College of Communication Commencement Ceremony May 18

Event: The College of Communication will confer degrees on 671 undergraduate students at the spring commencement ceremony. An additional 208 students will participate in the ceremony, but will receive their degrees this summer.

When: 3 to 5:30 p.m., Friday, May 18, 2007

Where: Frank Erwin Center, 1701 Red River St. (Maps are available at www.utexas.edu/maps). Friends and family unable to attend the ceremony in person can watch the live Webcast.

Background: James C. Oberwetter, former U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia and a College of Communication alum, will deliver the College of Communication commencement address.

Oberwetter was sworn in as U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on Jan. 8, 2004.

Prior to becoming Ambassador, Oberwetter served as senior vice president of governmental and political affairs for Hunt Consolidated, Inc., a Dallas based company he joined in 1974. Earlier, the ambassador was press secretary for then-Houston Congressman George H.W. Bush. He also worked for the U.S. government as special assistant to the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.

A native of Texas, Ambassador Oberwetter has been an active member of many community service organizations in his home state, as well as in professional associations. He was appointed Chairman of the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse from 1996-2001 by then-Governor George W. Bush. Among other honors, Ambassador Oberwetter is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Texas Parent-Teachers Association. He was for many years a member of the American Petroleum Institute’s Communications Committee, and has served as its chairman.

He earned a Bachelor degree of Journalism from The University of Texas at Austin.

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Contact:
Cindy Patino
(512) 475-9166