U.S. Secretary of Defense Llyod Austin to address South Carolina State graduates

ORANGEBURG, S.C. (WCBD)- U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will speak to South Carolina State University graduates as part of spring commencement exercises, university officials announced Monday.

Austin will address the Class of 2024 on Friday, May 10 at Oliver C. Dawson Stadium.

“We are excited that Secretary Austin has agreed to share his wisdom with our graduating students,” said SC State President Alexander Conyers. “He knows what it means to succeed in the face of tremendous adversity, and our graduates must have the same determination as they set forth on the next phases of their journeys.”

Austin was confirmed by the Senate in January 2021, becoming the nation’s first Black defense secretary. That same year he addressed graduates of the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Information and Communications, and the South Carolina Honors College during spring commencement at the University of South Carolina.

Conyers and SC State Board of Trustees member Douglass Grant will also make remarks at Friday’s ceremony, which is set to begin at 10 a.m.

The ceremony will be live-streamed here.