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U.S. Senator Mark Warner to Deliver Commencement Address at Spring Ceremony
With background in business and technology, his understanding of modern world complexities makes him ideal speaker for VWU’s new graduates
University News | November 13, 2023
It is a pleasure to announce that U.S. Senator Mark Warner will serve as the keynote speaker for the Spring 2024 Commencement Ceremony, scheduled for May 18, 2024. This significant occasion reflects Virginia Wesleyan University’s dedication to fostering academic excellence and providing VWU’s graduates with profound insights as they embark on their future journeys. 
Senator Warner has represented the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States Senate since 2009. His career has been marked by legislative achievements in areas such as technology, healthcare, and national security, aligning closely with the values upheld by Virginia Wesleyan.
Senator Warner's background in business and technology, including the co-founding of Nextel, has informed his approach to addressing contemporary challenges. His expertise sets him apart as a leader who understands the complexities of the modern world, making him an ideal speaker for VWU’s new graduates.
An ardent advocate for education, Senator Warner has tirelessly promoted initiatives aimed at improving access to quality education and enhancing workforce development opportunities for all Americans. His commitment underscores the transformative power of knowledge and its pivotal role in shaping the future.
The Spring 2024 Commencement Ceremony promises to be an event filled with inspiration and reflection, and Senator Warner's address will certainly resonate with VWU’s graduates as they prepare to embark on their post-university journeys. His dedication to bipartisan collaboration and public service serves as a model for the values Virginia Wesleyan hopes its graduates will carry forward in their lives.
About Senator Mark Warner
Sen. Warner was elected to the U.S. Senate in November 2008 and reelected to a third term in November 2020. He serves as Chairman of the Select Committee on Intelligence and as a member of the Senate Finance, Banking, Budget, and Rules Committees.
During his time in the Senate, Sen. Warner has established himself as a bipartisan leader who works across the aisle to accomplish real solutions for Virginians. He has served as a key author and negotiator of several pieces of critical legislation aimed at rebuilding our nation’s infrastructure, improving cybersecurity, restoring domestic manufacturing, protecting national security, rebounding from the COVID-19 crisis, and investing in underserved and underbanked communities.
Sen. Warner has been recognized as a national leader in fighting for families, hardworking Virginians, and our brave servicemembers. From protecting the highest levels of national security through his work leading the Senate Intelligence Committee, to fighting to expand broadband to every corner of the Commonwealth, Sen. Warner has been a tireless advocate for a safer, stronger, more prosperous Virginia.
From 2002 to 2006, he served as Governor of Virginia. When he left office in 2006, Virginia was ranked as the best state for business, the best-managed state, and the best state in which to receive a public education. The first in his family to graduate from college, Sen. Warner spent 20 years as a successful technology and business leader in Virginia before entering public office. An early investor in the cellular telephone business, he co-founded the company that became Nextel and invested in hundreds of start-up technology companies that created tens of thousands of jobs.
Sen. Warner and his wife Lisa Collis live in Alexandria, Virginia. They have three daughters.