2008
May 3 – Thomas A. Dingledine, businessman, JMU benefactor and fourth generation member of a family that has played a major role in developing JMU for more than a century. JMU awarded degree to 100,000th graduate. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
2007
May 5 – Gaddi H. Vasquez, U. S. Representative to the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organizations and former director of the U.S. Peace Corps. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
December 17 – Robert "Phoef" Sutton, television writer and producer and 1981 graduate of James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center)
2006
May 10 – U.S. Senator George Allen of Virginia, former governor of Virginia. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
December 16 – Charles H. Foster Jr., chairman of LandAmerica Financial Group Inc. and former rector of the JMU Board of Visitors. (JMU Convocation Center)
2005
May 7 – John W. Snow, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and former chairman and chief executive officer of the CSX Corp. Received honorary Doctor of Laws. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
December 17 – Elizabeth Wilson Gauldin, retired project manager of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and 1950 graduate of JMU. (JMU Convocation Center)
2004
May 8 – Barbara Hall, creator and executive producer of the CBS–TV series, "Joan of Arcadia," producer or writer for many other network TV shows and a 1982 graduate of JMU. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
December 11 – Jim Acosta, CBS–TV news correspondent and a 1993 graduate of JMU. (JMU Convocation Center)
2003
May 10 – Former U.S. Senator George J. Mitchell, Senate minority leader for six years and broker of the 1998 peace accords in Northern Ireland. (Bridgeforth Stadium) Thunderstorms shortly after the main ceremony forced the cancellation or curtailment of outdoor college ceremonies.
December 12 – Dr. Marcia Angell, senior lecturer at Harvard Medical School and former editor–in–chief of the New England Journal of Medicine and 1960 graduate of Madison College. Received honorary Doctor of Science. (JMU Convocation Center)
2002
May 4 – Virginia Governor Mark Warner. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
December 13 – Dr. James I. Robertson Jr., Alumni Distinguished Professor of History at Virginia Tech and executive director of the Virginia Center for Civil War Studies. (JMU Convocation Center)
2001
May 5 – William Safire, Pulitzer Prize–winning columnist for The New York Times. More than 20,000 attend. Ceremony time, previously at 10 a.m., is moved to 9 a.m. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
December 11 – Dr. Carl N. Kelly, chairman of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia and senior vice president for Online Services/Hosted Applications for Oracle Service Corp. (JMU Convocation Center)
2000
May 6 – Richard H. Brown, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Office of Electronic Data Systems. Crowd estimated at 23,000 attends. Received honorary Doctor of Humanities. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
July 28 – Michael C. Quinn, Executive Director of Montpelier and President of the Montpelier Foundation. (JMU Convocation Center, moved from Quadrangle because of rain. Last summer commencement at JMU.)
December 15 – Phil Bigler, 1998 National Teacher of the Year and JMU graduate (1974/M.Ed. 1976). (JMU Convocation Center)
1999
May 8 – Virginia Lt. Governor John H. Hager. Record crowd of more than 20,000 attends. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
July 30 – Dr. Harold J. McGee, retired President of Jacksonville State University and former Vice President for Administrative Affairs and Vice President for Student Affairs at JMU. Received honorary Doctor of Humanities. (JMU Convocation Center, moved from Quadrangle because of high temperatures)
December 17 – Claude A. Allen, Virginia Secretary of Health and Human Resources. (JMU Convocation Center)
1998
May 9 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, President, James Madison University. Carrier had announced earlier that he was stepping down from the JMU presidency after 27 years. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
July 31 – Dr. William B. Allen, Director of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 18 – Wilbert Bryant, Virginia Secretary of Education. (JMU Convocation Center)
1997
May 3 – U.S. Rep. Frank R. Wolf of Virginia's 10th Congressional District. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
July 25 – Dennis E. Robison, Dean of Integrated Learning Resources at James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center. Construction work on water main prevented use of the traditional site, the JMU Quadrangle.)
