Commencement 2008 Highlights

Governor Jim Doyle Addresses M.S. in Biotechnology Graduates

Commencement homepage

Friday, May 16, 2008

Governor Jim Doyle addressed the Class of 2008, the fifth cohort to graduate from the Master of Science in Biotechnology Program, in a special commencement ceremony on May 16, 2008.

In his comments to graduates, faculty, and friends and family, the Governor highlighted the State's leadership role in the field, and the critical role graduates will play in sustaining and broadening this advantage.

"As Governor, nothing makes me prouder than to be able to say Wisconsin is leading the country in the most critical sectors of the new economy: advanced manufacturing, bioindustry and renewable energy, and lifesaving research. The discoveries unleashed from this research will become the products and businesses that improve lives and fuel Wisconsin's economy. To fully realize the potential before us, we need more of the best and the brightest researchers, more business leaders, and the best attorneys to help us meet that goal."

[Read all Governor Doyle's comments]

Also addressing the graduates was R. Alta Charo, Warren P. Knowles Professor of Law and Bioethics at UW-Madison, and a founding faculty member of the M.S. in Biotechnology Program.

"Each of you has chosen to study biotechnology from all these perspectives---applications, economics and ethics. You have distinguished yourselves from those who take a narrower view, and by this have made yourselves uniquely valuable to the communities of science, law and business."

[Read all Professor Charo's comments]

Launched in 2002, the M.S. in Biotechnology at UW-Madison remains the only program of its kind in the United States, employing an integrated curriculum that maps the path of technology commercialization through analysis of topics in science, business and law. Since its inception, five new companies have been launched by program graduates.