Emory University announced that Dr. Anthony Fauci is slated to deliver the 2021 Commencement address for the Emory College of Arts and Sciences in a virtual ceremony, avoiding gatherings as the pandemic continues.
Fauci, who has served as the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the U.S. Institutes of Health for nearly four decades, will also receive the Emory University President’s Medal, according to an Emory University press release.
Emory University noted that Fauci will be the sixth recipient of both of the university’s highest awards: the President’s Medal, and an honorary degree.
“I cannot think of a more inspiring person than Dr. Fauci to address the Class of 2021, whose Emory experience has been so dramatically shaped by the pandemic, and whose resilience and determination have inspired us again and again,” Emory President Gregory L. Fenves said in the release. “During the past year, Dr. Fauci’s name has become synonymous with truth, clarity and medical expertise. As chief physician to our country in the midst of a pandemic, he has become one of the most trusted voices in medicine for millions of Americans, and we are excited to honor him as part of Emory’s 176th Commencement.”
Fauci will deliver his address from Washington D.C. on May 16 at 10 a.m. The university’s nine schools and colleges will hold socially-distanced ceremonies from May 14 through 16 at the Georgia World Congress Center because of the pandemic, according to the release. In-person ceremonies will also be available to stream online.
“Emory’s motto, ‘the wise heart seeks knowledge,’ is exemplified by Dr. Fauci’s many decades of public service,” Fenves added. “Indeed, it is his wise heart, and the knowledge he has provided, that have helped us get through a year like no other.”
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