Commencement Speakers

1900s | 1910s | 1920s | 1930s | 1940s | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s | 2010s

1873 Virginia Gov. Gilbert C. Walker
1874 Maj. Richard V. Gaines
1875 Col. Frank G. Ruffin
1876 Gen. James H. Williams of Winchester
1877 Robert Beverly of Fauquier
1878 Prof. John L. Buchanan, Emory and Henry College
1879 C. A. Bohannon
1880 Hon. A. H. Keeley of Richmond
1881 unknown
1882 unknown
1883 Gen. John Eaton of Washington, D.C. (address before the literary societies)
1884 Del. B. B. Mumford of Pittsylvania County (address before the literary societies)
1885 Hon. Norman Coleman (Colman) of Washington, D.C.
1886 Hon. Charles Triplett O’Ferrall, later Virginia governor
1887 Virginia Gov. Fitzhugh Lee
1888 Thomas Whitehead, Virginia commissioner of agriculture
1889 Thomas Whitehead, Virginia commissioner of agriculture
1890 Peter J. Otey, U.S. House of Representatives, 6th District
1891 Hon. John Goode (address before the literary societies)
1892 Col. A. S. Buford
1893 Judge Walter R. Staples
1894 Claude A. Swanson, Virginia congressman, U. S. House of Representatives, later Virginia governor
1895 Claude A. Swanson, Virginia congressman, U. S. House of Representatives, later Virginia governor
1896 Charles W. Dabney, Jr., President of the University of Tennessee
1897 George C. Cabell
1898 Sen. W. P. Barksdale of Halifax County, Va.
1899 Prof. Francis H. Smith, University of Virginia

1900's

1900 Peter J. Otey
1901 Prof. William M. Thornton
1902 Virginia Gov. A. J. Montague
1903 Hon. A. C. Braxton of Staunton
1904 Richard H. Edmonds, editor of The Manufacturer’s Record
1905 C. A. Smith
1906 Virginia Gov. Claude A. Swanson
1907 Carlton McCarthy, mayor of Richmond
1908 William W. Finley, president of Southern Railway
1909 Carter Glass, Virginia senator

1910's

1910 Charles R. Davis, congressman from Minnesota
1911 W. W. Kitchen, governor of North Carolina
1912 E. F. Swinney, Kansas City, Mo., banker and industrialist
1913 Rosewell Page, second auditor of Virginia
1914 Virginia Gov. Henry C. Stuart
1915 Waller R. Staples, Roanoke judge
1916 William H. Mann, former Virginia governor
1917 Joseph D. Eggleston, president, VPI
1918 R. Holman Willis, member of Virginia General Assembly from Roanoke
1919 Joseph D. Eggleston, president, VPI

1920's

1920 Col. LeRoy Hodges, Virginia governor’s aide
1921 Virginia Gov. Westmoreland Davis
1922 William E. Dodd ‘95, University of Chicago professor
1923 Harris Hart, Virginia state superintendent of public instruction
1924 William T. Sanger, secretary, State Board of Education, Virginia
1925 R. B. Tunstall, president, Virginia Bar Association
1926 J. C. Metcalf, dean, University of Virginia graduate department
1927 Virginia Gov. Harry F. Byrd
1928 J. P. Fishburn, president, Times-World Corp., Roanoke, Va.
1929 F. Donaldson Brown, vice president, General Motors Corp.

1930's

1930 Col. James P. Woods, member, VPI Board of Visitors
1931 J. G. Bohannon, chairman, Virginia Port Authority
1932 J. Luther Johns ‘97, Chicago patent attorney
1933 Kendall Weisiger ‘99, assistant to president, Southern Bell Telephone
1934 J. D. Eggleston, president, Hampden-Sydney College and former president, VPI
1935 Ashton Dovell, member, Virginia House of Delegates
1936 Virginia Gov. George C. Peery
1937 Virginia Lt. Gov. James H. Price
1938 William E. Dodd ‘95, U.S. ambassador to Germany
1939 Allen A. Stockdale, National Association of Manufacturers

