National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt Will Deliver Commencement Address at the George Washington University

Three-time Olympic medalist and GW alumna Elana Meyers Taylor will be awarded an honorary degree

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Mar 05, 2018, 05:36 ET

WASHINGTON, March 5, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President of the National Academy of Sciences and renowned geophysicist Marcia McNutt will deliver the George Washington University's 2018 Commencement address before an audience of about 25,000 graduates, friends and family members May 20 on the National Mall.

President of the National Academy of Sciences Marcia McNutt and three-time Olympic medalist and GW alumna Elana Meyers Taylor are the 2018 GW Commencement honorees.

Dr. McNutt was elected president of the NAS—the United States government's top science advisory organization—in 2016, becoming the first woman to hold the position. At the NAS, she has focused on improving ethics in science and promoting women in the field. Prior to her role as president she served as editor-in-chief of the prestigious Science family of journals.

"Marcia McNutt is not only one of our nation's foremost scientific leaders but she also sets a powerful example as the first woman to lead one of the National Academies," said President Thomas LeBlanc. "I am also thrilled to welcome back Elana Meyers Taylor, an exceptional athlete who embodies the spirit of competition and persistence."

Under President Barack Obama's administration Dr. McNutt was appointed to serve as director of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), where during her tenure the agency responded to a number of major disasters, including devastating earthquakes in Haiti, Chile and Japan, and the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Before joining the USGS, Dr. McNutt served as president and CEO of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) in Moss Landing, Calif.

Elana Meyers Taylor, B.S. '07, will be awarded an honorary degree at commencement. Ms. Meyers Taylor is a three-time Olympic medalist and former standout Colonial softball player. Most recently, she received a silver medal for women's bobsled at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang.

The then-Ms. Meyers arrived at GW in 2003 as the softball program's first recruit and over four years became one of GW's most decorated student athletes. When softball was cut from the Olympics, she turned to bobsled. She auditioned for the bobsled national team and was asked to join the team as a brakeman. She ultimately transitioned to driver in 2012. Ms. Meyers Taylor is the first American woman to win three Olympics bobsled medals.

GW is the only university to hold its graduation ceremony on the National Mall.

SOURCE George Washington University