Monday, April 9, 2012

2012 Commencement Speaker Announced


Western New England University is pleased to announce the commencement speaker for the class of 2012. This year's presenter is Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson, a famed astrophysicist. Dr. Tyson is currently the Fredrick P. Rose Director of the Hayden Planetarium at the Rose Center for Earth and Space. Dr. Tyson also works as an astrophysicist for the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. He can often be found on television, as he has hosted the show NOVA scienceNOW on PBS since 2006, and is a frequent guest of the Colbert Report (appearing on the show 8 times in 7 years), Real Time with Bill Maher, and The Daily Show with John Stewart. 

Dr. Tyson once served on the Commission on the Future of the United States Aerospace Industry appointed by President George W. Bush in 2001. In 2004, he sat on the President's Commission on Implementation of United States Space Exploration Policy and was awarded the prestigious NASA Distinguished Public Service Medal which is the highest civilian award presented by NASA. 

We are honored to have Dr. Tyson speak at commencement in the Alumni Healthful Living Center on Saturday, May 19th. He will receive an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Western New England University. For more information about Dr. Tyson, please check his Twitter account (@neiltyson) or his website.