What do a costume designer for The Masked Singer and a Texas Supreme Court justice have in common? They — and more than 18 others — will bring wisdom and fun to graduates as keynote speakers for commencement ceremonies in UT’s colleges and schools. Between Thursday May 8 and Saturday May 10, the ceremonies will be held across campus, from Hogg Memorial Auditorium in the west to the Moody Center in the east. Below are the public figures, many of whom are UT alumni, who will help honor the graduating class of 2025.
The complete College and School Convocation Schedule can be viewed here.
Cockrell School of Engineering – If you’ve used Wi-Fi over the last 20 years, Edgar Figueroa has had an impact on your life. For nearly 20 years, the Texas Engineering graduate was a key player at Wi-Fi Alliance, a consortium of about 1,000 companies responsible for the growth and development of the technology. He led Wi-Fi Alliance as CEO for 15 years, until his retirement in 2022, during a period of unprecedented expansion of the technology that is now ubiquitous. Born and raised by a single mother in Guatemala, he earned his first diploma at age 12, becoming a professional typist to help provide for his family. He immigrated to the United States at 14.
College of Education – Bilingual counseling psychologist, educator and scholar, Cynthia de las Fuentes, earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the College of Liberal Arts and her doctorate in counseling psychology from the College of Education in 1994. She taught as a tenured associate professor of psychology at Our Lady of the Lake University in San Antonio for 14 years before engaging in full-time independent practice. The eldest daughter in a Mexican American family, De las Fuentes became the first in her family to attend graduate school, choosing to specialize in bilingual counseling – a decision that would shape her career as both a psychologist and advocate.
College of Fine Arts – Steven Norman Lee (M.F.A., Theatre, 2001), is an award-winning costume designer for Dancing with the Stars and The Masked Singer. Over nearly two decades and 31 seasons of the show, Lee has designed an extraordinary range of costumes, dressing everyone from actors and singers to astronauts and Olympic athletes. He holds his Costume Designers Guild Award in the category of Costume Design for Variety, Reality and TV Specials for his work on “The Masked Singer.” Lee served as the costume designer for America’s Got Talent between 2010 and 2016, creating costume designs for singers, magicians, comedians, animals and danger acts. Lee joined The Masked Singer as a costume designer in its 10th season and continues to design for the current 13th season.
College of Liberal Arts – James W. Pennebaker is a renowned social psychologist and member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Pennebaker grew up in West Texas. At UT for the latter half of his career, he taught thousands of students, published a dozen books and hundreds of articles, and conducted groundbreaking research. A pioneer of writing therapy, he has researched the link between language and recovering from trauma and has been recognized by the American Psychological Association as one of the top researchers on trauma, disclosure and health. Pennebaker has studied the nature of physical symptoms, social behavior, expressive writing, group processes and education outcomes, and natural language.
College of Natural Sciences – Distinguished Alumnus Amir Husain is a serial entrepreneur, technologist and author based in Austin. He graduated from UT in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science and has received widespread recognition for his work in artificial intelligence. Husain is the founder and CEO of the AI company SparkCognition, founding CEO of SkyGrid, a Boeing and SparkCognition company building the aerial operating system to power the future of aviation and chairman of Navigate, a global, crowdsourced data ecosystem company. Husain holds more than 30 patents in AI and distributed systems. He serves on NATO’s Innovation Advisory Board and on the Board of Global Venture Bridge. His work has been featured by the BBC, Fortune, Forbes and Proceedings from the U.S. Naval Institute. He is the author of the best-selling book The Sentient Machine, a co-author of the compilation Hyperwar: Conflict and Competition in the AI Century, and has recently published two new books, Generative Art and Generative AI for Leaders.
College of Pharmacy – Cheryl Beal Anderson is the founder and CEO of ACE Regulatory Affairs Consulting. She has more than 25 years of pharmaceutical, biopharma and biotech experience in regulatory affairs, where she held roles at Parke-Davis, Pfizer, Eli Lilly & Company, Lundbeck, and Upsher Smith Laboratories. Anderson received her undergraduate and Doctor of Pharmacy degrees at UT. Anderson and her husband live in Spring, Texas.
Dell Medical School – Joseph J. Fins, M.D., MACP, FRCP, is the E. William Davis, Jr. M.D. Professor of Medical Ethics and chief of the Division of Medical Ethics at Weill Cornell Medical College. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is also a prolific author with more than 500 publications covering ethical and policy issues in brain injury, palliative care and medical education.
Master’s Convocation – David Vandenbout is interim executive vice president and provost of UT Austin. Before assuming that post this spring, he served as dean of UT’s College of Natural Sciences. Vanden Bout is the winner of multiple research, teaching and leadership awards in the field of chemistry, specializing in materials science and nanotechnology.
Doctoral Convocation – Jim Davis is interim president of UT Austin. A resident of Austin since 1974, Jim has served the University since 2018 as senior vice president and COO and as vice president for legal affairs and business strategies. Across those roles, Davis’s leadership and impact has spanned a number of transformational projects. Davis served as a cryptologist in the U.S. Navy during the Gulf War. After military service, he attended UT, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in history with highest honors in 1996. He earned a law degree from Harvard University, has clerked at the Texas Supreme Court and has served as Texas deputy attorney general.
