Troy, N.Y. — The Honorable Charles E. Schumer, the senior U.S. senator from New York, will join entertainer and educator Bill Cosby in speaking to graduates at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute’s 195th Commencement this Saturday, May 12, at the Pepsi Arena in Albany. The program begins at 9:30 a.m.

Schumer, 49, attended public school in Brooklyn and is a graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Law School. He was elected to the New York State Assembly at age 23, one of the youngest members since Theodore Roosevelt.

Schumer became a member of the United States House of Representatives at age 29, and represented the Ninth Congressional District in Brooklyn and Queens for nine terms. In 1998, Schumer upset Alphonse D’Amato to be elected a member of the United States Senate from the state of New York.

He is a member of the Senate committees on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, Energy and Natural Resources, the Judiciary, and Rules and Administration.

At the Commencement ceremony, Rensselaer will present honorary doctoral degrees to Cosby and to Vinton G. Cerf, known as the “Father of the Internet,” and renowned sociologist William Julius Wilson. Rensselaer students are expected to 1,042 bachelor’s degrees, 624 master’s degrees, and 112 doctoral degrees.

Contact: Bruce Adams
Phone: (518) 276-6531
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