December 12 – Acting President James Madison University President Linwood H. Rose. Rose was serving as acting president while Dr. Ronald E. Carrier was on leave to raise funds for JMU. (JMU Convocation Center)
1996
May 4 – Sylvia L. Peters, reform educator, founder and president of Whole Village, Whole Nation, Inc. Heavy rain began during Mrs. Peters' speech and continued through remainder of program. Program continued outdoors. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
July 26 – Robert E. LaRose, Rector, James Madison University Board of Visitors, 1994–1996; Vice Rector, 1992–94; Board Member, 1988–96. Received honorary Doctor of Laws. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 13 – Phillip C. Stone, President, Bridgewater College. (JMU Convocation Center)
1995
May 6 – Lawrence S. Eagleburger, former U.S. Secretary of State. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
July 28 – JMU President Ronald E. Carrier. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 15 – JMU President Ronald E. Carrier (JMU Convocation Center)
1994
May 7 – U.S. Senator John W. Warner of Virginia. Rained heavily during entire ceremony but program continued outdoors. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
August 4 – Alexander B. Berry III, principal in the financial services practice of Mercer Management Consulting, former rector and current member of JMU Board of Visitors. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 16 – U.S. Representative Bob Goodlatte of Virginia's Sixth Congressional District. (JMU Convocation Center)
1993
May 8 – Virginia Governor L. Douglas Wilder. First ceremony with individual satellite ceremonies for Colleges following main program. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
August 6 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. (Rain forced program from the Quadrangle to the JMU Convocation Center)
December 17 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center)
1992
May 2 – William Howard Whitaker II, member of the Class of 1992, and Dr. Cecil Bradfield, professor of sociology at James Madison University and speaker of the JMU Faculty Senate. (Bridgeforth Stadium)
July 31 – Dr. Bethany S. Oberst, vice president for academic affairs at James Madison University. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 18 – Dr. Wayne F. Geisert, president of Bridgewater College. Received honorary Doctor of Humanities. (JMU Convocation Center)
1991
May 4 – Elizabeth B. Lacy, justice of Supreme Court of Virginia (first female justice in state). (Bridgeforth Stadium)
August 2 – James W. Dyke Jr., Virginia Secretary of Education. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 13 – Donald L. Lemish, vice president for university advancement at James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center)
1990
May 6 – Dr. Lauro Cavazos, U.S. Secretary of Education. Received honorary Doctor of Humanities. (JMU Stadium)
August 3 – Dr. Leotus Morrison, retired associate director of athletics, James Madison University. Received honorary Doctor of Humanities. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 14 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center)
1989
May 7 – Michael G. Gartner, president of NBC News. Received honorary Doctor of Laws. (JMU Stadium)
August 4 – Dr. Jean C. Ramage, dean of the James Madison University College of Education and Psychology. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 15 – Charles W. Wampler Jr., chairman of the board of WLR Foods Inc., former rector of the James Madison University Board of Visitors. (JMU Convocation Center)
1988
May 8 – Robert "Phoef" Sutton, executive story editor of NBC–TV show "Cheers" and 1981 graduate of James Madison University. (First ceremony held at JMU Stadium.)
