Outgoing Loyola Marymount University President David W. Burcham and producer-screenwriter Roberto Orci will be the commencement speakers at Loyola Marymount University’s undergraduate and graduate ceremonies on the weekend of May 9-10.
Burcham will speak at the undergraduate ceremony on Saturday, May 9, at 9:30 a.m. in the Sunken Garden. He has been president of LMU since 2010 and last year announced his intention to step down from his post, effective June 1.
Under Burcham’s leadership, the university has set records for the number of freshman applicants and implemented a new core curriculum for undergraduate study. Burcham launched an initiative to raise $100 million for student scholarship, which is more than halfway complete, and the new Life Sciences Building begun during his tenure will be finished this year. He is a former dean of Loyola Law School in downtown Los Angeles, and will also speak at the law school commencement ceremony.
Orci, a visiting artist in the School of Film and Television, will address the graduate commencement, which is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 10. Orci has co-written or produced numerous blockbuster films, including Transformers, Star Trek, Now You See Me and The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and the television programs Alias, Hawaii Five-0, and Scorpion, among many others.
More than 1,400 Bachelor of Science and Bachelor of Arts degrees will be conferred at the Saturday ceremony, and more than 700 graduate degrees will be conferred on Sunday. Both commencement ceremonies will be streamed live at www.lmu.edu.
