Speakers at Annual Baccalaureate and Commencement Exercises at Centenary College of Louisiana, 1980 to Present
1980, Lt. Gen. Richard L. Lawson, Former Commander of the 8th Air Force at Barksdale Air Force Base
1981, Dr. E. Grady Bogue, Chancellor of Louisiana State University in Shreveport
1982, John F. Bookout, Jr. '50, Alumnus, President and Chief Executive Officer at Shell Oil Co.
1984, Henry H. King, President of Texas Eastern Corporation
1985, Dr. Charles T. Beaird '66, Adjunct Professor of Philosophy and Publisher of The Shreveport Journal
1986, The Reverend Walter L. Underwood, Bishop, Louisiana United Methodist Church
1987, James Surls, Artist and Poet
1988, J. Bennett Johnston '54, Senator, State of Louisiana
1989, Charles "Buddy" Roemer, Governor, State of Louisiana
1990, Dr. William B. Oden, Bishop of the Louisiana United Methodist Conference
1991, Eudora Welty, Poet
1992, Ernest Boyer, Head of the Carnegie Foundation
1993, Michael E. DeBakey, Heart Surgeon
1994, Thomas F. "Mack" McLarty, White House Chief of Staff
1995, The Honorable Lindy Boggs, former Congresswoman
1996, Dianna A. Redburn '64, Vision Researcher
1997, Daniel S. Goldin, Administrator of NASA
1998, Scott Simon, National Public Radio Host
1999, Sara Fritz, Editor, Congressional Quarterly Weekly
2000, Barbara Bush, former First Lady
2001, Brian Lamb, President and CEO of C-SPAN
2002, The Reverend Martin Marty, Noted Theologian
2003, Miles Hoffman, Violist and NPR Commentator
2004, The Honorable Jim McCrery, Congressman from Louisiana's 4th District
2005, Mark Fischetti, Science Writer and Editor
2006, Norman Francis, President, Xavier University, and Chair, Louisiana Recovery Authority
2007, Madeleine Green, Vice President, American Council on Education