By Jill Rodrigues
Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and chief medical advisor to the president of the United States, will deliver the keynote speech and receive an honorary degree at the Roger Williams University Commencement ceremony on Friday, May 20.
Dr. Fauci has worked at the forefront of the Covid-19 pandemic, where his leadership across seven presidencies serves as testimony to his steady hand and strategic decision-making in guiding our nation’s health and well-being.
“The ability to synthesize vast amounts of information and to make decisions that consider health, science, cultural, legal and political implications, is the type of education we strive to offer our students. Dr. Fauci’s experience throughout his career, but especially over the last two years, has modeled how to do this exceptionally well and provides a real-world example to our students as they enter a complex world,” said RWU President Ioannis N. Miaoulis. “We are thrilled to have Dr. Fauci join our distinguished group of honorary degree recipients and address our graduates and their families. We cannot imagine a more ideal leader to share insights on tackling monumental challenges and to inspire our graduates on how best to thrive in today’s global society.”
An RWU education embodies interdisciplinary thinking and well-rounded knowledge in each of our students across eight schools of study, and that is especially seen in Public Health, one of our fastest growing undergraduate majors. Those who work in public health also require a level of compassion for all people and a dedication to improving lives – both hallmarks of Roger Williams’ distinctive commitment to providing every student with meaningful opportunities to put their knowledge and skills to practice through community-engaged work.
Dr. Fauci has served as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) at the U.S. National Institutes of Health since 1984. As the long-time chief of the NIAID Laboratory of Immunoregulation, he has made many seminal contributions in basic and clinical research and is one of the world’s most-cited biomedical scientists. He has advised seven presidents on HIV/AIDS and many other domestic and global health issues. He was one of the principal architects of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a program that has saved millions of lives throughout the developing world.
Dr. Fauci has delivered lectures all over the world and received numerous prestigious awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom (the highest honor given to a civilian by the president of the United States) and the National Medal of Science.
On Friday, May 20, Roger Williams University will convene a university-wide Commencement celebration of the undergraduate, graduate and law students graduating in the Class of 2022 with a specially designed in-person ceremony. This is the first time RWU’s Commencement will honor all graduates in a single ceremony, with a main ceremony in the morning followed by individual School ceremonies. The university ceremony will take place on the main athletic field. The processional steps off at 8:45 a.m. with the ceremony beginning at 9:30 a.m.
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