Contact:
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Rick
Pike |
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Liz
Braithwaite |
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Snow
College |
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Snow
College |
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(435)
283-7062 |
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(435)
283-7062 |
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Fax: (435) 283-7064 |
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GOVERNOR JON HUNTSMAN JR. TO GIVE SNOW COLLEGE
2005 COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS
EPHRAIM,
Utah—March 21, 2005—Snow College today
announced that Governor Jon Huntsman Jr. will speak at commencement Saturday,
April 30 at 10:00 a.m. in the Activity Center on Snow’s Ephraim campus. The
Snow College Board of Trustees will award Gov. Huntsman an Honorary Doctorate
of Public Service during the event. This marks the first time a sitting
governor has spoken at a Snow College Commencement.
Governor
Huntsman has family roots in Sanpete County. His maternal grandmother, the late
Ruby Olson Haight, grew up in Fairview. Governor Huntsman’s first official
visit to central Utah was to deliver his State of the State address. He
traveled to Fillmore – the initial capital of Utah – to highlight rural Utah
and pay tribute to his central Utah ancestry.
“We’re
delighted that Gov. Huntsman has accepted the board’s invitation to be this
year’s Commencement speaker,” said Michael T. Benson, president of Snow
College. “Our students and their families – and the larger Sanpete community –
will benefit greatly from this experience.”
Gov.
Huntsman was elected in November 2004 to be Utah’s 16th chief
executive and brings years of leadership experience in both business and public
service. He has held several leadership positions as a business executive with
Huntsman Corporation, including chairman and CEO.
Huntsman’s
public service career began as a White
House staff assistant to President Ronald Reagan. Under President George H. W.
Bush he was deputy assistant secretary of commerce for trade development,
deputy assistant secretary of commerce for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, as
well as U.S. ambassador to Singapore (the youngest U.S. ambassador in a
century). He is fluent in Mandarin. He also served as a deputy U.S. trade
representative and U.S. trade ambassador under President George W. Bush.
Huntsman
was born on March 26, 1960 in Palo Alto, California. He attended the University
of Utah and received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Pennsylvania.
Huntsman and his wife, Mary Kaye, have six children. For more information about
Governor Huntsman and his administration visit www.utah.gov/governor.
In 2003, Jon and Karen Huntsman spoke at Snow
commencement. Prior to their speeches, Michael T. Benson, president of Snow
College, announced a $2 million gift from the Huntsman’s to be used for
construction of a new library on Snow’s Ephraim campus. Snow hopes for approval
of the project from the Utah Legislature in 2006. The library will be named
after Karen Huntsman in honor of her 12 years of service as a member of the
Utah State Board of Regents.
Snow
College, founded in 1888, serves approximately 3,000 students at its Ephraim
campus. The college provides general education and applied technology programs
leading to Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, Associate of Applied
Science and Associate of Pre-Engineering degrees, and certificates of
completion in a number of occupational areas.
Once owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Snow
College became a state college in 1932.
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