The year was 2006, and Xavier president Norman C. Francis was hoping to identify somebody special to address graduating seniors in their first Commencement since the campus had recovered from Hurricane Katrina's devastation less than a year before.
Who knew at that time that the promising young public servant selected for the task -- U.S. Senator Barack Obama of Illinois -- would go on to be elected as the 44th President of the United States, and the first African American president in the nation's history?
We are proud to have bestowed an Honorary Degree on then-Senator Obama in 2006, likewise we are proud to be able to offer our XULA web visitors this opportunity to view that speech as it was delivered to our graduates.
