UNESCO Director-General Irina Bokova to Address UMass Boston Class of 2017

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Biomedical Researcher and Investor Gerald Chan to Deliver Keynote Address at Graduate Ceremony Irina Bokova, the first woman and first Eastern European to serve as the director-general of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), will deliver the keynote address at the University of Massachusetts Boston’s 49th undergraduate commencement on Friday, May 26, at the TD Garden.

Bokova is a veteran international diplomat who has fought for women’s rights and against racism and anti-Semitism, and has combatted the financing of terrorist acts through illicit trafficking in cultural goods.  She will receive an honorary Doctor of Science degree for her service and commitment to equal education and human rights throughout the world.

UMass Boston will award degrees to more than 4,100 graduates this year. To accommodate the record numbers, the university will hold two commencement ceremonies. The undergraduate ceremony will be held Friday, May 26 at 9:30 a.m. in the TD Garden. The graduate ceremony will be held on Thursday, May 25 at 3 p.m. at the Blue Hills Pavilion, by the Boston Harbor. For more information, visit www.umb.edu/commencement.

Gerald Chan, a biomedical researcher and investor who pioneered the treatment of cancer with oncolytic viruses, cancer vaccines, next-generation chemotherapeutic agents, and biologics that modify the tumor micro-environment, will deliver the keynote address at the graduate ceremony. He will be honored with an honorary Doctor of Science degree for his innovative work in biotechnology.

Chan, a native of Hong Kong, has worked on novel antibiotics, affordable prophylactic vaccines, and antiviral drugs. In neurology, he worked on groundbreaking treatments for Alzheimer's disease, traumatic brain injury, and autism.

Bokova and Chan will be joined by honorees Eileen Pollack, the prolific, award-winning author of such works as Woman Walking Ahead: In Search of Catherine Weldon and Sitting Bull; Richard Holbrook, former chairman and chief executive of Eastern Bank; Pedro Rosselló, the seventh ...

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