2026 Convocation Itinerary

11am: Doors open on the Teagle/Garden Ave side of Barton (must show RSVP)

11am-12:40pm: Class of 2026 Pre-Convocation Celebration with performances

12:40pm: Class of 2026 Photo (be seated by this time!)

1:00pm: Ceremony begins

• Opening
• Welcome
• Remarks from Cornell Leadership
• Convocation Chair Address
• Student Performances
• Guest Speaker Address
• Alma Mater

2:30pm: Event ends

2026 Convocation Guest Speaker Biography

Coming soon!

Invited Guests/Attendees

Funded by the undergraduate student activities fees, the event will only be open for members of the Cornell community. Undergraduate students from the class of 2026 will have the first priority to reserve their ticket. We will then open up availability to graduate/professional students. Finally, the general student body, staff, and faculty will be able to reserve a ticket if space is available.

2026 Ticket Timeline

You must reserve your free Senior Convocation ticket via CampusGroups before joining us at the event. Students can only reserve 1 ticket for themselves.

• Starting April 27 at 6pm EST: Undergraduate students from the class of 2026 can reserve their ticket
• Starting May 13 at noon EST: Graduate and professional students from December 2025 and May 2026 graduations can reserve their ticket.
• Starting Monday May 18 at noon EST: The general student body, faculty, and staff at the Ithaca campus can reserve their ticket. 

Outside guests & livestream

Outside guests -- including family and the greater Ithaca community -- will not be able to reserve a ticket or attend this Cornell-only in-person event. 

The Senior Convocation event will be available via a livestream link provided as we get closer.

The full ceremony will live on Cornell Video for two (2) months with a password shared with the graduating class.

Brief History of Convocation

Senior Convocation began years ago as a small program for graduating seniors hosted by the Cornell University Class Councils student organization. The mission has always been to invite an honored guest to motivate, inspire, and send off the graduating seniors as they close this chapter of their lives. Over the years, what has become the Senior Convocation ceremony has seen many different renditions.

In 2001, the senior class awarded the first Convocation Medallion to our guest speaker. This award recognizes an individual for their meaningful contributions to society, success in instilling the desire to learn, and dedication to undergraduate achievement and excellence.

In its early years, Senior Convocation was held in Barton Hall. In 2004, President William Jefferson Clinton was our speaker and the request for the event necessitated the relocation from Barton Hall to the Schoellkopf Stadium. Convocation lived at Schoellkopf Stadium during Commencement Weekend until 2019. The 2020 Convocation Speaker presented during Alumni Weekend in Fall 2021 in a special ceremony for returning members of the class of 2020. Our Class of 2021 Convocation was held virtually in a pre-recorded production. In 2022, Convocation returned to its roots for a more intimate Barton Hall student-driven event hosted during Senior Days, where it remains to this day.

Past Convocation Speakers

Here are past Convocation speakers since 2000.

2025: Misty Copeland, Dancer

2024: Kumail Nanjiani, Actor, Comedian

2023: Ken Jeong, Actor, Comedian

2022: Constance Wu, Actor

2021: Roxane Gay, Activist, Commentator, Professor, and Writer (virtual speaker)

2020: Leslie Odom Jr., Actor and Singer (virtual speaker)

2019: William Sanford Nye '77, Educator, Engineer, Comedian, Presenter, Author, & Inventor

2018: Ava Marie DuVernay, Activist, Filmmaker, and Producer

2017: Joseph R. Biden, 47th Vice President of the United States

2016: James Franco, Actor

2015: Gabrielle Giffords '96 of the U.S. House of Representatives & Mark Kelly Astronaut

2014: Ed Helms, Actor

2013: Cory Booker, 38th Mayor of Newark, NJ

2012: Michael Bloomberg, 108th Mayor of New York City, NY

2011: Rudy Giuliani, former 107th Mayor of New York City, NY

2010: Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives for the 116th Congress

2009: David Plouffe, Campaign Manager, Political Strategist

2008: Maya Angelou, Poet

2007: Soledad O'Brien, Newscaster

2006: Martin Luther King the III, Activist

2005: Wesley Clark, former General of United States Army

2004: Bill Clinton, 42nd President of the United States

2003: James Carville, Political Strategist

2002: Danny Glover, Actor, and Human Rights Activist

2001: Janet Reno '60, former U.S. Attorney General

2000: Charles E. Schumer, U.S. Senator