Pennsylvania Gov. Edward G. Rendell will deliver the keynote address at the final commencement ceremony for the Penn State Berks-Lehigh Valley College at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 14, in the Beaver Community Center on the Penn State Berks campus.
"It has taken almost two years to get the governor here," said Susan Phillips Speece, dean and campus executive officer of the college. "What a great way to send our graduates off and to end the highly successful relationship between the Berks and the Lehigh Valley campuses."
Attendance at the ceremony will be restricted to the nearly 190 graduates and their guests as well as faculty and staff of the college. Due to his schedule that day, the governor will not be available for comments before or after the ceremony.
It was announced last month that in an effort to streamline administrative functions and improve efficiencies across Penn State's network of campuses, the University has developed a new comprehensive plan to reorganize the structure and administrative responsibilities of the campuses. Under this plan the current amalgamations of the Berks and Lehigh Valley campuses as well as the Harrisburg and Schuylkill campuses will change, with all four campuses operating separately with their own chancellors, formerly known as deans.