Former U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder will address the graduating class of 2023 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison spring commencement ceremony this May.
Holder served under the Obama administration as attorney general from 2009-2015. He was the first African-American to hold the position, according to the university release. A Columbia University graduate, Holder served in the U.S. government for over 30 years under the Obama, Clinton and Reagan administrations.
“It will be a great honor to welcome Attorney General Holder to Camp Randall,” Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin said in the university press release. “He is an accomplished attorney and internationally recognized leader with an impressive history of public service. I know his charge to our graduates will be thought-provoking and inspiring.”
The speaker was chosen through collaboration between the Senior Class Office and Chancellor’s office.
“Attorney General Holder is a trailblazer whose drive for excellence and humanity as a public servant aligns perfectly with our values as a university to shape a better world than the one we found. We are thrilled that he accepted our invitation to address the UW-Madison Class of 2023,” Senior Class Office President Liam McClean said.
However, this will not be Holder’s first time speaking on campus: he was a keynote speaker for the Law School hooding ceremony in 2016, and his daughter graduated from UW-Madison in 2020.
Past commencement speakers include Charlie Berens, a comedian who spoke at winter commencement, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield last spring and former NFL star and badger-alum J.J. Watt in 2019.
Commencement will take place Saturday, May 13, at Camp Randall.
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