1924: Jane Addams

The famous social worker was the first woman to ever speak at a Grinnell commencement. She delivered a speech on “world problems in the Orient” to the largest graduating class to date.

1944: Harry S Truman

The Missouri senator, in his second congressional term, delivered the commencement speech. Several months later, Truman would win the presidency.

1954: Thurgood Marshall

The Legal Director of the NAACP spoke at Grinnell years before becoming a Supreme Court Justice. Marshall helped develop a long-term strategy for eradicating segregation in schools, which culminated in the landmark 1954 Brown vs. the Board of Education.

1958: Edward R. Murrow

Murrow was called “TV’s top journalist” by Time magazine. He delivered a commencement speech titled “View from the Moon.” The CBS news analyst was a foreign correspondent in Europe and North Africa during the Korean War.

1967: Sen. George McGovern

The first South Dakota Democrat to serve in the Senate since the mid-1930s, delivered the speech. McGovern spent two years as a special assistant to Pres. John F. Kennedy and Director of the Food for Peace program.

1972: R. Buckminster Fuller

Fuller was best known for his geodesic dome, “considered the strongest, lightest and most efficient shelter yet designed by man.” More than 10,000 of his geodesic domes were constructed in 50 countries.

1991: Bob Edwards

Edwards, who still hosts National Public Radio’s daily newsmagazine Morning Edition, was recipient of the 1984 Edward R. Murrow Award for “outstanding contributions to public radio.”