Duke Energy CEO Selected as NC State Spring Commencement Speaker

James E. Rogers, chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer (CEO) of Duke Energy, will deliver NC State’s commencement address on Saturday, May 14, at the RBC Center in Raleigh. The commencement ceremony will begin at 9 a.m.

Rogers has more than 20 years of experience as a CEO in the electric utility industry. He was named president and CEO of Duke Energy, one of the largest electric power companies in the United States, following the merger of Duke Energy and Cinergy in April 2006. Before the merger, Rogers served as Cinergy’s chairman and CEO for more than 11 years. Prior to the formation of Cinergy, he served PSI Energy as the company’s chairman, president and CEO.

In the course of his career, Rogers has served more than 50 cumulative years on the boards of Fortune 500 companies. He has served in leadership capacities for many organizations and energy councils. Rogers has been honored with numerous awards, including being named to Newsweek’s “Global Elite” list of “The 50 Most Powerful People in the World” in 2009. He will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

During the ceremony, Chancellor Randy Woodson will confer honorary degrees on behalf of NC State to Rogers and Robert Weiss, the artistic director and chief executive officer of Carolina Ballet.

Robert Weiss, who has led Carolina Ballet since its professional launch in 1997, has created 44 works for Carolina Ballet, including Romeo and Juliet, Messiah, Stravinsky’s Clowns, The Kreutzer Sonata, Swan Lake, Cinderella and Firebird, which was performed by Washington Ballet at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in the nation’s capital. Weiss began his career as a professional dancer at age 17, when he joined the New York City Ballet at the request of George Balanchine, the company’s co-founder and founding choreographer. He remained with the company for 17 years, rising to the rank of principal dancer. There he performed principal roles in more than 40 ballets. He will receive an honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree.

For more information about NC State’s spring 2011 commencement activities, visit www.ncsu.edu/registrar/graduation/index.html.

– barnhill –