Despite facing obstacles ranging from funding to scheduling conflicts, the student commencement committee is still searching for the perfect graduation speaker. After creating an initial list of potential speakers last spring, the committee has now begun to reconsider their options after being turned down by three candidates.

While the college has increased the amount of money presented to speakers from $12,000 to $15,000 over the past three years, big name potentials request upwards of $30,000 for the less than hour-long talk. The honorarium is low, explains Vice President of College and Alumni Relations Mickey Munley '87, because it's supposed to be. "It's long been held that finances shouldn't be the inducement, incentive or sole reward for a speaker," Munley said.

But committee member Nora Skelly '08 said, having more money to offer "definitely wouldn't hurt" the school's chances of snagging a memorable speaker.

"It's a conundrum," said Munley. "On the one hand, well, we haven't done so bad. On the other, well, we're Grinnell. We want to have a wonderful commencement speaker, why let cost be an issue?"

"Only in the last few years has it really been an issue," noted Committee Cordinator and Director of Conference Operations Rachel Bly '93, referring to the high honoraria requested by top-pick speakers. The major hurdle to acquiring the perfect graduation speaker is often scheduling difficulties. The top three individuals chosen last spring by the student committee as desired speakers—Nelson Mandela, Madeleine Albright and Anna Quindlen—all turned down the offer.

A similar situation happened two years ago, when former Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack spoke at graduation. After being turned down by several candidates, the committee reevaluated their list and chose Vilsack based on his availability and connection to the campus. Current front-runners in the selection process are writers like David Foster Wallace and Garrison Keillor, political cartoonist Gary Trudeaeu and actor and disabilities activist Michael J. Fox. "We want to have someone who would have relevant things to say," said Skelly.

The process for choosing a speaker begins with the 10-15 student Commencement Committee, a volunteer committee which brainstorms possible speakers a year in advance. Once the students settle on their top choices, a three-member faculty committee and President Russell K. Osgood review the merits of the speakers and the entire faculty votes on whether or not they would agree to award the speakers an honorary degree.

If the majority of faculty or Osgood vote against awarding an honorary degree to the individual, the student committee usually nixes them from their list. This year, potential speakers such as Aaron McGruder or Emma Thompson have been rejected by the faculty Honorary Degree Committee or Osgood. However, as Bly emphasized, the vote is not binding and the whole process is meant to be a "truly consensual, collaborative discussion" about who would best represent Grinnell and offer graduates some insight.

"The ideas definitely originate with the students," said Skelly, who feels faculty aren't involved in the conversation about who to bring until their up or down vote on the honorary degree. Though Skelly added, "We want to make sure we pick candidates who are okay with everyone."