Pepperdine University to Celebrate Class of 2022 at Commencement Ceremonies
Pepperdine University will host commencement ceremonies for Seaver College, the Caruso School of Law, the Graziadio Business School, the Graduate School of Education and Psychology, and the School of Public Policy on the Malibu campus throughout April and May. The ceremonies will feature a robust lineup of speakers who will address the graduates as they embark on the next chapter of their lives.
The School of Public Policy will open the commencement season on Friday, April 22,
2022, at 10:30 AM. Hattie Mitchell (MPP ’12) will be honored as the school’s distinguished
alumnus and deliver the commencement address. Mitchell is the founder of Crete Academy,
a nonprofit charter school that provides educational and other resources to children
experiencing poverty or homelessness in South Los Angeles. The academy’s model incorporates
the development of critical thinking, personal character, and appreciation for diversity
into a larger goal of preparing young students for higher levels of education.
On Saturday, April 23, 2022, at 10 AM, the Graziadio Business School Class of 2022
will hear a commencement address from distinguished alumnus Thomas Magnuson (MBA ’89).
Magnuson is the cofounder and chief executive officer of Magnuson Hotels, a franchise
hotel organization that he and his wife formed in 2003 to help independently owned
hotels expand and maximize their profitability. The organization was ranked as the
number one hotel company in Inc. magazine’s 2009 and 2010 annual rankings of the 5,000 fastest-growing privately
owned US companies and now serves thousands of hotel owners and guests worldwide.
Seaver College will honor Samuel D. Schmidt (’86, MBA ’87) with an honorary doctorate
during the proceedings on Saturday, April 30, 2022, at 10:30 AM. Following a life-altering
crash in 2000 that rendered him a person with quadriplegia, Schmidt focused his energy
on advocating for members of the disability community. He is chair of the board for
Conquer Paralysis Now (CPN), a Las Vegas-based nonprofit that funds research and treatment
efforts to find a cure for paralysis. In 2018, CPN opened DRIVEN NeuroRecovery Center,
a resource for those with neurological disorders to receive therapy and use inclusively
designed fitness equipment. Schmidt also serves on the board of directors for BraunAbility,
which creates wheelchair-accessible vehicles adapted for more widespread mobility
that are used in more than 70 nations.
The Honorable Mary Murguia will deliver the commencement address to the Caruso School
of Law Class of 2022 on Friday, May 20, 2022, at 10:30 AM. Nominated to the United
States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit by former president Barack Obama, Murguia
has served the court since 2011 and was named chief judge in 2021. Chief Judge Murguia
was first appointed to the federal bench as a judge in the United States District
Court for the District of Arizona, but her career in public service began upon her
graduation from law school as an assistant district attorney in the Wyandotte County
district attorney’s office. The Honorable Jeffrey S. Boyd (JD ’91) will also be honored
as a distinguished alumnus during the ceremony. Boyd serves as a justice on the Supreme
Court of Texas, appointed to the seat in 2012 by governor Rick Perry and elected to
six-year terms in 2014 and 2020.
The Graduate School of Education and Psychology will close out the spring commencement
season on Saturday, May 21, 2022, with two ceremonies. At 10 AM distinguished alumnus
Edrick H. Dorian (PsyD ’03) will deliver the commencement address to the Psychology
Division’s Class of 2022. Dorian is the chief police psychologist of the Los Angeles
Police Department and oversees the Behavioral Sciences Services division. His team
of substance abuse counselors, a dietitian, and fellow police psychologists provides
training, therapy, and crisis support for the department’s personnel. The Education
Division will celebrate the Class of 2022 at 2:30 PM and hear from Chesley Burnett
“Sully” Sullenberger III, who will receive an honorary doctorate. Ambassador Sullenberger
has a long history of service and safety advocacy in the aviation industry and is
known for his exceptional courage and judgment when he and his crew safely guided
US Airways Flight 1549 to an emergency water landing in New York City’s Hudson River.
He was sworn in as US Representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization
in 2021.
To learn more about each ceremony, visit the Pepperdine University Commencement website.