Off the Top...

Duke to Celebrate 6,900 New Graduates During Commencement Ceremony Sunday

Duke University will confer nearly 6,900 degrees during its commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 11, at Wallace Wade Stadium. Former Duke and NBA basketball star Grant Hill, now a university trustee, will deliver the keynote address. The event, presided over by President Vincent E. Price, will also mark the 100th anniversary of Duke’s first graduating class as part of its Centennial celebration. While the main ceremony is the weekend's highlight, it follows several days of smaller, school-specific graduation events and will be streamed live on Duke’s YouTube channel.

Commencing Commencement

Federally Funded Research at Duke...

Saving More Babies Through Innovation in Pediatric Heart Surgery

Dr. Joseph Turek, chief of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery at Duke Health, is transforming the field of pediatric heart surgery through groundbreaking innovations like the partial heart transplant and heart-thymus co-transplant. These pioneering procedures are helping redefine how donor organs are used and how transplant recipients are treated. Turek’s work not only reflects his daily commitment in the operating room but also a broader vision to scale these innovations into standard care nationwide. His research and innovations, including several techniques developed since joining Duke in 2017, have been made possible in part through funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

Life-Saving Innovation

More from Duke...

Ocean Engineering Course Provides Hands-on Design Experience at the Atlantic Ocean

Duke’s ocean engineering design course, now at the Duke University Marine Lab provides an attractive alternative to semesters abroad with experiential travel opportunities and still attend basketball games on the weekend. Led by Professors Martin Brooke and Nan Jokerst, students designed and tested low-cost hydrophones for ocean research, integrating engineering with environmental science. The course, traditionally taught on campus using Duke Pond, emphasizes project-based learning in real-world conditions, offering students the chance to innovate, iterate, and apply concepts directly in the field.

Beyond the Sea

Duke to Award Three Honorary Degrees at 2025 Commencement Ceremony

During Duke University’s 2025 commencement on May 11, honorary degrees will be awarded to Dr. Rebecca Buckley, David Robinson II and Dr. Feng Zhang for their pioneering achievements in medicine, law and biotechnology. Buckley is recognized for her six-decade career at Duke, including life-saving advances in treating SCID. Robinson, one of Duke's first Black students, broke barriers in law and corporate justice. Zhang, a leader in optogenetics and CRISPR technology, is celebrated for his revolutionary work in gene editing and neuroscience.

Honorary Degrees

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