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UCLA commencement features Oliver Stone, Arianna Huffington, Linkin Park lead guitarist

UCLA faculty will be voting on whether to require a diversity class for undergraduates.
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UCLA commencement features Oliver Stone, Arianna Huffington, Linkin Park lead guitarist

UCLA awards degrees to about 10,000 new Bruin alumni today. KPCC’s Cheryl Devall says commencement exercises at the Westwood campus will feature an array of high-profile speakers and honorees.

Where does a summa cum laude in communication studies get you? It landed Brad Delson, lead guitarist for the Grammy-winning rock band Linkin Park, an invitation to address UCLA graduates 10 years after his commencement.

Delson’s expanded his interests to establish Music for Relief, a non-profit that helps victims of catastrophic events and combats global warming. He and his wife also launched a UCLA scholarship fund for students from Huntington Park. Delson stepped up to speak at commencement after a more recent alumnus, actor James Franco, canceled 10 days before the event.

Other luminaries at UCLA’s events include blogger and political activist Arianna Huffington and movie director Oliver Stone. Dolores Huerta, co-founder with Cesar Chavez of the United Farm Workers, is in line to receive the UCLA Medal, the school’s highest honor.

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