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Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution Wayne Clough to speak at 2011 National Capital Region commencement

   

Wayne Clough Wayne Clough

NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION, April 1, 2011 – Wayne Clough, the 12th Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution and former professor and dean of the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech, will address the 2011 graduates of the Virginia Tech National Capital Region during commencement ceremonies to be held on Sunday, May 15, beginning at 1:30 p.m. at the George Mason University Center for the Arts in Fairfax, Va.

Approximately 400 National Capital Region students are expected to complete their degree requirements and participate in commencement ceremonies.

As head of the Smithsonian since 2008, Clough oversees the world’s largest museum and research complex featuring 19 museums, nine research centers, the National Zoo, and research activities in more than 90 countries. During his tenure, he has overseen several major openings at the Smithsonian, including the reopening of the National Museum of American History and the David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins and Sant Ocean Hall at the National Museum of Natural History.

Clough is working to expand the Smithsonian’s global relevance and help the nation shape its future through research, education, and scientific discovery. To ensure the Smithsonian’s vast collection is accessible and available, he is leading the effort to digitize much of it’s137 million objects in the collection and use the World Wide Web and Smithsonian experts and scholars to reach out to new audiences in the United States and around the world.

Before his appointment to the Smithsonian, Clough was president of the Georgia Institute of Technology for 14 years. He received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in civil engineering from Georgia Tech in 1964 and 1965 and a doctorate in 1969 in civil engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

Clough has been a professor at Duke University, Stanford University, and Virginia Tech. He served as head of the Department of Civil Engineering and dean of the College of Engineering at Virginia Tech, and as provost at the University of Washington.

While president of Georgia Tech, the campus served as the Olympic Village for the 1996 Centennial Olympics. He increased research expenditures from $212 million to $425 million and student enrollments from 13,000 to 18,000. More than 1.5 billion dollars was raised in private gifts, and campus operations were opened in Savannah, Ga., Ireland, Singapore, and Shanghai. He completed a building program of more than $1 billion that incorporated sustainable design.

Clough was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences in 2010 and serves on its Commission on the Humanities and Social Science. In 2009, he was inducted into the Technology Hall of Fame of Georgia and received the Joseph M. Pettit Alumni Distinguished Service Award that recognizes a lifetime of leadership, achievement, and service to Georgia Tech. In 2012, Georgia Tech is scheduled to open the G. Wayne Clough Undergraduate Learning Commons building to honor his commitment to undergraduate students.

Virginia Tech has fostered a growing partnership with the greater metropolitan Washington, D.C., community since 1969. Today, the university’s presence in the National Capital Region includes graduate programs and research centers in Alexandria, Arlington, Falls Church, Leesburg, Manassas, and Middleburg. In addition to supporting the university’s teaching and research mission, Virginia Tech’s National Capital Region has established collaborations with local and federal agencies, businesses, and other institutions of higher education. Virginia Tech, the most comprehensive university in Virginia, is dedicated to quality, innovation, and results to the commonwealth, the nation, and the world.