Tim Cook to deliver Duke University’s commencement address

Apple CEO Tim Cook, a graduate of Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and a member of the university’s Board of Trustees, will deliver Duke’s commencement address on Sunday, May 13, 2018, President Vincent Price announced.

“I am absolutely delighted that Tim Cook will be returning to campus as this spring’s commencement speaker,” said Price in a press release. “Throughout his career, Tim has embodied Duke’s values of innovation and service to society, whether through his contributions to Apple’s groundbreaking technology or his advocacy for social justice. I can imagine no better person, and no bigger Duke fan, to inspire the Class of 2018.”

The tech CEO earned his MBA in 1988 from Duke, where he was a Fuqua Scholar, an honor given only to students who graduate in the top 10% of their class. He received a bachelor of science degree in industrial engineering from Auburn University in 1982.

Cook has been a member of the Duke Board of Trustees since 2015 and is a member of the Facilities and Environment Committee. He has also spoken with students at Fuqua, including a talk where he discussed what he learned at the school that has helped him in the business world.