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MONMOUTH, Ore. – Western Oregon University hosts its 2024 commencement on Saturday, June 15 at 10 a.m. on the MacArthur Field. Over 1,237 students are eligible to walk across the stage and graduate, completing a significant milestone in their lives. Nearly 50 percent of Western students are first-generation, meaning they are the first in their families to graduate with a four-year degree.
A first-generation student herself, Western is proud to announce its commencement speaker, Congresswoman Andrea Salinas. Salinas, the daughter of a Mexican immigrant, is one of the first Latinas to represent Oregon in Congress. After putting herself through college, Salinas pursued public service as a congressional aide and policy advisor, as well as an advocate for labor unions, environmental groups, and reproductive rights organizations. In 2017, she was appointed to the Oregon House of Representatives and served through the end of her term in 2022. In the Oregon House of Representatives, she served as House Majority Whip and was the Chair of the House Health Care Committee.
In Congress, Salinas is proud to serve on the House Agriculture and House Science, Space, and Technology Committees, where she crafts policies that will help level the playing field for Oregon farmers and rural communities and create more good-paying, union jobs. As Co-Chair of the bipartisan Mental Health Caucus, she has prioritized making mental health care and addiction treatment more accessible and affordable.