At Commencement in June, eight-time Wimbledon champion and philanthropist Roger Federer delivered his now famous wisdom to the Class of 2024: “Effortlessness is a myth. It’s only a point. Life is bigger than the court.”
The effort that led the tennis great to stand behind the Lone Pine podium?
A member of the Dartmouth community—an undergraduate member of the Class of 2024, in fact—nominated him for the honor.
This year, the Class of 2025 has the chance to nominate their own commencement speaker, as well as the individuals who will receive honorary degrees at the June 15, 2025, ceremony.
When the nomination period opens on Monday, President Sian Leah Beilock will invite the graduating class—undergraduates and graduate and professional school students—as well as all other students, faculty, staff, alumni, parents of current students, and anyone else with a Dartmouth affiliation, to put forward names for the 2025 Commencement speaker and honorary degree recipients.
The nomination period runs from Sept. 16 to Sept. 30. The nomination form will be live on Monday.
“It’s as easy as filling out a form on the website,” President Beilock says. “We depend on these nominations to identify the individuals whose values and contributions in their respective fields and to society have been extraordinary—people who reflect our community’s highest ideals and who can inspire our graduates to their highest aspirations.”
Once the nomination period closes, Beilock will work with the Council on Honorary Degrees and the Board of Trustees to finalize the selections. The honorary degrees are awarded to the Commencement speaker and a select group of other individuals representing arts and humanities, the sciences, business and industry, or public service who have made outstanding contributions to their respective fields or to society as a whole. Recipients will be announced in the spring.
Past honorary degree recipients include former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former president George H.W. Bush, historians Eric Foner and Annette Gordon-Reed ’81, Nobel Laureate Louise Glück, astronaut Mae Jemison, actors Mindy Kaling ’01 and Ruby Dee, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, baseball legend Willie Mays, AI innovator Mira Murati, Thayer ’12, and TV showrunner and Shondaland founder and CEO Shonda Rhimes ’91.