Jackson School of Geosciences – Patrick Abbott (Ph.D. 1973), a professor emeritus at San Diego State University, is an expert on natural disasters, earthquakes, emergency preparation, impact of humankind upon the earth, and ancient climates. He has led Smithsonian Journeys to all continents and written a textbook now in its 10th edition. He writes in the Jackson School Alumni Notes, “Work is more fun than play.”
LBJ School of Public Affairs – For more than two decades, former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Commerce Alejandra Castillo has been a driving force in public service, working across three presidential administrations (Clinton, Obama, and Biden). Most recently, she served as an Institute of Politics Fellow at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government focusing on the intersection of place-based economic development, U.S. competitiveness and national security. From her roots in New York City as the daughter of Dominican immigrants to her impact at the highest levels of government, Castillo has championed inclusive growth and transformative leadership.
McCombs School of Business – David Druley is CEO of Cambridge Associates, a global investment firm with assets under advisement of over $600 billion and 13 offices worldwide. Cambridge Associates’ 1400 professionals build and manage custom investment portfolios across asset classes for institutional investors, private clients and family offices. Druley earned his BBA and MBA from the McCombs School. Druley founded and operated Druley Investment Management for nine years. He joined Cambridge Associates in 2003 and founded the firm’s Pension Practice, a business that now serves corporate, public, and union plans, as well as sovereign wealth funds, nuclear decommissioning trusts and insurance companies worldwide. In that role, Druley created and implemented innovative portfolio management frameworks that have transformed these clients’ approach to investing. After serving as the firm’s president and head of global investments, Druley became CEO in 2016. Druley has over 30 years of investment experience and is a CFA Charterholder. He was awarded the McCombs Alumni Rising Star Award in 2018. Druley serves on the McCombs School of Business Dean’s Advisory Council and the Boston Youth Symphony Orchestra.
Moody College of Communication – Linda Garza was most recently general counsel for Siete Family Foods. After graduating from Moody College’s Department of Journalism and Media in 1997, she went on to earn a Doctor of Jurisprudence degree from the University of Houston in 2001. “Nearly 28 years ago, I walked across the stage to get my diploma, uncertain about the future but filled with hope and ambition. Returning to the stage is an extraordinary full-circle moment for me and a time to share my experiences and the life lessons I’ve learned with a new generation of communicators, problem-solvers and change-makers.” Since completing her education, Garza has held multiple positions at the Webb County District Attorney’s office including Chief Prosecutor of the Special Victims Unit. In March 2018, Garza began working as General Counsel for their family’s Siete Family Foods. In Jan. 2025, Siete was acquired by PepsiCo, a $1.2 billion deal in which Garza played a significant role.
School of Architecture – The pioneering Thai landscape architect Kotchakorn Voraakhom led the creation of Bangkok’s first critical green infrastructure project, Chulalongkorn Centenary Park, and has since brought her vision to life through works including Asia’s largest urban farming green roof — the Thammasat Urban Farm Rooftop — and the world’s first bridge park spanning a river in a capital city — the Chao Phraya Sky Park. As the CEO and founder of Landprocess and Porous City Network, her work has earned her the UN Global Climate Action Award and Women for Results. She currently chairs the Climate Change Working Group for the International Federation of Landscape Architects and is a member of the Global Commission on Nature Positive Cities with the World Economic Forum. Voraakhom was featured in TIME 100 Next, and honored by CNN, The Guardian, and The New York Times.
School of Information – Kijana Knight-Torres is the senior manager for UX research at CDK Global, where she leads a team of researchers. Formerly a user experience research director at Indeed, her work centers on understanding the intersection of human behavior, cognition and business motivation. Knight-Torres earned degrees in computer science from Rice University, information studies at UT, and choral conducting at Messiah University. She began her career as a software developer before shifting toward UX, and is a member of The Quinlan Singers, leads a church choir, and enjoys baking, music, and family life in Austin.
School of Law – Texas Supreme Court Justice Jane Bland, 1990, has served in the state judiciary more than 25 years and has been a member of the Supreme Court of Texas since 2019. She served 15 years as a justice on the First Court of Appeals and six years as a state district judge in Houston. In 2010, U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts presented her with the William H. Rehnquist Award, one of the most prestigious honors for state court judges. She has been named Judge of the Year four times by the Texas Association of Civil Trial and Appellate Specialists and has received multiple President’s Awards for her work with the Houston Bar Association and the Houston Young Lawyers Association. Bland earned her undergraduate business and law degrees from UT.
School of Nursing – Texas State Senator Molly Cook grew up in the Houston area and earned her nursing degree from UT and her dual nursing and public health graduate degree from Johns Hopkins University. As an emergency room nurse and grassroots organizer, Cook advocated for the health and safety of her neighbors. Cook’s community advocacy helped pass a citizen-driven amendment to the City of Houston charter, and she has been recognized by the Houston Chronicle as one of Houston’s transportation leaders.
Steve Hicks School of Social Work – This year, in lieu of a single speaker, the Steve Hicks School of Social Work welcomes three graduating students to participate in its 2025 commencement program: Andrea Davila, Hetty Borinstein and Catherine “Cat” Wilsnack. All three students, selected by associate deans and program leaders within the Steve Hicks School of Social Work, demonstrated leadership in the UT Social Work community through active engagement with the school’s scholars program and various educational events.
