College of Wooster to Host 138th Commencement Ceremony on May 12

President Grant Cornwell to preside for the first time at Wooster

President Grant Cornwell will preside over his first Commencement ceremony at The College of Wooster on May 12.

WOOSTER, Ohio - President Grant Cornwell will preside over his first commencement ceremony at The College of Wooster - and the 138th in the school's long history - on Monday, May 12, at 10 a.m. in the Oak Grove (1200 Beall Ave.). An estimated 400 undergraduate degrees will be conferred along with three honorary degrees. Peace activist Fr. Daniel Berrigan, liberal arts advocate Carol Geary Schneider, and journalist Juan Williams, will be honored, and, in a break with tradition, each will speak briefly to the Class of 2008.

Berrigan, who will receive the degree of Doctor of Humane Letters, is a Jesuit priest, author, poet, playwright, teacher, and peacemaker who has been active in social justice issues for more than 50 years. He participated in the Freedom Rides with Martin Luther King, Jr.; traveled to Hanoi to aid in the release of the first American POWs during the Vietnam War; and led non-violent protests against U.S. military involvement in Vietnam, for which he served 18 months in prison. In 1980, he and his brother, Philip, along with six others, founded the Plowshares Eight, a national peace organization with whom he protested the proliferation of nuclear weapons and other causes. He has also worked tirelessly on behalf of victims of AIDS and the homeless. His efforts have been recognized through a variety of honors, including the Pope Paul VI Teacher of Peace Award and six nominations for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Schneider, who spoke at Wooster's commencement in 2006, is president of the Association of American Colleges and Universities, the leading national organization devoted to advancing and strengthening undergraduate liberal education. As its president, Schneider initiated Liberal Education and America's Promise (LEAP), a 10-year campus action and public advocacy campaign designed to engage students and the public with what really matters in college. Schneider's ties to AAC&U date back to 1988 when she was named executive vice president. She has developed and led a series of grant-funded national initiatives involving faculty and academic leaders at many colleges and universities. She also has led the organization's national initiative on higher education and pluralism, American Commitments: Diversity, Democracy and Liberal Learning, which resulted in numerous national changes regarding diversity and inclusion. In 1982, she was named a Mina Shaughnessy Fellow of the U.S. Department of Education, and she has published extensively on all the major areas of her educational work.

Williams is one of America's leading journalists. He is National Public Radio's senior correspondent and is a regular contributor to NPR's "Morning Edition" as well as the former host of NPR's "Talk of the Nation." He is also a regular contributor to Fox News. Prior to that, he spent 21 years at The Washington Post, where he served as an editorial writer, op-ed columnist, and White House reporter. In 1996, Mr. Williams became host of the syndicated television program "America's Black Forum," which addressed important issues in the African-American community. He won an Emmy Award for his TV documentary writing, and received widespread acclaim for a series of TV documentaries including "Politics - The New Black Power." Williams also wrote the critically acclaimed biography, Thurgood Marshall: American Revolutionary, as well as the nonfiction bestseller Eyes on the Prize: America's Civil Rights Years, 1954-1965. In addition, he authored This Far by Faith: Stories from the African American Religious Experience.

The College of Wooster is an independent liberal arts college, nationally recognized for an innovative curriculum that emphasizes mentored, independent research. Each Wooster senior works one-on-one with a faculty adviser to create an original research project, written work, performance or art exhibit. Founded in 1866, the college enrolls approximately 1,800 students.