August 5 – Kirby L. Cramer, chairman of Hazleton Laboratories Corp. and former member of the James Madison University Board of Visitors. Received honorary Doctor of Laws. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 16 – Dr. Linwood H. Rose, vice president for administration and finance at James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center)
1987
May 9 – Virginia Governor Gerald L. Baliles. Received honorary Doctor of Laws. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 7 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 18 – Dr. Robert L. Scott, vice president for student affairs at James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center)
1986
May 10 – Dr. E. Bruce Heilman, president of the University of Richmond. Received honorary Doctor of Humanities. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 8 – Dr. Cynthia H. Tyson, president of Mary Baldwin College. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 19 – Dr. Russell G. Warren, acting president of James Madison University. (JMU Convocation Center)
1985
May 11 – Virginia Governor Charles S. Robb. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 9 – Dr. James C. Sears, president of Blue Ridge Community College. (JMU Quadrangle)
December 20 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. First December Commencement. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1984
May 5 – Kirby L. Cramer, father of a graduating senior and chairman of Hazleton Laboratories Corp.; Dr. Ralph A. Cohen, an associate professor of English at James Madison University; and Isabel M. Cumming, president of James Madison University's Student Government Association and a graduating senior. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 3 – Dr. Russell G. Warren, vice president for academic affairs at James Madison University. (JMU Quadrangle)
1983
May 7 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 5 – Virginia Delegate Richard M. Bagley of Hampton. (JMU Quadrangle)
1982
May 8 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison Univerisity. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 6 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. Dr. John T. Casteen, Virginia Secretary of Education, had been scheduled to give the address but canceled because of illness. (JMU Quadrangle)
1981
May 9 – Secretary of the Army John O. Marsh Jr. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 7 – Dr. Thomas C. Stanton, vice president for academic affairs at James Madison University. (Rain forced ceremony from JMU Quadrangle to Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1980
May 3 – Dr. S. John Davis, state superintendent of public instruction for Virginia. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 8 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University. (JMU Quadrangle)
1979
May 5 – Virginius Dabney, retired editor of the Richmond Times–Dispatch and Pulitzer Prize winner. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 3 – Dr. Myron S. Augsberger, president of Eastern Mennonite College and Seminary. (JMU Quadrangle)
1978
May 6 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, president of James Madison University (JMU Quadrangle)
August 4 – Dr. Robert O. Riggs, president of Austin Peay State University and former dean of the School of Education at James Madison University. (Rain forced ceremony from JMU Quadrangle to Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1977
May 7 – Dr. Gordon K. Davies, acting director of the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia. Last ceremony held under the name of "Madison College." (JMU Quadrangle)
August 5 – Martha Grafton, retired dean of Mary Baldwin College and vice rector of the James Madison University Board of Visitors. First ceremony held under the name of "James Madison University." (JMU Quadrangle)
1976
May 8 – Richard E. Wiley, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 6 – Dr. Harrison B. Wilson, president of Norfolk State College. (JMU Quadrangle)
1975
May 10 – John Ciardi, poet and critic, former faculty member at Harvard and Rutgers. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 8 – Dr. William H. McCoy, president of Lord Fairfax Community College. (JMU Quadrangle)
1974
May 11 – Dr. Donald N. Dedmon, president of Radford College. (JMU Quadrangle)
August 10 – Dr. Wayne F. Geisert, president of Bridgewater College. (JMU Quadrangle)
1973
May 12 – Andrew P. Miller, Attorney General of Virginia. (Quadrangle)
August 11 – Dr. Wendell P. Russell, President of Virginia State College. (Quadrangle)
1972
June 3 – Dr. Ronald E. Carrier, President of Madison College. (Quadrangle)
August 11 – Earl J. Shiflet, Virginia Secretary of Education. (Quadrangle)
1971
June 6 – Dr. T. Marshall Hahn Jr., President of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. (First ceremony held on the Quadrangle)
August 13 – U. S. Rep. J. Kenneth Robinson of Virginia's 7th Congressional District. (Quadrangle)
1970
June 7 – J. Allen Overton Jr., Executive Vice President of the American Mining Congress. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 14 – Dr. Wayne F. Geisert, President of Bridgewater College. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1969
June 8 – U.S. Rep. John O. Marsh, Jr., of Virginia's 7th Congressional District. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 12 – Dr. William W. Kelly, President of Mary Baldwin College. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1968
