Teresa A. Sullivan, the first female president of the University of Virginia, will give the 2012 commencement address at Southwestern University. The ceremony will be held Saturday, May 5, at 2 p.m. in the Corbin J. Robertson Center.

Sullivan took office as the University of Virginia’s eighth president on Aug. 1, 2010. Before that, she was the provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at the University of Michigan. She also was a professor of sociology in the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. Prior to her work at the University of Michigan, Sullivan was Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for The University of Texas System.

Sullivan’s research focuses on labor force demography, with emphasis on economic marginality and consumer debt. Her most recent work explores the question of who files for bankruptcy and why. She is the author or co-author of six books and more than 50 scholarly articles.

Sullivan is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She serves as chair of the National Research Council Panel on Measuring Higher Education Productivity, and as a member of the following committees and councils: National Research Council Committee on Research Universities; Council of Presidents for the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges; National Security Higher Education Council; Council on Foreign Relations Higher Education Working Group on Global Issues; and the Northern Virginia Technology Council, the trade association of the technology industry in Northern Virginia. She serves as the AAU representative on the ACE Board of Directors, and as a member of the Higher Education Advisory Committee that provides guidance for implementation of the Virginia Higher Education Opportunity Act of 2011.

Sullivan received her undergraduate degree from Michigan State University and a doctoral degree in sociology from the University of Chicago.

Approximately 250 May and August graduates are expected to receive degrees at the May 7 ceremony. For friends and relatives who are unable to attend the ceremony, it will be streamed live on the Internet. For details on how to watch the broadcast, go to http://southwestern.edu/alumni/graduation/webcast.php

Overflow viewing also will be available in Room 105 of the Olin Building.