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Commencement Speakers

West Virginia University Parkersburg Center

Parkersburg Community College

West Virginia University at Parkersburg

 

May, 1967 –  Dean Carl M. Frasure

May, 1969 – Congressman Ken Hechler, U.S. House of Representatives, 4th District

May, 1970 - Dr. F.L. Blair, West Virginia Board of Regents

May 1971 - Dr. William P. Turner, Director of Academic Affairs, West Virginia Board of Regents

May 1972 – Dr. Robert Stauffer, president, Parkersburg Community College

May 1973 - Dr. Merrill Patterson, academic dean emeritus, Marietta College

May 1974 - Dr. Joseph Semrow, Executive Director, North Central Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools

May 1975 - Senator Robert C. Byrd, U.S. Senate

June 1975 - James McCartney, WV Secretary of State

May 1976 – Student Speakers:  Candi Kirby and Kandy Noland

June 1976 – Rev. Elaine Buker, Associate Minister, St. Paul Methodist Church

May 1977 – Dr. Ben Morton, Chancellor, West Virginia Board of Regents

June 1977 – Sister Asunta Damron, Administrative Vice President and Director of Nursing, St. Joseph’s Hospital

May 1978 – Jim Braxton, professional football player, Buffalo Bills

May 1979 – Dr. Byron McClenney, President, Parkersburg Community College

May 1980 – Thomas Sullivan, President, Walker-Parkersburg Division of Textron Inc.

May 1981 – Gretchen Lewis, Commissioner, WV Workmen’s Compensation Fund

May 1982 – Dr. Eldon Miller, President, Parkersburg Community College

May 1983 – Del. Joseph P. Albright, West Virginia House of Delegates

May, 1984 – Michel McIntosh, M.D., Class of 1971

May 1985 – Dr. Samuel A. Harford, Professor Emeritus, Parkersburg Community College

May 1986 – Niki Wenger, Parkersburg resident; National Finalist for NASA’s Teacher in Space Project

May 1987 – Dr. Thomas Cole Jr., Chancellor, West Virginia Board of Regents

May 1988 – Dr. James Rowley, President, West Virginia College of Graduate Studies

May 1989 – Senator Keith Burdette, WV State Senate

May 1990 – David Hardesty Jr., Chairman, University of West Virginia Board of Trustees

May 1991 – Richard Adams, Member, University of West Virginia Board of Trustees

May 1992 – Dr. Charles Manning, Chancellor, University of West Virginia Board of Trustees

May 1993 – Deborah Seldomridge, 1993 West Virginia State Teacher of the Year

May 1994 – Dr. Barbara Harmon-Schamberger, West Virginia Secretary of Education and the Arts

May 1995 – Dr. Neil Bucklew, President, West Virginia University

May 1996 – Dr. Bernard Allen, Professor of History and Philosophy, WVU Parkersburg 

May 1997 – David C, Hardesty Jr., President, West Virginia University

December 1997 – Ron Atkinson, Professor/Chair, Social Sciences Division, WVU Parkersburg

May 1998 – Phyllis Arnold, Member, University of WV Board of Trustees

December 1998 – Judith Osbourne, Professor of Nursing, WVU Parkersburg 

May 1999 – David Ice, Cabinet Secretary, WV Department of Education and the Arts

December 1999 – Dr. Eldon Miller, President, WVU Parkersburg

May 2000  - Dr. Gerald Lang, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and Research, WVU 

December 2000 – Roger Allen, Professor of Speech, WVU Parkersburg

May 2001 – Dr. Erik Bitterbaum, President, WVU Parkersburg

December 2001 – Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary, WV Department of Education and the Arts

May 2002 – Jimmy Colombo, Mayor of Parkersburg 

December 2002 – Lewis Rutherford, Professor of Speech, WVU Parkersburg 

May 2003 - Keith Burdette, Senior Assistant for Policy and Legislative Issues to WV Governor Bob Wise

December 2003 – Wes Bargeloh, Professor of Chemistry, WVU Parkersburg

May 2004 – Ragina Copeland, Professor of English, WVU Parkersburg

December 2004 – Dottie Bibbee, Professor of Journalism, WVU Parkersburg

May 2005 – Dr. Marie Foster Gnage, President, WVU Parkersburg

December 2005 – Major General Allen E. Tackett, Adjutant General, West Virginia National Guard

May 2006 – Emily Lamb, Professor of English and Reading, WVU Parkersburg

December 2006 – Pamela Tanner Boll, Academy-Award winning producer; philanthropist

May 2007 – Joseph Badgley, Executive Dean of Academic Affairs, WVU Parkersburg

December 2007 – Jeannette Walls, WV native and award-winning author of “The Glass Castle”

May 2008 - Robert H. Foglesong, Retired U.S. Air Force Four-Star General; Founder, Appalachian Leadership and Education Foundation

December 2008 - Betty Ireland, West Virginia Secretary of State

May 2009 - Bray Cary, President/CEO, West Virginia Media

December 2009 - David C. Hardesty, Jr., President Emeritus, West Virginia University; Professor of Law, WVU

May 2010 - Richard M. Adams Jr., President of United National Bank, Inc.; Executive Vice President of United Bankshares, Inc.

December 2010 - Earl Ray Tomblin, Governor, West Virginia

May 2011 - Admiral T. Joseph Lopez, retired U.S. Navy



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