Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig, co-owners and founding partners of Zingerman’s Community of Businesses, will deliver the Spring Commencement address for the Ann Arbor campus at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 2, at Michigan Stadium.
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Saginaw and Weinzweig will each receive honorary Doctor of Laws degrees.
Also receiving honorary degrees are:
• John Dingell, former U.S. Congressman for Michigan’s 12th Congressional District, Doctor of Laws.
• Sanford R. Robertson, pioneering venture capitalist, founding partner of Francisco Partners and U-M alumnus, Doctor of Laws.
• Robert J. Shiller, Nobel Prize winning economist, best-selling author and U-M alumnus, Doctor of Science. Shiller also is the Rackham Graduate Exercises speaker.
• Robin Wright, award-winning journalist, author, foreign correspondent and U-M alumna, Doctor of Humane Letters.
• Dr. Tadataka Yamada, global health expert and former faculty member in the Medical School, Doctor of Science.
There are 9,162 students completing their degrees this term.
Spring Commencement will be broadcast locally on Comcast Channel 22 on the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti Comcast cable TV system. A webcast will be available at ldrsnb.st/umichwebcast.
Speakers
Social entrepreneur and U-M alumnus Saginaw is known for his mentorship and spiritual leadership shared with 21 partners and more than 700 employees as the co-founder and co-chief executive officer of the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses (ZCoB).
Sharing a dream for a great corned beef and an organization with soul, he and Weinzweig partnered to open Zingerman’s Delicatessen in 1982, with a $20,000 loan and two other employees. He also was a founding director of the Washtenaw Housing Alliance, a collaborative of nonprofits dealing with homelessness, and a board member of the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies, which catalyzes networks of locally controlled businesses to drive economic development.
Saginaw is a director of Dawn Farm, a nationally recognized recovery program, and a past-president of Ann Arbor’s NEW Center, which provides training resources to nonprofits. A vocal advocate for raising the minimum wage, he received the Obama administration’s Champion of Change award. Drawn to the abundance of opportunity in Detroit, Saginaw dedicates himself to supporting several city-based organizations.
Weinzweig, an inventive food historian, food and business writer, and U-M alumnus, is co-founder and co-chief executive officer of ZCoB. He is known as an inspirational and trusted thought leader of progressive business practices, sharing the Zingerman’s approach with forward-thinking organizations nationally and around the world. Over three decades Zingerman’s Delicatessen has been a destination for more than half a million people annually and an exemplar of innovative business practices.
Weinzweig has shared the Zingerman’s story in numerous magazine articles and books, including “Zingerman’s Guide to Good Leading, Part 3: A Lapsed Anarchist’s Approach to Managing Ourselves” (2013). The James Beard Foundation recognized Weinzweig with a Who’s Who of Food & Beverage in America award in 2006.
Among other honors, Weinzweig and Saginaw received the first Humanitarian Award from the Jewish Federation of Washtenaw County in 1995 and Bon Appetit magazine’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2007. The National Association for the Specialty Food Trade inducted them into its Specialty Food Hall of Fame in 2015.
Venue
The stadium opens for Spring Commencement seating at 8 a.m. Security guidelines prohibit purses, umbrellas, bags, cases, water bottles and thermoses and other select items. Cell phones, small cameras and hand-held video cameras are permitted. See a list of prohibited and permitted items on the commencement website: ldrsnb.st/umichstadiumitems.
All family members and guests attending Spring Commencement, including children older than age 2, need a ticket to enter Michigan Stadium.
Transportation
Free parking is available in all U-M parking structures starting at 9 a.m. Friday. On Saturday guests and graduates are encouraged to use the complimentary shuttle bus service for travel to and from Michigan Stadium. Shuttle services are available beginning at 7:45 a.m. to and from select hotels, central downtown locations, and select university parking lots and structures. All shuttle buses are wheelchair accessible.
Inclement weather plan
Spring Commencement is scheduled to take place in Michigan Stadium rain or shine. The ceremony may be shortened, suspended or concluded in the event of severe weather. If a schedule adjustment is required due to severe weather, instructions will be given to guests via public address announcements and video screen messages. Graduates and guests are asked to listen for announcements and remain seated until instructed otherwise.
Rackham Graduate Exercises
The Rackham Graduate Exercises ceremony is at 10 a.m. Friday in Hill Auditorium, with Robert J. Shiller. This is the commencement ceremony for all master’s and doctoral graduates and candidates who receive their degrees through the Rackham Graduate School. For more information, email [email protected] or call 734-647-7900.
Dearborn and Flint graduation ceremonies
UM-Dearborn and UM-Flint schedule separate morning and afternoon ceremonies.
