February 2012
Dear Seniors and Guests of the Class of 2012:
I look forward to welcoming you, on behalf of the Skidmore College community, to the 101st Commencement Exercises on Saturday, May 19, 2012, at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
We hope that when you read the accompanying schedule of activities for Commencement Weekend, you will be as full of anticipation as we are. My wife Marie and I especially look forward to your joining us for a reception late Friday afternoon at historic Scribner House, our residence and the former home of Lucy Skidmore Scribner.
We are very proud to announce that at this year’s Commencement ceremony Skidmore will confer honorary degrees upon three exceptional individuals:
· Terence Blanchard, jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, arranger, and multiple Grammy Award winner. Invited to participate in pre-orientation, Blanchard was a model for first-year students when they arrived in September 2008, and is committed to the rigorous education of college students, the critical connections between art and learning, and the general betterment of the world around him.
· Ron Chernow, American biographer whose books have won multiple awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for Washington: A Life, and the National Book Award for The House of Morgan: An American Banking Dynasty and the Rise of Modern Finance. Chernow is past president of the Board of Trustees and currently a vice president for the PEN American Center, the eastern U.S. branch of International PEN, the literary and human rights organization.
· Suzanne Corbet Thomas, Class of 1962, chair of the Board of Trustees from 2002 – 2008, member of the Board since 1989, and the ultimate Skidmore ambassador, Thomas has worked tirelessly on behalf of the College and has provided leadership in numerous volunteer roles, including the highly successful Creative Thought Bold Promise Campaign.
Each of our distinguished guests will briefly address the graduating class. Janet Lucas Whitman ‘59, chair of the board of trustees; Melvis Langyintuo, president of the Class of 2012; and I will also offer our congratulations.
The entire Skidmore community joins me in expressing our great pride in the accomplishments of the Class of 2012. We look forward to celebrating with you in May.
Sincerely,
President
