Gonzaga University is proud to announce its guest speakers for its 133rd Commencement ceremonies held Mother's Day weekend.

Gonzaga women's basketball coach Lisa Fortier will speak at the Undergraduate Commencement ceremony May 10, former National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Monica Bertagnolli will speak at the Graduate Commencement ceremony May 9, and Washington State Supreme Court Justice Salvador Mungia will speak at the Law School Commencement ceremony May 9.

Gonzaga will welcome friends and families to celebrate 1,272 graduates at the Undergraduate ceremony, 181 at the Law ceremony, and 597 at the Graduate ceremony. Here are more details:

Saturday, May 9

Law School Commencement, 9 a.m., McCarthey Athletic Center. Each year, Gonzaga Law's Commencement is enriched by the leaders who join in celebrating its graduates. This year's ceremony promises to be especially meaningful, highlighting the impact of legal leadership and service at the highest levels. The ceremony's guest speaker is Justice Salvador A. Mungia of the Washington State Supreme Court, who will also receive an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Justice Mungia brings a deeply personal and inspiring story to the Commencement stage. Born and raised in Tacoma to immigrant parents, he went on to graduate from Pacific Lutheran University and Georgetown University Law Center. His professional journey reflects a steadfast commitment to public service and expanding access to justice. The Law Medal, Gonzaga Law's highest honor, will be awarded to Meagan A. Flynn (J.D. '92), chief justice of the Oregon Supreme Court.

Graduate Commencement, 12 p.m., McCarthey Athletic Center. This year's Graduate Commencement guest speaker is Dr. Monica Bertagnolli. A surgical oncologist and cancer researcher, Bertagnolli grew up on a ranch in southwestern Wyoming. She graduated from Princeton University with an engineering degree, later attending medical school at the University of Utah. She trained in surgery and eventually became director of the National Cancer Institute. In 2023, President Joe Biden nominated her as the17th director of the National Institutes of Health, the first surgeon and second woman to hold the position. As director, she oversaw the work of the largest funder of biomedical and behavioral research in the world. Bertagnolli currently serves as the Richard E. Wilson Professor of Surgery Emerita at Harvard Medical School and a Senior Fellow in Healthcare Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School. Bertagnolli will receive an honorary Doctor of Science degree at the ceremony.

Commencement Mass, 2:45 p.m., St. Aloysius Church. Jesuit and guest concelebrants.

Sunday, May 10

Undergraduate Commencement, 9:30 a.m., Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena. Gonzaga community members know Undergraduate Commencement speaker Lisa Fortier as the inspiring coach of the Zags' women's basketball team, where her success on the sidelines is undeniable. For the past 12 seasons, Coach Fortier has led the team to more than 300 wins (making her the fastest active Division I women's coach to reach that many wins), nine WCC regular season titles, five WCC tournament titles, and nine NCAA tournament appearances.   Off the court, she became a symbol of toughness and perseverance when, in 2024, she faced a challenge she never expected: cancer. But much like her way of coaching her team, she faced that obstacle head-on, fighting the battle, and winning. Eight months after her diagnosis, she was declared cancer-free. And she knows that a significant part of her journey, and her recovery, was the community that rallied around her and her family during that difficult time.

After graduating Magna Cum Laude from Cal State University-Monterey Bay in 2004 with a degree in human communications, she joined the Gonzaga community as director of operations, also earning her master's degree in sport and athletic administration in 2006. She left briefly to serve as assistant coach at Northern Colorado, before returning to Gonzaga as an assistant coach from 2007 to 2014.  In 2014, Coach Fortier was hired as Gonzaga women's basketball head coach. Known for her emphasis on player development and team culture, her selflessness and care for her players have led to her story being shared throughout the world of women's college basketball.

It is Gonzaga's mission to graduate leaders who understand their lives as a noble vocation, use their gifts in service to others, and understand the power that comes from working as a collective, recognizing, valuing, and treating others with respect. These values are shared by Fortier, grounded in her own deep faith and the ways in which she guides her team, her family, and all those honored to know her. In these complex times, when ethical, moral and sound leadership is needed more than ever, Coach Fortier sets an example of what it means to be a person for and with others.  She will be bestowed an honorary Doctor of Human Letters degree in addition to being this year's distinguished speaker.