UM-Dearborn ceremonies are scheduled for April 26 in the Fieldhouse: at 10 a.m. for graduates of the university’s College of Business, College of Education, Health and Human Services, and College of Engineering and Computer Science, with Timothy D. Leuliette, president and CEO of Visteon Corp. Michael Brown, CEO and co-founder of City Year, will speak at 3 p.m. for graduates of the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters, 313-593-5330.
UM-Flint ceremonies are May 3 at Perani Arena: at 11 a.m. for the College of Arts and Sciences, 3 p.m. for the professional schools. Sandra Tsing Loh, award-winning author, academic, and host of the syndicated radio show “Loh Down on Science” will deliver both commencement addresses, 810-762-3177.
More Graduation Ceremonies
Saturday, April 25
College of Pharmacy, 2 p.m., Rackham Auditorium, with Natalie D. Eddington, dean of the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy, 764-7144.
Thursday, April 30
School of Public Health, 3 p.m., Hill Auditorium, with Sekou Andrews, internationally known poetic voice, 734-214-6430.
School of Kinesiology, 7 p.m., Hill Auditorium, with alumna Jessica C. Berman, vice president and deputy general counsel for the National Hockey League, 734-615-2186.
Lavender Graduation, 4:30 p.m., Michigan Union Kuenzel Room, 734-763-4186.
Friday, May 1
School of Music, Theatre & Dance, 2 p.m., Power Center for the Performing Arts, with Damon Gupton, Bachelor of Music Instrumental Music Education, Trombone, ’94, 734-764-0592.
School of Information Graduate Recognition Ceremony, 4 p.m. Rackham Auditorium, with Daniel E. Atkins III, professor and founding dean of the School of Information, 734-647-3110.
Stephen M. Ross School of Business Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Accounting & Master of Entrepreneurship Ceremony, 4 p.m.; Master of Business Administration and Ph.D. Ceremony, 7 p.m. Both are at Hill Auditorium with Sanjay Reddy, vice chairman of GVK, 734-647-0342.
La Celebracion Latina, 6 p.m. Lydia Mendelsohn Theatre, with Jose A. Bauermeister, director of the Center for Sexuality & Health Disparities at the School of Public Health, 734-936-1753.
Native American Student Graduation Ceremony, noon, Matthaei Botanical Gardens, 734-763-9044.
NROTC Commissioning, 9 a.m., Gerald R. Ford Library Auditorium, 734-764-1498.
May 2
School of Nursing, 1 p.m. Hill Auditorium, 734-764-9145.
School of Social Work, 1 p.m., Power Center for the Performing Arts, 734-936-0961.
School of Natural Resources and Environment, 1:30 p.m., Rackham Auditorium, 734-763-9925.
Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design, 2 p.m., Art & Architecture Building Courtyard, with Elizabeth Redmond, founder and CEO of coworker, 734-647-9886.
Residential College, 2 p.m., Mendelssohn Theatre, 734-763-0032.
College of Engineering, 2:30 p.m., Crisler Center, 810-623-0649.
School of Education, 5 p.m., Hill Auditorium, with Robert Putnam, Harvard University educator and National Humanities Medal winner, 734-214-6430.
Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, 5 p.m., Rackham Auditorium, with U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow, 734-615-3893.
Black Celebratory, 6 p.m., Power Center for the Performing Arts, with Dominique Morisseau, playwright and actress, 734-936-1055.
May 3
A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, noon, Hill Auditorium, 734-763-6518.
May 8
School of Dentistry, 1 p.m., Hill Auditorium, with Dr. Danielle Ofri, associate professor of medicine, New York University, 734-647-4026.
May 9
Law School Senior Day, 2 p.m., Hill Auditorium, with John Sloss, ’81, Academy Award-winning film producer, 734-615-4501.
May 15
Medical School, 3 p.m., Hill Auditorium, with author and educator Dr. Nortin M. Hadler, 734-615-4856.
Sarah Lloyd
Question, why didn’t you put the date as “Saturday May 2” in this article? the way it is written, it looks like you mean Saturday April 25. I had to dig around and click on the link to get the date. thanks.
Paul Saginaw and Ari Weinzweig, co-owners and founding partners of Zingerman’s Community of Businesses, will deliver the Spring Commencement address for the Ann Arbor campus at 10 a.m. Saturday at Michigan Stadium.
Nichole Orton
Also thought it meant that the ceremony was tomorrow.. dates would help!
John Burkhardt
Is there a Rackham graduation ceremony on Friday as in the past?
Jamie Iseler
Please note the entry for the Rackham exercises under its separate subhead above.
Jamie Iseler
That’s a good point. Thanks for pointing out the confusion. We’ve added that information.
Jenni Sporer
Paul and Ari are mensches. It’s great to see them receive recognition for all the good works they do. Also, Dingell is a great man and deserves all the accolades. I’m so excited to offer assistance to graduates and their families at this event!