University holds 16th graduation ceremony May 19

Dr. Alice Rivlin, a member of President Barack Obama's National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, founding director of the Congressional Budget Office and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, will deliver the keynote address at CSU Monterey Bay’s commencement ceremony on May 19.

As part of the ceremony, Dr. Rivlin will be awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Dr. Rivlin served as the first director of the Congressional Budget Office from 1975 to 1983. During the Clinton administration, she was director of the Office of Management and Budget from 1994 to 1996, becoming the first woman to hold the Cabinet-level position. She served as governor and vice chairwoman of the Federal Reserve from 1996 to 1999. “CSU Monterey Bay is very pleased to have a commencement speaker of such national prominence,” President Dianne Harrison said. “She has played an important role in some of the most important economic decisions affecting our country," Dr. Harrison said. “Given the current economic conditions, I cannot imagine better timing for our students to hear from Dr. Rivlin. I am confident that our faculty and students will come away with a better understanding of the forces shaping our future economic outlook." Known for her effectiveness in working in a bipartisan manner, Dr. Rivlin is a key participant in the effort to curb the deficit and overhaul the tax code. In February, the Washington Post called her “the budget wonk's budget wonk.” She was appointed by President Obama to the Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, co-chaired by Democrat Erskine Bowles and Republican Alan Simpson. Two years ago, the commission recommended an overhaul of the U.S. tax code that would lower rates and raise net revenue in order the trim the deficit. Dr. Rivlin also co-chaired with former Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., the Bipartisan Policy Center's Task Force on Debt Reduction. From 1998 to 2001, she chaired the District of Columbia Financial Management Assistance Authority. A frequent contributor to newspapers and television news programs, Dr. Rivlin is a regular contributor to the "Nightly Business Report" on PBS. Her books include "Systematic Thinking for Social Action" (1971), "Reviving the American Dream" (1992) and "Beyond the Dot.coms" (2001). She is co-author of "Restoring Fiscal Sanity: How to Balance the Budget" (2004) and other books. Dr. Rivlin is a visiting professor at the Public Policy Institute of Georgetown University and a researcher at the Washington, D.C.-based Brookings Institute (she led its Economic Studies Program from 1983 to 1987). She also has taught at Harvard, George Mason University and The New School universities. She has a bachelor's degree from Bryn Mawr College and a doctorate from Radcliffe College at Harvard University, both in economics.

Learn more about commencement here.