On Saturday, May 11, 2024, Xavier University of Louisiana will host a morning commencement ceremony for its College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Graduate Programs and College of Pharmacy (COP) Programs. On the cusp of celebrating its centennial in 2025, Xavier proudly welcomes Ms. Deborah H. Telman, J.D., as the keynote speaker for the 2025 graduates of the CAS Graduate Programs and COP during the university’s 97th commencement. Ms. Telman, a visionary advocate for health equity, currently serves as Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs and General Counsel with Gilead Sciences, Inc., a global bio-pharmacy company and a frequent partner of Xavier in initiatives to improve health outcomes for the underserved. 

Like many Xavierites, Telman was a first-generation college student in her family. She graduated with her bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of Pennsylvania before earning her Juris Doctorate from Boston University School of Law. Throughout her more than 25-year career, she has held increasingly advanced positions with several Fortune 500 companies, including Johnson Controls, Boeing, Abbott Laboratories, Sorrento Therapeutics, and Morgan Stanley, before joining the Gilead team in 2022. PR Weekly Magazine also named her a “Top 30 Health Influencer” in 2022. Her dedication to furthering health equity exemplifies the values of Saint Katharine Drexel and Xavier’s mission. Telman encourages this year’s graduates to use their voices and ‘who’ they are to speak truth to power to affect change. 

“In many settings, I’m the only woman…the only person of color…the only Black person. When you’re the ‘only’ person, you have to start being really comfortable speaking the truth,” said Executive Vice President Telman. “Otherwise, the skills you should bring to the table, the value you can bring, will not be present because you’re holding back.” 

Xavier’s Baccalaureate Mass will be held at 4 p.m. on Friday, May 10, 2024, followed by the University Honors and Awards Ceremony. To get more information about the scheduling of these events, visit www.xula.edu/commencement. Xavier’s Spring 2024 commencement ceremonies are ticketed and not open to the public. The event will be livestreamed on Xavier’s commencement homepage and the university’s YouTube channel.   

Xavier University of Louisiana congratulates its 2024 graduates and wishes them every success imaginable as they go on to improve the world!