Graduate Class Gift and Speaker Announced

Photo courtesy of AP

The University of Oklahoma 2009 graduation is just around the corner. The university and the graduating students and their families are all in for a treat. The speaker for the 2009 commencement will be David McCullough, a two-time Pulitzer prize winning author. The university will receive the class gift of a beautiful stained-glass window that will be added to the Oklahoma Memorial Union.
As well as being an author, McCullough is a renowned historian. McCullough's very popular book, "John Adams," spawned a successful HBO series of the same name that was directed by Tom Hanks. This story about the history of a man and his country is acclaimed as one of the best biographical books on America. McCullough's recent book, "1776," has achieved countless awards and rose to the top of the New York Times Best Seller list. With over 3 million copies sold, the book is admired by many. “No living American historian has done more to educate the American people about our own history and to teach us all the lessons from it, which are relevant to America’s current challenges,” said OU President David L. Boren.
As for the 2009 class gift, the piece of stained-glass will honor the Union's 80th anniversary. The Union has been a very common area for most University of Oklahoma students. "Some study there, some work there, and some play there. I guarantee you that no student will forget the Union!," said Jordan Hartley, OU senior. Being such a popular place, the Union is great place to display the 2009 class gift. The glass will hang above the doors between the Clarke-Anderson room and the Will Rogers room on the first floor of the Union.
So whether you work for the university, are a student, or an alumni, the 2009 graduating class is going out in style. And I, as a graduate this year, am honored to attend the University of Oklahoma and I will continue to support the university. Hopefully my children can come to OU and see the artwork that my class gave to them. To donate money for the class gift go to http://www.ou.edu/commencement/home/class_gift.html. McCullough can be seen at the commencement ceremony at the Oklahoma Memorial Stadium on May, 15 2009 at 7:00 p.m.

Here are some past gifts that OU has been given. More can be seen all around the OU campus.

Class gift of 1935

Class Gift of 2007