Raytheon Leader Thomas Kennedy to Offer Keynote Address at 2016 Commencement

Jun 7, 2016

By UCLA Samueli Newsroom

Thomas A. Kennedy, the chief executive and chairman of defense technology leader Raytheon, will offer the keynote address at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science 2016 commencement ceremony. The ceremony takes place at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 11, at Pauley Pavilion on the UCLA campus.

As chairman of Raytheon, Kennedy oversees 61,000 employees worldwide — including thousands of engineers — working in defense, civil government and cybersecurity.

KennedyThomasKennedy earned his doctorate in engineering from UCLA in 1984. He received his Master’s degree and Bachelor’s degree, both in electrical engineering, from the Air Force Institute of Technology and Rutgers University, respectively.

He attained the rank of captain in the U.S. Air Force, with responsibility for managing development and production programs for communications, navigation and related systems in satellite launch vehicles. He joined Raytheon in 1983, starting off in radar development.

Prior to his current roles, Kennedy served as president of Raytheon’s Integrated Defense Systems division; vice president of Raytheon Space and Airborne Systems’ Tactical Airborne Systems division; and vice president and chief operating officer of the company. He holds several patents related to radar and other technologies. Kennedy was elected to Raytheon’s board of directors in January 2014, became chief executive in March 2014, and chairman in October 2014.

The student speaker at the commencement ceremony will be Gregory Aidan Caguimbal, who will complete his Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering in the spring of 2016.

Tickets for commencement must be obtained in advance, and the event will be livestreamed. For more information, visit the UCLA Engineering commencement homepage.

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