Male speaker announced for commencement, women voice concerns

It’s been eight years since a woman spoke at Pitt’s graduation ceremonies. And with the… It’s been eight years since a woman spoke at Pitt’s graduation ceremonies. And with the recent announcement of Nobel Prize Laureate Paul C. Lauterbur as this year’s speaker, it will soon be nine years.

This and the fact that there have only been two women who have spoken since 1981 has upset some female Pitt faculty. In 1981, Jeane Kirkpatrick, United States ambassador to the United Nations, spoke, and in 1995, Pitt hosted Marian Edelman, founder and president of the Children’s Defense Force.

However, according to Pitt Associate Chancellor Vijai Singh, this is not something the selection committee he heads has tried to do.

Many women have been invited throughout the years, but for various reasons, including scheduling conflicts, they have not been able to attend.

Singh noted that, at the recent Honors Convocation, a female speaker, Catherine DeAngelis, editor in chief of the Journal of American Medical Association and Pitt alum, gave the keynote speech.

The selection committee receives nominations — normally two to three annually — through an open process, wherein students, faculty members and other people can suggest a person and provide the committee members with information about their nominee’s accomplishments.

The committee then reviews the nominees and does their own research on each person. First, the committee members find a person who has “tremendous stature” and great prominence either at a national or international level. Then, a school or department that the selected person is most closely associated with at Pitt needs to endorse the committee’s decision before it is sent to the chancellor for his approval. In essence, if a well-known opera singer were to be selected by the committee, the music department here would have to approve the decision before the chancellor could also approve it.

Despite that process, Professor Ann Sutherland Harris has described the situation of only two women being selected as being “pretty scandalous.”

According to Vice Provost Elizabeth Baranger, more than half of the graduates receiving bachelors and masters degrees are women. And it is important for them — as well as for the men — to see successful women. She added that it is important for women to be able to have female role models and that many women have come to notice the trend.

Harris added that it is the role of the commencement speaker to inspire and challenge young people who are about to enter the workforce.

Since there are only two major events annually — the Honors Convocation and the graduation ceremony — nominees are not always able to attend, Singh said. However, there are occasions every few years — such as U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s recent visit to Pitt — wherein the chancellor and provost will bestow an honorary degree on people unable to attend either of these annual events when they can visit Pitt’s campus.

According to Singh, some of the women who have been invited and for various reasons have been unable to attend include Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, as well as academics including Nannerl O. Keohane, the president of Duke University, and Judith Roden, the University of Pennsylvania president, among many other accomplished women.

This, though, is not an adequate explanation for Harris, who said Pitt should plan further ahead if scheduling is a problem.

The selection committee, according to Singh, welcomes suggestions from everyone.

The committee does not currently seek out any type of speaker in particular, whether it be a woman or a minority.

In recent years, Pitt has hosted black speakers, including Edelman.

Nonetheless, Singh admitted that he would like to see more women. However, he added, “The committee has no role in who is nominated.”

Harris has suggested that Pitt only look for women speakers for the next five years and then rotate between men and women annually after that.

According to Harris, there should be a real effort to break the tradition of just men speaking at Pitt’s graduation ceremonies.

Despite it being an open process, Harris has said that she does not think many people know about the selection process and their ability to nominate people.

Harris had in mind a few prospective women, such as Maureen Dowd, a New York Times columnist, Linda Greenhouse, a Supreme Court reporter, and women reporters from National Public Radio, such as Cokie Roberts. She also stressed that the speaker needs to be good at public speaking to inspire people.

Baranger said she has already discussed this matter with the Provost Advisory Committee on Women’s Concerns, in which she and other faculty and staff members, as well as students, are involved.