University prepares for Commencement

Last updated: Friday, May 29 at 5:20 p.m.

The stage is set - literally and figuratively - for Saturday's Commencement exercises, after workers spent most of Friday putting the finishing touches on the platform and sound system.

A total of 5,378 students will graduate during the 9 a.m. ceremony at Delaware Stadium, the university's 160th such ceremony. The number of graduates includes all students who have completed their degrees since May 2008.

New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman will give the keynote address to the graduates and receive an honorary degree. Friedman told The Review earlier this month that he intends to talk about the economy and the environment.

"What the speech is really about is how the market kind of hit a wall in 2009 and why and how its really important for your generation to develop a way to grow that will be sustainable for both the market and Mother Nature," Friedman said.

Neither Friedman nor university officials would say if the university is paying Friedman to speak, but according to a column last week by Clark Hoyt, the New York Times' public editor, Friedman's usual speaking fee is $75,000.

The university will also give honorary degrees to Carol Hoffecker, a retired history professor; Baroness Susan Greenfield, a British neuroscientist; Charles Lewis, an investigative journalist and university alumnus; and David Satcher, a former U.S. Surgeon General.

For the first time, there will be aerial video of the ceremony, provided by the university's new research blimp, shown on screens at Delaware Stadium.

Officials advise students and guests to arrive early for the ceremony in order to avoid delays in the parking lot. The ceremony will be held rain or shine, but the National Weather Service is calling for sunny skies with temperatures near 80 degrees.

Check back Saturday evening for complete coverage of the Commencement ceremony.

For more, see The Review's previous coverage:

Pulitzer Prize-winning author to deliver commencement speech

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