University Statement Regarding Commencement Speaker Choice

American actor, film director and humanitarian Danny Glover will speak at Utah State University’s 123rd annual commencement ceremony on May 8. Mr. Glover’s selection was vetted by a university committee and ratified by the university’s Board of Trustees.

 

Mr. Glover has notable USU connections. He is currently in the process of developing a film about USU football player Lionel Aldridge, who had a successful career in the National Football League but also struggled with mental illness. And Mr. Glover came several years ago to campus and spoke about the poet Langston Hughes.

 

With the formation of the new Caine College of the Arts and the university’s well-known performing arts programs, it is especially fitting to have a person of Mr. Glover’s skills and distinctions as an actor and to provide opportunities for our students to hear, up close, from a man of such notable career accomplishments.

 

Mr. Glover is known for his involvement in social issues and causes, as well, focusing on poverty, disease, and economic development in Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. He has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2004.

 

Since the media announcement, the university has already received several emails and phone calls from individuals who have expressed concern over Mr. Glover’s political activism. The participation of any or our speakers on campus does not imply endorsement of their political views or social stands. The university does, however, strongly advocate providing opportunities for its students to be exposed to a wide range of expression and thought. It is a longstanding tradition of higher education to confront ideas, even if everyone may not necessarily agree with them.