1940's

1940, Julian A. Burruss ‘19, president, VPI
1941, Kendall Weisiger ‘99, vice-president, American Telephone and Telegraph
1942 (March) E.B. Norris, dean of engineering, VPI
1942 (June) Julian A. Burruss, president, VPI
1942 (Sept.) T.W. Knote, head of business administration, VPI
1942 (Dec.) P.H. McGauhey, professor of sanitary engineering, VPI
1943 (March) R.H. McNeil, director of public relations, VPI
1943 (May) Paul H. Farrier, associate professor of English, VPI
1944 (March) Walter Rautenstrauch, professor of industrial engineering, Columbia University
1944 (May) John W. Whittemore, associate dean of engineering and head of ceramic engineering, VPI
1944 (Sept.) W. C. Yang, president, Soochow University, China
1945 (March) H. L. Price, dean of agriculture, VPI
1945 (May) Roy J. Holden, head of geology, VPI
1945 (Sept.) Col. R. B. H. Begg ‘99, head of civil engineering, VPI
1945 (Dec.) M. C. Harrison, head of English, VPI
1946 (May) Walter S. Newman ‘19, vice-president, VPI
1946 (Sept.) D. H. Pletta, professor of applied mechanics, VPI
1947 Gen. James A. Anderson, Virginia State Highway Commission
1948 Louis V. Sutton ‘10, president, Carolina Light and Power
1949 Edward McCrady, biologist, Atomic Energy Commission

1950's

1950 Walter S. Newman ‘19, president, VPI
1951 Graham Claytor ‘06, operating executive, American Gas and Electric
1952 Walter S. Newman ‘19, president, VPI
1953 Clem D. Johnston, vice president, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
1954 Elmer L. Kayser, dean, George Washington University
1955 Virginia Gov. Thomas B. Stanley
1956 Virginius Dabney, editor, Richmond Times-Dispatch
1957 Irwin Stewart, president, West Virginia University
1958 Paul N. Garber, bishop, Virginia Methodist Conference, and J. Manning Potts, editor, The Upper Room
1959 John N. Thomas, professor of systematic theology, Union Theological Seminary

1960's

1960 Albertis S. Harrison Jr., Virginia attorney general and later governor of Virginia
1961 Maj. Gen. John M. Devine, commandant of cadets, VPI
1962 Colgate W. Darden Jr., former Virginia governor
1963 Virginia Lt. Gov. Mills E. Godwin Jr., later governor of Virginia
1964 J. G. Farrar, president, Rockefeller Foundation
1965 Virginia Gov. Albertis S. Harrison Jr.
1966 T. Marshall Hahn Jr., president, VPI
1967 Virginia Gov. Mills E. Godwin Jr.
1968 T. Marshall Hahn Jr., president, VPI
1969 T. Marshall Hahn Jr., president, VPI

1970's

1970 T. Marshall Hahn Jr., president, VPI
1971 Virginia Gov. Linwood Holton Jr.
1972 David Brinkley, NBC News correspondent
1973 Bill Moyers, television commentator and former press secretary to President Lyndon B. Johnson
1974 G. Burke Johnson, C. P. Miles Professor of English and former dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Virginia Tech
1975 Sam J. Ervin Jr., former U. S. Senator from North Carolina
1976 Edger F. Shannon Jr., former president, University of Virginia
1977 Milton Friedman, Russell Distinguished Professor of Economics, University of Chicago and winner, 1976 Nobel Prize in Economics
1978 Virginia Gov. John Dalton
1979 Eric Sevareid, CBS News correspondent

1980's

1980 Jean Harris, secretary of human resources, Commonwealth of Virginia
1981 William E. Lavery, president, Virginia Tech
1982 Christopher C. Kraft Jr. ’44, director, NASA Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center
1983 Clifton G. Garvin Jr., chairman of the board, Exxon Corp.
1984 Virginia Gov. Charles Robb
1985 Alexander Giacco, chairman of the board, Hercules Inc.
1986 Neil Armstrong, astronaut
1987 Virginia Gov. Gerald Baliles
1988 David Roselle, president, University of Kentucky and former provost, Virginia Tech
1989 Mary Sue Terry, Virginia attorney general

1990's

1990 (spring) Virginia Gov. Douglas Wilder
1990 (fall) Mark O. Hatfield, U. S. senator
1991 (spring) Shaikh Saud Nasir Al-Sabah, ambassador to Kuwait
1991 (fall) W. Ann Reynolds, chancellor, City University of New York
1992 (spring) Jack Nelson, Washington Bureau chief, Los Angeles Times
1992 (fall) Samuel Proctor, professor emeritus, Rutgers University
1993 (spring) John Ashworth, director, London School of Economics and Political Science
1993 (fall) John Kelly, registrar (provost), University College Dublin (Ireland)
1994 (spring) Virginia Gov. George Allen
1994 (fall) Tony Distler, Alumni Distinguished Professor and director of Division of Performing Arts, Virginia Tech
1995 (spring) Beverly Sgro, Virginia secretary of education
1995 (fall) James I. “Bud” Robertson Jr., Alumni Distinguished Professor of history, Virginia Tech
1996 (spring) John Wilson, retired president, Washington and Lee University and former provost, Virginia Tech
1996 (fall) Lucinda Roy, Glorida D. Smith Professor of Black Studies and later chair, Department of English, Virginia Tech
1997 (spring) Raymond J. Lane, president and CEO, Oracle Corp.
1997 (fall) Charles “Jack” Dudley, director University Honors Program, Virginia Tech
1998 (spring) Virginia Gov. James Gilmore
1998 (fall) James R. Craig, professor of geological sciences, Virginia Tech
1999 (spring) Eric Schmidt, chairman of the board and CEO, Novell Inc.
1999 (fall) Paul E. Torgersen, president, Virginia Tech

