Oregon Supreme Court Justice Paul DeMuniz will be the speaker for this year���s commencement ceremony.
The commencement ceremony for graduating seniors will be June 17 at 10 a.m. in the Rose Garden Arena. Tickets are not required for the event and seating will be on a first come, first serve basis.
According to Jeanie-Marie Price, director of marketing and communications at Portland State, DeMuniz was chosen to speak at the commencement ceremony because of his commitment to his community and to Oregonians.
DeMuniz graduated from Portland State in 1972, and is the first latino-American elected to the Oregon Supreme Court.
���He represents what it is to be a Portland State alumni to the highest degree,���� Price said.
Price said that DeMuniz has clearly chosen a path to follow that the PSU president and administration are very proud of.
In 1990 DeMuniz was elected into the Oregon Court of Appeals and was reelected to the position in 1996.
DeMuniz also had a private law practice and was the Deputy Public Defender from 1975 to 1977.
He is involved with the community in many ways. DeMuniz is a part of the Oregon Supreme Court Access to Justice for All committee and the Commission on Judicial Fitness.
He served in the U.S. Air Force and is a Vietnam veteran.
In 1998 DeMuniz was appointed by the U.S. secretary of defense to the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services.
DeMuniz is currently very active in many youth programs. He is involved in the North Salem High School mock trial team.
Two students also will speak at the commencement and they are chosen by the same standards.
They are meant to embody Portland State’s university mission statement as well as have the potential to be outstanding alumni.
This year Jesse Cornett and Barbara Reynolds are the students chosen to speak.Students were nominated and given the opportunity to apply to speak at graduation. They were then given an interview and asked to present the speech that they planned to give during the commencement.
For more information visit http://ess.pdx.edu/adm/commencement or call (503) 725-4910.