Reunion Classes: Do You Remember Your Commencement Speaker?

Looking back on your graduation ceremony, what do you recall? Was it hot sitting out on Killian Court robed in black? Did you sing “In Praise of MIT” and turn your Brass Rat? And what did you learn from the Commencement speech—that last bit of advice MIT offered before sending you out into the wider world?

This year’s OneMIT Commencement Ceremony  will take place on Thursday, May 29. The featured speaker, science communicator, video creator, and entrepreneur Hank Green, joins a long and impressive list of MIT Commencement speakers, many of whom will likely be familiar to alumni returning for reunions this year.

Follow the links below and see if the words of wisdom sound familiar. Then, feel free to add your own Commencement reflections in the comments section.

1985—Lee A. Iacocca, Board Chair and CEO of Chrysler

1990—Virgilio Barco ’43, President of the Republic of Colombia

1995—Hanna Gray, President Emerita of the University of Chicago

2000—Carleton Fiorina SM ’89, President and CEO of Hewlett Packard

2005—Irwin Jacobs SM ’57, ScD ’59, Cofounder, Board Chair, and CEO of Qualcomm

2010—Raymond S. Stata ’57, SM ’58, Chairman and Cofounder of Analog Devices

2015—Megan Smith ’86, SM ’88, Chief Technology Officer of the United States

2020—William H. McRaven, US Navy Admiral, Retired, and Chancellor, University of Texas System 2015–2018

At MIT, the tradition of having Commencement speakers dates back to 1880, the earliest year that MIT Commencement records exist at MIT’s Institute Archives and Special Collections. Explore the list of MIT Commencement speakers below or view an accessible PDF.