Press Release

Commissioner of Higher Education Carlos Santiago to Give Commencement Address at Bunker Hill Community College

Thursday, March 14, 2019

Boston, March 13, 2019 – Massachusetts Commissioner of Higher Education Carlos E. Santiago will be the keynote speaker at the Forty-fifth Commencement Exercises at Bunker Hill Community College (BHCC) on Thursday, May 23, 2019, on the Charlestown Campus.

Commissioner Santiago will be the recipient of the President’s Distinguished Service Award, presented annually at Commencement to an individual who has rendered extraordinary service to the community and to the students of Bunker Hill Community College.

“Commissioner Santiago’s commitment to equity in higher education is something that resonates with us at the College,” said BHCC President Pam Eddinger. “We are fortunate to have an advocate and partner in the Commissioner to help advance such an important topic at the highest level.”Santiago at VOH

The importance of equity in higher education is a common theme across many College-wide initiatives, and a top priority for Bunker Hill Community College and the diverse, urban community it serves.

Last year, the College established a Center for Equity and Cultural Wealth, drawing on the College’s nationally recognized work to design culturally inclusive learning environments that value the strengths of diverse students and local communities. In addition, BHCC’s food pantry, set to open on the Charlestown Campus early summer, will provide high-quality fresh, frozen and canned food items to students in need to feed themselves and their families to enable these students to realize their academic potential.

Dr. Santiago has served as Commissioner of Higher Education for Massachusetts since July 2015. Working with the Board of Higher Education (BHE), he is responsible for providing overall direction to public higher education in Massachusetts and helping shape state-level policies that maximize the benefits of higher education to the Commonwealth and its citizens.

“I am honored to be recognized by Bunker Hill Community College, our largest community college,” said Commissioner Santiago. “The equity agenda pursued by BHCC is near and dear to me and it is one that exemplifies the very best of our system of public higher education in the Commonwealth.”

Dr. Santiago holds a Ph.D. in economics from Cornell University and has held numerous academic and administration positions in higher education. Among them, he has served as Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and Provost and Chief Operating Officer of the University at Albany (SUNY). He is the author or co-author of six books and numerous articles and book reviews, and is the two-time recipient of the “100 Most Influential Hispanics in the United States” title by Hispanic Business magazine.

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About Bunker Hill Community College
Bunker Hill Community College is the largest community college in Massachusetts, enrolling approximately 18,000 students annually. BHCC has two campuses in Charlestown and Chelsea, and a number of other locations throughout the Greater Boston area. BHCC is one of the most diverse institutions of higher education in Massachusetts. Sixty-five percent of the students are people of color and more than half of BHCC's students are women. The College also enrolls nearly 600 international students who come from 94 countries and speak more than 75 languages.