Senator Carl Levin to Address 2008 Graduates

US Senator Carl Levin will deliver the commencement address Saturday, May 3, during graduation ceremonies at Michigan Technological University.

Named one of "America’s 10 Best Senators" by Time magazine, Levin, a Detroit-born Democrat, has represented Michigan in the Senate for 30 years and now chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Levin will receive an Honorary Doctorate in Engineering. At the ceremony, the University will honor the achievements of nearly 1,000 graduates. An estimated 758 bachelor's degrees, 13 associate's degrees, 177 master’s degrees and 41 PhDs will be awarded. During the ceremony, the University will give a degree to its 10,000th female graduate, a milestone at a time when the enrollment of women is on the rise.

“Michigan Tech owes a huge debt of gratitude to Senator Levin for his support of education at all levels, both throughout the nation and at the University,” said Michigan Tech President Glenn D. Mroz. “We are honored that one of America’s true statesmen will address the Class of 2008.”

A strong supporter of national defense, Levin opposed the 2003 invasion of Iraq as a diversion from the war on terror. He has led efforts to block the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and supported arms control agreements. He spearheaded passage of the Dignified Treatment of Wounded Warriors Act, which reforms medical care and support for troops and veterans. And he helped pass the Acquisition Improvement and Accountability Act, which requires private security contractors in a war zone to comply with Defense Department rules.

The Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt Institute awarded Levin its 2007 Four Freedoms Medal for asserting the Senate’s role in foreign and military policy. And the National Guard Association presented Levin with its 2004 Harry S. Truman Award for distinguished service in support of national defense.

A fighter for openness in government, he applied the same standards to business, leading an inquiry into the Enron affair that eventually resulted in the stricter accounting standards of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.

Levin co-chairs the Senate Great Lakes Task Force and has supported a number of laws to protect the lakes’ historic and environmental treasures. He also co-chairs the Senate Auto Caucus and the Senate Auto Parts Task Force, dedicated to opening world markets to US manufactured goods.

Levin praised Michigan Tech’s decision to offer in-state tuition to members of the military and their families. He is a longtime supporter of University education, research and development programs in nanotechnology, climate change and defense, from the Aspen FACE climate-change research center in Rhinelander, Wis., to the Seaman Mineral Museum.

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigan’s flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.