2000's

2000 (spring) John D. Warner, U. S. senator from Virginia
2000 (fall) Arthur L. Buikema Jr., Alumni Distinguished Professor of biology, Virginia Tech
2001 (spring) Rick Boucher, Virginia congressman, U. S. House of Representatives
2001 (fall) Charles “Jack” Dudley, professor of sociology and director, University Honors Program, Virginia Tech
2002 (spring) Virginia Gov. Mark R. Warner
2002 (fall) L. A. “Andy” Swiger, dean, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Virginia Tech
2003 (spring) Leroy Rountree Hassell Sr., chief justice, Virginia Supreme Court
2003 (fall) Ezra A. “Bud” Brown, professor of mathematics, Virginia Tech
2004 (spring) Pierre Thomas ’84, U.S. justice department correspondent, ABC News
2004 (fall) Diane L. Zahm, associate professor of urban affairs and planning, Virginia Tech
2005 (spring) David L. Calhoun, president and CEO, GE Transportation
2005 (fall) Minnis E. Ridenour, Senior Fellow and director, Office of Government and Non-Profit Organization Management, Virginia Tech
2006 (spring) Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine
2006 (fall) Henry J. Dekker, retired founder and president, North American operations for Louis Féraud and former member and rector, Virginia Tech Board of Visitors
2007 (spring) Gen. John Philip Abizaid, U.S. Army (Ret.), former commander, U.S. Central Command, and Charles Steger, president, Virginia Tech (special remarks)
2007 (fall) E. Scott Geller, Alumni Distinguished Professor and director, Center for Applied Behavior Systems, Virginia Tech
2008 (spring) Hoda Kotb, “Dateline NBC” correspondent and co-anchor, NBC’s “Today” show
2008 (fall) Gary Downey, Alumni Distinguished Professor, Department of Science and Technology in Society, Virginia Tech
2009 (spring) Gen. Lance L. Smith, former commander, U.S. Joint Forces Command, Norfolk, Va., and NATO Supreme Allied Commander for Transformation
2009 (fall) Rosemary Blieszner, Alumni Distinguished Professor of Human Development and associate dean, Graduate School, Virginia Tech

2010's

2010 (spring) Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell
2010 (fall) Jacqueline Bixler, Alumni Distinguished Professor, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures, Virginia Tech
2011 (spring) Kenneth R. Feinberg, attorney, special master of the federal Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund, and administrator for the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund
2011 (fall) Edward F.D. Spencer, vice president for student affairs, Virginia Tech
2012 (spring) Mark R. Warner, U. S. senator from Virginia, and Michelle Obama, First Lady of the United States
2012 (fall) Annie Hesp, instructor, foreign languages and literatures, Virginia Tech
2013 (spring) Charles W. Steger, president, Virginia Tech
2013 (fall) Gerhardt G. Schurig, professor of biomedical sciences and pathobiology and former dean, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech
2014 (spring) Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe
2014 (fall) Thomas M. Gardner, Alumni Distinguished Professor, Virginia Tech
2015 (spring) Eric Schmidt, Google Executive Chairman
2015 (fall)Thomas C. Tillar, Jr., Vice President for Alumni Relations
2016 (spring) Marc A. Edwards, Charles Lunsford Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Virginia Tech; Mona Hanna-Attisha, Director, Michigan State University and Hurley Children’s Hospital Pediatric Public Health Initiative
2016 (fall) Ben Davenport Jr., former rector of the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors and university alumnus
2017 (spring) Sheryl Sandberg, the chief operating officer of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.org
2017 (fall) Art Keown, an Alumni Distinguished Professor and the R. B. Pamplin Professor of Finance at Virginia Tech
2018 (spring) Virginia Governor Ralph Northam
2018 (fall) Josiah Showalter Jr., chief judge for the 27^th Judicial Circuit of Virginia
2019 (spring) Frank Beamer, retired head football coach
2019 (fall) John Seiler, the Hon. and Mrs. Shelton H. Short Jr. Professor of Forestry in the College of Natural Resources and Environment