RADFORD, Va. – Sen. Tim Kaine will serve as the keynote speaker for the 2018 spring commencement at 11 a.m. on Saturday, May 5, on the Moffett Lawn, where 1,700 students are expected to graduate.
"I'm thrilled to be a part of Radford University's commencement," said Kaine. "It's an honor to join the graduating class as we celebrate their accomplishments and send them off to the next chapter of opportunities."
Kaine was first elected to public office in 1994, serving as a city council member and then as mayor of Richmond. He became lieutenant governor of Virginia in 2002 and was inaugurated as Virginia's 70th governor in 2006.
Elected to the Senate in 2012, Kaine serves on the Armed Services, Budget, Foreign Relations and Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committees. He is a ranking member of the Armed Services Readiness Subcommittee and the Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia and Counterterrorism.
"Radford University is honored to celebrate the academic achievement and success of the class of 2018 with Senator Tim Kaine," said President Brian O. Hemphill. "Senator Kaine's reflections on leadership at the highest levels and service to the Commonwealth of Virginia and its citizens reflect Radford's focus on teaching, research and service."
Kaine grew up working in his father's iron-working shop in Kansas City. He attended the University of Missouri and Harvard Law School and started his public service career by taking a year off from Harvard to run a technical school founded by Jesuit missionaries in Honduras. After law school, he practiced law in Richmond for 17 years.