Duke's recent announcement that men's basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski will be the Class of 2016 commencement speaker represents a departure from previous years’ commencement speakers, which include celebrities, Nobel Prize winners and U.S. generals. A look back at some of Duke's recent commencement speakers:
2015:
- Dr. Paul Farmer, Trinity '82, co-founder of Partners in Health, an organization promoting global health
- Encouraged students to empathize with the problems of people different from themselves and come together to find solutions
- Widely criticized for "failing to get any points across"
2014:
- General Martin E. Dempsey, Graduate School '84
- Stressed the maintenance, not just attainment, of pre-professional and academic skills learned at Duke
- Highlighted the importance of maintaining one's "moral compass"
2013:
- Businesswoman Melinda Gates, Trinity '86 and Fuqua '87
- Discussed the transformative power of technology and advised Duke students to take advantage of the rapid pace of innovation
- Encouraged millenials to use the Internet as a medium for creating meaningful interactions
2012:
- Fareed Zakaria, author and host of CNN's Fareed Zakaria GPS.
- Compared the United States' ability to overcome economic and political problems with students' ability to overcome challenges
- Panned by students for presenting almost the exact same speech as one he gave at Harvard University later that month
2011:
- John Chambers, former Chief Executive Officer of Cisco Systems
- Described the three great equalizers in life—education, internet usage and social network collaboration
- Emphasized how the challenges graduates face is the only true constant in most students' lives
2010:
- Muhammad Yunus, Nobel Peace Prize winner and Bangladeshi economist
- Implored students to dedicate their lives to tackling social problems, adding that each has the potential to change the world using skills learned at Duke
- Received praise from students, with many saying that Yunus' humanitarian work was fitting given students' transformation from college students to global citizens
2009:
- Oprah Winfrey, philanthropist and former talk show host
- Her godson, William Bumpus, was one of the many graduates in attendance
- Offered anecdotes of herself and famous others finding success by bouncing back from failure
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