Honorees and Commencement Speakers
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Commencement Speakers at Seattle University
Seattle University honors distinguished individuals whose achievements and values reflect our mission by awarding honorary degrees and inviting them to address graduates at the undergraduate and graduate commencement ceremonies. Recipients are chosen for their accomplishments and their lasting, positive impact on society.
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Selection Process
Behind every memorable commencement address is a careful selection process. The Commencement Speaker Selection Committee seeks out individuals whose work and character embody Seattle University’s spirit of leadership and service. The President reviews their recommendations and forwards final nominees to the Board of Trustees, which approves and confers honorary degrees on those chosen to share their message with our graduates.
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Commencement Speaker Selection Committee
- Shane P. Martin, Provost, Chair
- Edgar Gonzalez, Senior Vice President, University Advancement
- Natasha S. Martin, Vice President, Diversity and Inclusion
- Scott McClellan, Vice President, University Affairs
- Michael Castori, S.J., Rector, Arrupe Residence
- Marc Cohen, President, Academic Assembly
A History of Honorees and Commencement Speakers
Seattle University honors distinguished individuals whose achievements and values reflect our mission by awarding honorary degrees and inviting them to address graduates at the undergraduate and graduate commencement ceremonies. Recipients are chosen for their extraordinary accomplishments and their lasting, positive impact on society.
| 2021 | Greg Boyle, S.J. |
| 2022 | Sharice Davids |
| 2022 | Edward Reese, S.J. |
| 2022 | Thomas Reese, S.J. |
| 2023 | Viet Thanh Nguyen |
| 2023 | Doug Baldwin, Jr. |
| 2024 | Virginia Cross |
| 2024 | Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan |
| 2024 | Tod Leiweke |
| 2025 | Bruce Harrell |
| 2025 | Anna Faris |
| 2010 | Cheryl Crazy Bull |
| 2010 | Robert E. Craves |
| 2011 | John Fujiwara |
| 2011 | Ben Kayji Hara |
| 2011 | Shigeko (Iseri) Hirai |
| 2011 | Dr. May (Shiga) Hornback |
| 2011 | Lillia (Satow) Matsuda |
| 2011 | June (Koto) Sakaguchi |
| 2011 | Mitsu Shoyama |
| 2011 | Caroline (Kondo) Taniguchi |
| 2011 | Madeleine (Iwata) Uyehara |
| 2011 | Joanne Misako (Oyabe) Watanabe |
| 2011 | Tom Yamauchi |
| 2011 | Tun Channareth |
| 2012 | Mark Charles Pigott |
| 2014 | Gary Brinson |
| 2015 | Killian Noe |
| 2015 | Mark K. Scheiver |
| 2016 | Geoffery Canada |
| 2016 | John DeGioia |
| 2017 | Marguerite Barankitse |
| 2018 | Sally Jewell |
| 2018 | Samuel Green |
| 2019 | Jose "Chepe" Alberto Idiaquez Guevarra, S.J. |
| 2019 | James Martin |
| 2019 | Helen Prejean, C.S.J. |
| 2000 | Archbishop Desmond Tutu |
| 2000 | Sherman J. Alexie, Jr. |
| 2000 | Millard Temple Battles |
| 2000 | Janice Patterson Cate |
| 2000 | William Burke Cate |
| 2001 | Trish Millenes Dziko |
| 2001 | John O'Malley, S.J. |
| 2002 | Corazon Aquino |
| 2002 | Leland H. Hartwell, Ph.D. |
| 2002 | Constance W. Rice, Ph.D. |
| 2002 | Norman B. Rice |
| 2003 | Francia Russell |
| 2003 | James D. Sinegal |
| 2003 | Kent Stowell |
| 2004 | William LeRoux, S.J. |
| 2004 | David Horsey |
| 2005 | Gary Locke |
| 2005 | Mimi Gardner Gates |
| 2006 | William (Bill) Clapp and Paula Clapp |
| 2006 | Steven Holl |
| 2007 | Mohamed Ali Alabbar |
| 2007 | Gary Smith, S.J. |
| 2008 | Sisters of Providence Mother Joseph Province |
| 2008 | Dr. Charles Mitchell |
| 2009 | James C. Pigott |
| 1990 | John E. Hopcroft (A) |
| 1990 | Alene H. Moris |
| 1990 | Quincy D. Jones, Jr. |
| 1991 | Honored 100 Alums (Centenniel Year) |
| 1992 | Speight Jenkins |
| 1992 | Kathleen A. Ross, S.N.J.M. |
| 1992 | Sam Smith - (A) |
| 1993 | Jean Enerson |
