The leader of the Southeastern Conference will give the commencement address at Mississippi State University's fall 2016 graduation ceremony on Friday.
The ceremony will begin at 7 p.m. at the Humphrey Coliseum.
Over 1,370 MSU students are eligible candidates for degrees in the fall term. Graduates from the summer term are also eligible to participate in the program.
“It’s been my great privilege to get to know Commissioner Sankey both in his official capacity as the outstanding leader of the Southeastern Conference and also in the more personal role of an involved, engaged parent of a truly outstanding MSU alumna,” said MSU President Mark E. Keenum, who also serves as president of the SEC. “Our students will greatly benefit from sharing Greg Sankey’s highly motivational vision for how young people can succeed in the classroom, in athletic competition, and in life.”
Sankey became the eighth commissioner in 2015 after spending 13 years in various positions in the conference. Previously he served as the Southland Conference commissioner for seven years.
During his time with the SEC, Sankey has helped reshape governance, enforcement and compliance programs for the conference. Sankey also helped build the new autonomous governance structure of the NCAA. Nationally he has served as the chair of the Division I Committee on Infractions and a member of the Gender-Equity Task Force.
According to MSU Public Affairs, Sankey's daughter, Hannah, was a 2015 magna cum laude MSU graduate in professional meteorology.
For more information on Friday's ceremony, visit registrar.msstate.edu.