Northeastern University’s Class of 2009 will be the first in Boston to receive their diplomas this Friday, May 1, 2009.
The morning ceremony will be held at the TD Banknorth Garden, where more than 15,000 guests and 2,700 students are expected to attend. The ceremony will start at 10:30 a.m. and the keynote address will be delivered by Kenneth Cole, chairman and chief creative officer of Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc., who is also know for his philanthropic work for AIDS research and homelessness causes.
The afternoon ceremony, primarily for graduate students, will be held at Matthews Arena at 3:30 p.m. Approximately 1,700 students will be in attendance and will hear from Dr. Gary Gottlieb, president of Brigham & Women’s Hospital and president-elect of Partners HealthCare, the afternoon’s commencement speaker.
Cole and Dr. Gottlieb will be receiving honorary degrees at their respective ceremonies. Honorary degrees will also be conferred to the following:
Molly Corbett Broad, president, American Council on Education (Morning)
Barry Shrage, president, Combined Jewish Philanthropies (Morning)
J. Keith Motley, chancellor, UMass Boston (Afternoon)
Angela Menino, first lady, City of Boston (Afternoon)
WHERE/WHEN:
For the morning ceremony:
TD Banknorth Garden, Causeway Street, Boston, MA
10:30 a.m. start
For the afternoon ceremony:
Matthews Arena, 238 St. Botolph Street, Boston, MA
3:30 p.m. start
