engineering graduate founded ProAmpac in 2015. Today, ProAmpac, a leader in material science and sustainable flexible packaging, operates 46 facilities, employs 6,200 people, and serves over 6,000 customers worldwide.

Worcester State University

Undergraduate

• When: Saturday, May 18 at 10 a.m.
• Where: The DCU Center in downtown Worcester
• Who is Speaking: Adrianne Haslet, a former professional ballroom dancer and runner who survived the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, according to Worcester State. Haslet lost her left leg in the attack and has previously documented her journey navigating life as an amputee. She is also a prominent and inspirational speaker and she continues to run with a prosthetic limb, including in the Boston Marathon.

2024 graduations in Eastern Massachusetts

Dean College

• When: Saturday, May 18 at 11 a.m.
• Where: The front lawn of Dean Hall along Awpie Way on the Dean College campus in Franklin
• Who is Speaking: Michael J. Bobbitt, the executive director of the Mass Cultural Council. Bobbitt is a theater director, choreographer and playwright who has dedicated his professional career to arts leadership, Dean College said.

Endicott College

• When: Saturday, May 18 at 10 a.m.
• Where: Hempstead Stadium at Endicott College in Beverly
• Who is Speaking: Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, also a presidential candidate for the Republican Party’s nomination in 2016 and 2024. Christie presided over New Jersey when Superstorm Sandy hit the region in 2012 as well as his state’s subsequent recovery. He was previously appointed the chairman of the President’s Commission on Combatting Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis in 2017 and served as chair of the Republican Governor’s Association while governor, Endicott College said.

Framingham State University

Undergraduate

• When: Sunday, May 19 at 10 a.m.
• Where: The DCU Center in Worcester
• Who is Speaking: Dr. Alisha Moreland-Capuia, the founder and director of McLean Hospital’s Institute for Trauma-Informed Systems Change in Belmont, an assistant professor at Harvard Medical School and an author.

Montserrat College of Art

• When: Friday, May 17
• Where: The Cabot
• Who is Speaking: Nontsikelelo Mutiti is a Zimbabwean-born visual artist and educator. Mutiti’s work is invested in elevating the work and practices of Black peoples past, present and future whilst also acknowledging interconnected histories and serving those whose narratives have been under-recognized. In 2015 Mutiti co-founded Black Chalk & Co, a group that brings together writers, artists, designers, academic and technologists with an interest in publishing, the curation of conversations and exhibitions and facilitating teaching residencies.