Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation, named 2017 Commencement Speaker for the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies
MEDIA ADVISORY
Ford Foundation President Darren Walker will deliver the keynote address during the 2017 commencement ceremony for the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) on Thursday, May 25, 2017, at D.A.R. Constitution Hall.
Walker – president of the nation’s second largest philanthropy – has been a leader in the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors for two decades. He led the philanthropy committee that helped bring a resolution to the city of Detroit’s historic bankruptcy and chairs the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance.
Prior to joining Ford, Walker was vice president at the Rockefeller Foundation where he managed the rebuild New Orleans initiative after Hurricane Katrina. In the 1990s, as COO of Harlem’s largest community development organization, the Abyssinian Development Corporation, Walker oversaw a comprehensive revitalization program of central Harlem, including over 1,000 new units of housing. Walker had a decade long career in international law and finance at Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton and UBS.
He is a member of the Commission on the Future of Riker’s Island and serves on the boards of Carnegie Hall, New York City Ballet, the High Line, the Arcus Foundation, and PepsiCo. Educated exclusively in public schools, Walker received the “Distinguished Alumnus Award,” the highest honor given by his alma mater, the University of Texas at Austin. In 2016, TIME magazine named him to its annual list of the “100 Most Influential People in the World.” He is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the recipient of 10 honorary degrees and university awards.
Walker will address more than 3,000 graduates, faculty, staff, family, and friends in the Johns Hopkins SAIS community. The school will confer degrees to more than 500 students in the Master of Arts, Master of Arts in International Economics and Finance, Master of Arts in Global Policy, Master of International Public Policy, and Doctorate programs.
Members of the press who would like to cover Mr. Walker’s speech are required to register in advance.
Media Contact
Stacy A. Anderson
Communications Manager
Johns Hopkins SAIS
202.663.5620 office
202.853.7983 mobile
[email protected]
About Johns Hopkins SAIS
A division of Johns Hopkins University, the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) is a global institution that offers students an international perspective on today’s critical issues. For nearly 75 years, Johns Hopkins SAIS has produced great leaders, thinkers, and practitioners of international relations. Public leaders and private sector executives alike seek the counsel of the faculty, whose ideas and research inform and shape policy. Johns Hopkins SAIS offers a global perspective across three campus locations: Bologna, Italy; Nanjing, China; and Washington, D.C. The school’s interdisciplinary curriculum is strongly rooted in the study of international economics, international relations, and regional studies, preparing students to address multifaceted challenges in the world today.
About the Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is an independent, nonprofit grant-making organization. For more than 75 years it has worked with courageous people on the frontlines of social change worldwide, guided by its mission to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. With headquarters in New York, the foundation has offices in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia.
A live webcast of the entire commencement ceremony will be accessible at 2017 Johns Hopkins SAIS Commencement. For more information, visit sais-jhu.edu or @SAISHopkins
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