GW Readies for Commencement

A key figure in the new Obama administration, a world-renowned sculptor, and a champion for undergraduate education will be among the University’s honorary degree recipients, addressing an estimated 25,000 graduates and guests at GW’s
Commencement ceremony May 17. For the fourth consecutive year, the University-wide ceremony will be held on the National Mall with a backdrop of the U.S. Capitol and Washington Monument.

White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel will receive an honorary Doctor of Public Service at the ceremony and deliver the keynote address. Prior to joining President Barack Obama’s administration, Emanuel served in the House of Representatives, representing the Fifth District of Illinois. While in Congress, he held
positions as chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, member of the House Ways and Means Committee, and chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

Before being elected to Congress, Emanuel worked at the Chicago investment bank Wasserstein Perella. He was a core member of the Clinton White House from 1993 to
1998, starting as the national finance director for the 1992 campaign and eventually becoming senior adviser to the president for policy and strategy. In 1989, Emanuel was a senior adviser and chief fundraiser for Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley’s campaign. He also played an important role in Paul Simon’s 1984 campaign for the Senate.

Famed sculptor John Safer, B.A. ’47, will receive an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts at the ceremony. Safer has had a unique career spanning art, politics, real estate, and
banking. His artwork stands in more than a thousand private collections and public sites and has been exhibited in universities, museums, galleries, and embassies
throughout the world. The New York Times has compared Safer’s position as a sculptor to that of Georgia O’Keeffe as a painter and Ansel Adams as a photographer.

A native of Washington, D.C., Safer served as an Air Force lieutenant in World War II. He went on to become a real estate developer and later a major figure in banking, serving for many years as chairman of the board of NationsBank D.C. and Materia Inc. and
chairman of the executive committee for Financial General Bankshares. Safer has served on the board of directors for the Smith sonian Institution, National Air and Space Museum, Shakespeare Guild and Scripps Research Institute.

Jeanne L. Narum, a nationally recognized advocate for undergraduate education, will receive an honorary Doctor of Science for her efforts to strengthen undergraduate programs in science, tech nology, engineering and mathematics. Narum is the founding director of Project Kaleidoscope and director of the Independent Colleges Office, both located in Washington, D.C.

Narum’s professional service has included board membership and advisory positions at numerous organizations, including the American Association of Physics Teachers, Clark Atlanta University, the University of Maryland College Park and the Research Corporation. She has received the award for academic excellence from the Council of Independent Colleges, a lifetime achievement award from Faculty for Undergraduate
Neuroscience, and a presidential citation from the American Psychological Association. Narum was named a fellow by the Association for Women in Science.

Along with remarks from the honorary degree recipients, the University Commencement ceremony will include an invocation by Rev. Ruth Jacqueline McMillan, grandmother of graduating student Brand Kroeger, a charge to the graduates by President Knapp, and the presentation of Oscar and Shoshana Trachtenberg Prizes
to out standing faculty members. Processional music will be performed by the Washington Scottish Band, and the University Singers will sing the national anthem
and the Alma Mater.

The weekend’s events also include the University’s annual Monumental Celebration, a cocktail-attire gala, which takes place the evening of Saturday, May 16, at historic
Union Station. The gala includes a live dance band, jazz quartet, caricature and balloon artists and a dessert buffet. Each of GW’s nine schools holds its own celebration
throughout the weekend.

“Commencement weekend is my favorite time of year,” says Kathryn Bugg, executive director of University events, who has been planning the 2009 Commencement
for more than a year. “I’m impressed with the grandeur of the ceremony on the National Mall and, more importantly, pleased to help create special memories for our graduates and their families.”

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