June 2 – Virginia Governor Mills E. Godwin Jr. (In front of the Duke Fine Arts Center)
August 11 – Dr. Charles K. Martin, President of Radford College. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1967
May 28 – Waldo G. Miles, Member of the Virginia State Board of Education. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 13 – Dr. Woodrow W. Wilkerson, Virginia State Superintendent of Public Instruction. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1966
May 29 – U.S. Rep. John O. Marsh Jr. of Virginia 's 7th Congressional District. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 12 – Dr. Frank G. Dickey, Executive Director of the National Commission on Accrediting, Washington, D.C. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1965
June 6 – Dr. Joseph C. Robert, Professor of History at the University of Richmond. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 13 – D. Lathan Mims, Editor and General Manager of the Harrisonburg Daily News Record. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1964
May 31 – Burr P. Harrison, rector of the Madison College Board of Visitors and former Congressman from Virginia 's 7th Congressional District. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 14 – The Rev. Theodore George Shuey. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1963
June 2 – Dabney S. Lancaster, Chairman of the Virginia State Council of Higher Education. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 16 – Hugh K. Cassell, Superintendent of Schools in Augusta County, Virginia. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1962
May 27 – State Senator William B. Spong Jr. representing the Portsmouth area in the Virginia State Senate. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 10 – Delegate Charles W. Wampler Jr, representing Harrisonburg and Rockingham County in the Virginia House of Delegates Member. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1961
May 28 – Lawrence G. Derthnick, Assistant Executive Secretary of the National Education Association. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 10 – State Senator George S. Aldhizer II, representing the central Shenandoah Valley in the Virginia State Senate. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1960
June 5 – Dr. Davis Y. Paschall, State Superintendent of Public Instruction. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 11 – Dr. Ralph W. Cherry, Dean of the Curry Memorial School of Education at the University of Virginia. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1959
May 31 – Dr. Louis T. Rader, General Manager of the Specialty Control Department of General Electric Company of Waynesboro. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 13 – Kenneth Campbell, Supervisor of Institutional Services of the State Department of Education. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1958
June 1 – Dr. Dabney S. Lancaster, Chairman of the Virginia State Council of Higher Education. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 14 – Fred O. Wygal, Teacher Education Director of the State Department of Education. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1957
June 2 – Thomas C. Boushall, Member of the Virginia State Board of Education and President of the Bank of Virginia in Richmond. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 8 – Dr. Woodrow W. Wilkerson, Virginia State Superintendent of Public Instruction. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1956
June 3 – Colgate W. Darden, President of the University of Virginia and former Governor of Virginia and Virginia Congressman. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 9 – Dr. Percy H. Warren, Dean of Madison College. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1955
June 5 – Dr. William T. Sanger, President of the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 11 – Garland R. Quarles, Superintendent of Schools in Winchester. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1954
May 30 – Virginia Lt. Governor. A.E.S. Stephens (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1953
June 1 – Dr. Earle T. Hawkins, President of the State Teachers College of Maryland at Towson. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1952
June 2 – J. Earl Moreland, President of Randolph–Macon College in Ashland. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1951
June 4 – Dr. Thomas G. Pullen Jr., Maryland State Superintendent of Schools. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1950
June 5 – Dr. Charles J. Smith, Provost and former president of Roanoke College in Salem. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1949
June 6 – Clifton A. Woodrum Sr., former Congressman from the Virginia 's 6th Congressional District; President of the American Plant Food Council. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1948
May 31 – Blake T. Newton, Superintendent of Richmond and Westmoreland County Schools, and President of the State Board of Education. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1947
June 2 – Henry Irving Willet, Superintendent of Richmond City Schools. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1946
June 3 – Helen Hay Heyl, Chief of the Bureau of Curriculum Development at the New York State Department of Education, Albany and a member of the Class of 1920. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1945
May 28 – Dr. J. Earl Moreland, President of Randolph–Macon College in Ashland. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1944
