Darren Walker
PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (March 30, 2022) – Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation, a $16 billion international social justice philanthropy, has been selected to be Prairie View A&M University’s 140th Spring Commencement Convocation speaker. The ceremony takes place Saturday, May 14, in PVAMU’s Panther Stadium. Nearly 1,000 students are expected to receive degrees.
Under Walker’s leadership, the Ford Foundation became the first non-profit in U.S. history to issue a $1 billion designated social bond to stabilize non-profit organizations in the wake of COVID-19. Before joining Ford, Walker was vice president at Rockefeller Foundation. Previously, he was COO of Harlem’s Abyssinian Development Corporation.
Walker co-founded both the U.S. Impact Investing Alliance and the Presidents’ Council on Disability Inclusion in Philanthropy. He serves on many boards, including the National Gallery of Art, Carnegie Hall, the High Line, the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History & Culture, Committee to Protect Journalists, Block Inc. and Ralph Lauren.
Educated exclusively in public schools, Walker was a member of the first Head Start class in 1965 and received BA, BS and JD degrees from the University of Texas at Austin.
Walker has been included on numerous leadership lists, including Time’s annual 100 Most Influential People and Out magazine’s Power 50. He is the recipient of 16 honorary degrees, Harvard University’s W.E.B. Du Bois Medal and was named the Wall Street Journal’s 2020 Philanthropy Innovator.
Visit www.pvamu.edu/commencement to learn about PVAMU’s upcoming spring 2022 graduation event.
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