SEC Chair Christopher Cox to Keynote Northeastern University’s 106th Commencement

Leading Experiential Research University to Graduate 2,200

Described by Newsweek as “the enforcer in America’s corporate boardrooms”, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Chris Cox has overseen one of the most dramatic and successful shifts in the agency’s history, introducing sweeping new regulations to hold corporate leaders accountable and uniting fractious groups on Capitol Hill. Northeastern’s newest graduates will hear from him on May 2, when Cox delivers their keynote address.

“I cannot imagine a more timely or important figure to address our graduating class during these historic times,” said Northeastern University President Joseph E. Aoun. “Our graduates are indeed fortunate to be the recipients of Chairman Cox’s years of experience and hard-earned wisdom as they embark on a new chapter in their lives.”

Chairman Cox will deliver the commencement address to approximately 2,200 Northeastern University undergraduate students on Friday, May 2, at 10:30 a.m. in Boston’s TD Banknorth Garden. Approximately 15,000 people are expected to attend the 106th commencement ceremony, celebrating the class of 2008.

Chairman Cox, who will receive an honorary doctorate of public service, was appointed by President Bush on June 2, 2005 and unanimously confirmed by the Senate on July 29, 2005, and was sworn in on August 3, 2005. He served in Congress from 1989 to 2005.

During his tenure at the SEC, Chairman Cox has made vigorous enforcement of the securities laws the agency’s top priority and has brought ground-breaking cases against a variety of market abuses. He has assumed leadership of the international effort to more closely integrate U.S. and overseas regulation in an era of global capital markets and international securities exchanges.

For 10 of his 17 years in Congress, Chairman Cox served in the Majority Leadership of the U.S. House of Representatives. In addition, he served in a leadership capacity as a senior Member of every committee with jurisdiction over investor protection and U.S. capital markets. Chairman Cox received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California and simultaneously received his M.B.A. from Harvard Business School and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Cox will be among a distinguished list of honorary degree recipients including alumni Michael Cronin and Anthony Manganaro, and Dr. Nancy Zimpher. The afternoon ceremony will recognize Sylvia Hurtado, and alumni Henry J. Nasella and Katherine McHugh.

About Northeastern

Founded in 1898, Northeastern University is a private research university located in the heart of Boston. Northeastern is a leader in interdisciplinary research, urban engagement, and the integration of classroom learning with real-world experience. The university’s distinctive cooperative education program, where students alternate semesters of full-time study with semesters of paid work in fields relevant to their professional interests and major, is one of the largest and most innovative in the world. The University offers a comprehensive range of undergraduate and graduate programs leading to degrees through the doctorate in six undergraduate colleges, eight graduate schools, and two part-time divisions. For more information, please visit www.northeastern.edu.