| 1993 | Reverend James E. Royce, S.J., Ph.D. |
| 1993 | Gerard Schwarz |
| 1994 | Bernard J. Coughlin |
| 1994 | Vi Hilbert |
| 1994 | Judy Mayotte |
| 1994 | Malcom Stamper |
| 1995 | Mary Gates (posthumously) |
| 1995 | William Hayes, S.J. |
| 1995 | Denise Levertov |
| 1995 | Lenny Wilkens |
| 1996 | Henry Broderick |
| 1996 | Kenneth M. Harden |
| 1996 | Warren G. Magnuson |
| 1996 | Very Reverend John J. Kelley, S.J. |
| 1996 | John K. Blume |
| 1996 | Maralyn B. Blume |
| 1996 | W.T. Edmondson |
| 1996 | Gwendolyn Knight |
| 1996 | Jacob Lawrence |
| 1996 | Daniel Weber, S.J. |
| 1997 | William J. Sullivan, S.J. (Law School) |
| 1997 | Archbishop Thomas J. Murphy |
| 1997 | Hazel Wolf |
| 1997 | Jeanne Marie (McAteer) Lee |
| 1997 | Rhoady Lee Jr. |
| 1998 | Fred Cordova |
| 1998 | Dorothy Cordova |
| 1998 | David M. Irwin |
| 1998 | August Wilson |
| 1999 | Reverend Samuel B. McKinney |
| 1999 | Very Reverend Michael G. Ryan |
| 1999 | Althea Diesenhaus Stroum |
| 1999 | Samuel N. Stroum |
| 1999 | Graca Machel |
| 1999 | Nelson Mandela |
| 1980 | Frank Herbert |
| 1980 | Reverend Harold O. Small, S.J. |
| 1980 | Theiline McCone |
| 1981 | Theodore Hesburgh, C.S.C |
| 1981 | James R. Ellis |
| 1981 | Ann I. Gannon, B.V.M. |
| 1981 | John D. Spellman |
| 1982 | Dr. David L. McKenna |
| 1982 | Dr. Emily Taylor |
| 1983 | Dr. Frank B. Brouillet |
| 1983 | Robert O. Kinsey and Miriam D. Kinsey |
| 1983 | Dr. Dale E. Turner |
| 1984 | Dr. Shirley B. Gordon |
| 1984 | Dr. John D. Phillips |
| 1984 | Joel Pritchard |
| 1985 | M. Bridget Flaherty, R.S.C.J. |
| 1985 | Dr. Vilem Sokol |
| 1985 | Dr. Glenn Terrell |
| 1986 | Archbishop Joseph Cardinal Bernardin |
| 1986 | Gwendolyn Brooks |
| 1986 | John A. Cherberg |
| 1986 | George Tsutakawa |
| 1987 | Richard A. McCormick, S.J. |
| 1987 | Ann P. Wyckoff |
| 1987 | Wendell P. Loveless |
| 1988 | Paul Horiuchi |
| 1988 | Reatha Clark King |
| 1988 | Raymond G. Hunthausen |
| 1989 | Henry J. Casey |
| 1989 | Laura Edwards |
| 1989 | Laura Wilbur |
| 1989 | Gerald R. Murphy (A) |
| 1971 | Patricia Marie Smith, M.D. |
| 1971 | Very Reverend Michael Feeney, O.S.B. |
| 1972 | A. Boyd Hinds |
| 1972 | Jeanette Poore |
| 1972 | Knudage Riisager |
| 1973 | Dixy Lee Ray, PhD |
| 1974 | William P. Blatty |
| 1974 | Milton Katims |
| 1975 | Mildred F. Jefferson M.D. |
| 1975 | E. Patrick Lenahan |
| 1976 | William J. Baroody, Jr. |
| 1976 | Rt. Reverend Ivol I. Curtis |
| 1976 | Gov. Daniel J. Evans |
| 1976 | Lester R. Sauvage, M.D. |
| 1977 | Ross L. Cunningham |
| 1977 | Thomas S. Foley |
| 1977 | John Hope Franklin, Ph.D. |
| 1978 | Antonia Brico |
| 1978 | Philip S. Land, S.J. |
| 1978 | Raphael H. Levine |
| 1978 | William P. Woods |
| 1979 | Sen. Henry M. Jackson |
| 1979 | Walter S. Brown, M.D. |
| 1979 | The Dalai Lama |
| 1979 | Sr. Mary Luke Tobin, S.L. |
| 1960 | Richard R. Berlin |
| 1960 | Richard Cardinal Cushing |
| 1960 | Sr. Mary Emil, I.H.M. |
| 1961 | Charles H. Malik |
| 1962 | Dr. Edward Teller |
| 1963 | R. V. Hansberger |
| 1964 | Very Reverend Edward B. Bunn, S.J. |
| 1964 | Edith S. Green |
| 1965 | Most Reverend George B. Flahiff, C.S.B. |
| 1965 | Dr. Charles E. Odegaard |
| 1967 | William E. Boeing Jr. |
| 1967 | John A. McCone |
| 1968 | John T. Collins |
| 1968 | Reverend Francis E. Corkery, S.J. |
| 1968 | D. K. MacDonald |
| 1969 | Arthur Z. Gray |
| 1969 | Richard E. Fuller |
| 1969 | Robert D. O'Brien |
| 1948 | Rt. Reverend Theodore M. Ryan |
| 1950 | Dr. Hubbard T. Buckner |
| 1950 | James A. Farley |
| 1951 | Reverend James F. Lanigan |
| 1952 | John J. Hearn |
| 1953 | Thomas J. Bannan |
| 1953 | Thomas E. Murray |
| 1954 | Carlos P. Romulo |
| 1955 | Jefferson Caffery |
| 1956 | General Alfred Gruenther |
| 1956 | William A. Sullivan |
| 1957 | William M. Allen |
| 1957 | James E. Casey |
| 1957 | Most Reverend Thomas E. Gill |
| 1958 | Lt. General Arthur G. Trudeau |
| 1959 | Irene Dunne |