Mercer Times

Jerome Powell, chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, has been chosen as the Baccalaureate speaker for Princeton University's Class of 2025. Powell graduated from Princeton with a bachelor's degree in politics in 1975.

The Baccalaureate ceremony is an interfaith service marking the end of the academic year and is among Princeton's oldest traditions. It will take place at 2 p.m. on Sunday, May 25. The Committee on Honorary Degrees selected Powell as the speaker, and his selection was approved by the Board of Trustees. The purpose of Baccalaureate is to highlight the importance of service to graduating seniors.

Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber emphasized Powell's "steadfast leadership" in managing the nation's financial system as an example of public service virtues in his invitation letter.

Powell joined the Federal Reserve Board of Governors in 2012 and became its chair in February 2018. He is currently serving his second four-year term as chair, overseeing national monetary policy, financial stability, economic guidance, bank supervision and regulation, and consumer protection.

Class of 2025 President Ben Wachspress praised Powell as an "exemplary model" of leadership during challenging financial periods globally. Wachspress expressed gratitude for Powell's role as their Baccalaureate speaker and acknowledged his contributions to stabilizing the American economy during the 2020 financial crisis.

Powell served under President George H.W. Bush from 1990 to 1993 as assistant secretary and undersecretary at the U.S. Department of Treasury. He has also worked as a lawyer and investment banker, including being a partner at The Carlyle Group from 1997 to 2005.

Before joining the Federal Reserve, he was a visiting scholar at Washington D.C.'s Bipartisan Policy Center. His board memberships include roles with corporate, charitable, and educational organizations such as Princeton’s Bendheim Center for Finance and New York's Nature Conservancy.

Powell earned his law degree from Georgetown University in 1979 where he was editor-in-chief of the Georgetown Law Journal.