Sen. Jack Reed To Speak At RWU Commencement

BRISTOL, RI — U.S. Senator Jack Reed is set to deliver the commencement address at this year's Roger Williams University graduation ceremony in May. At the May 18 ceremony, more than 1,200 undergraduate students will receive their degrees and several honorary degrees will be awarded.

"Senator Reed’s career and ideals are closely aligned with the core purpose of RWU: To serve society through engaged teaching and learning," said RWU Interim President Andy Workman. "Senator Reed offers the graduating students an inspirational example of a life of public service. His career demonstrates the power of higher education to advance not just himself but the lives of all his fellow Rhode Islanders. He truly exemplifies the core values of the state’s founder and our namesake, Roger Williams."

Reed has served as Rhode Island's District Two Senator since 1996 and is the ranking member of the committee on defense. He is a graduate of West Point and Harvard, and was awarded an honorary doctorate of public service from Roger Williams University on 2009.

As Rhode Island’s senior U.S. senator, Reed is a senior member of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, and he has helped secure millions of dollars in federal funding to enhance the university's research capacity and support programs such as the Center for Economic and Environmental Development. He is also the Ranking Member on the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Reed graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point (B.S., ’71), Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government (M.P.P., ’73) and Harvard Law School (J.D., ’82). He received an Honorary Doctor of Public Service from Roger Williams University in 2009.

Honorary degrees will be awarded to civil rights leader Clifford R. Montiero, who worked with Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and formerly served as the NAACP Providence Brand President, as well as Marcia Morris, a member of the University's Board of Trustees.

The undergraduate commencement processional will begin at 9 a.m., with the ceremony beginning at 10 a.m.