The University and Graduate School Commencement ceremonies will be held Thursday, Dec. 21 for students who completed their degrees this past summer or will finish in December.

The University Ceremony procession will begin at 10:30 a.m., while the Graduate School’s procession starts at 2:30 p.m. Both ceremonies will be held in Cassell Coliseum.

Art Keown, an Alumni Distinguished Professor and the R. B. Pamplin Professor of Finance at Virginia Tech, will speak at the University Ceremony.

Brenda Winkel, professor and head of the Department of Biological Sciences at Virginia Tech, is the Graduate School commencement speaker.

Headshot of Art Keown, an Alumni Distinguished Professor and the R. B. Pamplin Professor of Finance at Virginia Tech.

Art Keown
Art Keown, an Alumni Distinguished Professor and the R. B. Pamplin Professor of Finance at Virginia Tech, will speak at the University Commencement Ceremony.

Keown, who came to Virginia Tech as an assistant professor of finance in 1974, was the first faculty member to be named an Alumni Distinguished Professor in the Pamplin College of Business. The position recognizes faculty who have made outstanding contributions to the university's instructional program and have touched the lives of generations of Virginia Tech alumni.

Keown, head of the finance, insurance, and business law department for 12 years, currently teaches introduction to finance classes for undergraduates.

His research interests include investments, corporate finance, and operations research applications in finance, and his findings have been published in top finance journals.

In addition, he served as co-executive editor for the Journal of Financial Research for six years. Keown also has written three college textbooks that are currently in the 7th, 8th, and 12th editions.

He has a bachelor’s degree from Ohio Wesleyan University, a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Michigan, and a doctorate of business administration from Indiana University.

Brenda Winkel. Headshots for the Virginia Tech College of Science.

Photo of Brenda Winkel, professor and head of the  Department of Biological Sciences. She is the  Graduate School commencement speaker.
Brenda Winkel, professor and head of the Department of Biological Sciences, is the Graduate School commencement speaker.

Winkel joined the College of Science faculty in 1992 and has served in a wide range of leadership roles during her tenure, including as founding director of the university’s Translational Plant Sciences Graduate Program.

She has been the principal or co-principal investigator on research grants totaling more than $11 million, has mentored 25 graduate students in her group, has authored dozens of scientific journal articles, and has been the recipient of numerous teaching awards.

Her laboratory’s research focuses primarily on understanding the intracellular organization of metabolism and consistently works across disciplines, including in a long-standing partnership with the Brewer Lab in the Department of Chemistry to develop novel anti-cancer agents.

Winkel earned a master’s degree in chemistry and biochemistry at Southern Illinois University and a Ph.D. in genetics from the University of Georgia.   

For more information about fall commencement, visit the Virginia Tech Commencement website.

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