President Bill Clinton to Serve as Keynote Speaker at RIT’s 122nd Commencement

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A. Sue Weisler

President Clinton first visited RIT in 2005 at the invitation of trustee B. Thomas Golisano.

Rochester Institute of Technology President Albert Simone today announced that President Bill Clinton is the keynote speaker for RIT’s 122nd annual commencement, scheduled for Friday, May 25. It will be the former president’s second visit to the university’s upstate New York campus within a 17-month period.

Clinton’s address to graduates, their families and friends, and other members of the RIT community will take place during Academic Convocation at 10 a.m. in RIT’s Gordon Field House and Activities Center. The ceremony serves as the kickoff to two days of commencement-related activities at the university.

“President Clinton’s lifelong commitment to public service, including his tireless dedication to humanitarian and philanthropic activities since leaving the White House, offers inspiration to a new generation preparing to make its mark on a global society,” states Simone. “We’re very honored to welcome the former president back to RIT, and we look forward to hearing his insights for our 2007 graduates.”

Clinton’s address to the RIT community continues his friendship and partnership with B. Thomas Golisano, founder and chairman of Paychex Inc., owner of the National Hockey League’s Buffalo Sabres and a member of RIT’s Board of Trustees. The two men were acquainted in 2005 through the Clinton Global Initiative, an outgrowth of the William J. Clinton Foundation that brings global leaders together to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

An invitation from Golisano resulted in Clinton’s first visit to RIT in December 2005. The former president made an informal presentation to students, faculty and staff following a tour of RIT’s B. Thomas Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences. The college, one of eight at RIT, was created through a gift from Golisano to the university in 2001.

This year’s RIT commencement marks a sentimental milestone for the university. It will be the last one presided over by President Simone, who will retire from a distinguished 50-year career in academia on June 30. He became RIT’s eighth president in 1992.

“Al is such a dedicated and valuable part of our community, and President Clinton’s presence at RIT’s graduation ceremony this year is a great reflection of that,” says Golisano. “Based on the very warm reception President Clinton received during his last visit to RIT, I am sure this event will be fantastic.”

In its history, RIT has welcomed four former U.S. presidents to campus. The others are Presidents Ford, Carter and George H.W. Bush.

NOTE: Rochester Institute of Technology is internationally recognized for academic leadership in computing, engineering, imaging technology, and fine and applied arts, in addition to unparalleled support services for students with hearing loss. More than 15,500 full- and part-time students are enrolled in RIT’s 340 career-oriented and professional programs, and its cooperative education program is one of the oldest and largest in the nation.

For nearly two decades, U.S. News & World Report has ranked RIT among the nation’s leading comprehensive universities. The Princeton Review features RIT in its 2007 Best 361 Colleges rankings and named the university one of America’s “Most Wired Campuses.” RIT is also featured in Barron’s Best Buys in Education.