June 3 – Dr. Hollis Leland Caswell, Professor of Education at the Teachers College of Columbia University. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1943
June 7 – Dr. William T. Sanger, President of the Medical College of Virginia, Richmond. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1942
June 8 – George J. Oliver, Director of Instruction at the Virginia State Department of Education, Richmond. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
June 9 – Dr. Francis P. Gaines, President of Washington and Lee University. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1940
June 3 – Dr. Edgar Wallace Knight, Kenan Professor of Education at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1939
June 5 – Dr. Katherine Rogers Adams, Chairman of the Committee on Membership and Maintaining Standards in the American Association of University Women, Washington, D.C. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1938
June 6 – Dr. Francis P. Gaines, President of Washington and Lee University. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1937
June 6 – The Rev. Edwin H. Hughes, Bishop of Methodist Episcopal Church, Washington, D.C. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1936
June 8 – Delegate Ashton Dovell, representing Williamsburg in the House of Delegates and Speaker of the House of Delegates. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 27 – Forbes H. Norris, Assistant Superintendent of Richmond City Schools. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1935
June 10 – Dr. William John Cooper, Professor of Education at George Washington University and former U.S. Commissioner of Education. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 29 – Dr. Sidney B. Hall, Virginia State Superintendent of Public Instruction. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1934
June 11 – Dr. Samuel C. Mitchell, Professor of History and Political Science at the University of Richmond. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 30 – Dr. J. J. Rives, Pastor of Emory Methodist Church, Washington, D.C. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1933
June 6 – Dr. Edgar W. Knight, Professor of Education at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1932
June 7 – Dr. Grayson N. Kefauver, Associate Professor of Education at the Teachers College of Columbia University. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 25 – Harris H. Hart, former Virginia State Superintendent of Public Instruction. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1931
June 9 – Sidney B. Hall, Virginia State Superintendent of Public Instruction. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
August 27 – Dr. Fred J. Kelly, Chief of the Division of Colleges and Professional Schools in the Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. (Wilson Hall Auditorium)
1930
June 10 – E. Lee Trinkle, President of the Virginia State Board of Education and former Governor of Virginia. (Walter Reed Hall Auditorium)
August 28 – J.A. Garber, Virginia Congressman. (Walter Reed Hall Auditorium)
1929
June 12 – Dr. George Drayton Strayer, Professor of Education at the Teachers of College of Columbia University. (Walter Reed Hall Auditorium)
August 13 – Dr. J. J. Rives, Pastor of Francis Asbury Church, Washington, DC. (Walter Reed Auditorium)
1928
June 11 – Dr. W.S. Gray, Dean of the University of Chicago. (Walter Reed Hall Auditorium)
1927
June 8 – Dr. Ambrose L. Suhrie, Professor of Education at New York University. (Walter Reed Hall Auditorium)
August 26 – Dr. D.R. Anderson, President of Randolph–Macon Women's College. (Walter Reed Hall Auditorium)
1926
June 8 – Dr. William C. Bagley, Professor of Education at the Teachers College of Columbia University. (Harrison Hall Auditorium)
1923
June 5 – Dr. Waitman Barbe, Professor of English at the University of West Virginia and George N. Conrad, Virginia Normal School Board member and former State Senator from Harrisonburg. (Harrison Hall Auditorium)
August 31 – G.L.H. Johnson, Superintendent of Schools, Staunton. (Campus Amphitheater)
1922
June 6 – Dr. Julian Ashby Burruss, President of the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College and Polytechnic Institute, Blacksburg and former President of the State Normal and Industrial School for Women at Harrisonburg (first JMU president). (Harrison Hall Auditorium)
1921
June 7 – Virginia Governor Westmoreland Davis. (Harrison Hall Auditorium)
1920
June 8 – Dr. William M. Davidson, Superintendent of Schools at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Harrison Hall Auditorium)
1918
June 4 – George N. Conrad, Virginia State Senator. (Harrison Hall Auditorium)
1917
June 5 – John R. Saunders, Virginia State Senator. (Harrison Hall Auditorium)
1916
June 6 – The Rt. Rev. D.J. O'Connell, Bishop of Richmond. (Students' Building [Harrison Hall] Auditorium)
June 8 – Fairfax Harrison, President of Southern Railway Company. (New Virginia Theatre )
1914
June 9 – J.D. Eggleston, President of the Virginia Polytechnic University. (Courthouse Assembly Hall)
1913
June 10 – R.C. Stearnes, Virginia State Superintendent of Public Instruction. (Courthouse Assembly Hall)
1912
June 11 – U.S. Rep. Henry D. Flood of Virginia's 10th Congressional District. (Courthouse Assembly Hall)
1911
June 13 – A.P. Bourland, executive secretary, Southern Education Board. (Town Hall)
1910
June 14 – Virginia Governor Claude A. Swanson. (Courthouse Assembly Hall)
