Leader of Gates Foundation to speak at Sinclair graduation

The CEO of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation will serve as the commencement speaker at Sinclair Community College’s graduation ceremony.

Sue Desmond-Hellmann will address graduates in a 6 p.m. ceremony on Sunday at the University of Dayton Arena. Desmond-Hellmann was selected, in part because of the foundation’s support for an initiative that seeks to improve college graduation rates.

Sinclair will award a record number of degrees and certificates to 4,600 students this spring, according to the school. In total, around 1,840 students will earn an associate’s degree and close to another 3,000 will earn a certificate.

The record means Sinclair has nearly doubled the number of credentials it is awarding this spring than it did 10 years ago.

The community college is also awarding a record number of credentials to women, minorities and African-American men. An estimated 2,261 women will receive a credential as will 627 minority students and 195 African-American men, according to the school.

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