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Mark C. Alexander, The Arthur J. Kania Dean of ¸ÌéÙÖ±²¥ University Charles Widger School of Law, announced that Kenneth C. Frazier, chairman of General Catalyst’s Health Assurance Initiatives, will deliver the commencement address to the Class of 2025. He will also receive the ¸ÌéÙÖ±²¥ Law Medallion Award in recognition of his achievements at this year’s commencement ceremony on Saturday, May 17.

Frazier is the former chairman and CEO of Merck & Co., Inc.,Ìýfollowing his retirement from more than 30 years with the company, including a decade-long tenure as CEO. Currently, he is chairman of Health Assurance Initiatives at the venture capital firm General Catalyst, where he advises on investments and partnerships for companies that are well-positioned to help transform the healthcare industry through collaborative and responsible innovation.Ìý

Frazier joined Merck in 1992 and held positions of increasing responsibility, including general counsel, before becoming president and CEO in 2011. Prior to joining Merck, Frazier was a partner with the Philadelphia law firm of Drinker Biddle & Reath.

Upon his retirement from Merck, Frazier committed himself to organizations dedicated to leading social change and building greater equity for all people. He is the co-founder and co-chair of OneTen, a coalition of leading organizations dedicated to upskilling, hiring, and promoting individuals without four-year degrees into family-sustaining jobs, with a particular emphasis on supporting Black Americans.

Frazier serves on the boards of Eikon Therapeutics, Paradigm and Transcarent, as well as several nonprofit boards, including Cornerstone Christian Academy in Philadelphia, the Harvard Corporation, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and the National Constitution Center. He is also a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Bar Association, the American Philosophical Society, the College of Physicians of Philadelphia, of which he is a fellow, the Council of the American Law Institute and the Legal Services Corporation’s Leaders Council, of which he is co-chair. Frazier also serves on the ABA Task Force on American Democracy.

As a strong advocate for social justice and economic inclusion, Frazier is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Anti-Defamation League Courage Against Hate Award, the Botwinick Prize in Business Ethics from Columbia Business School, the Legend in Leadership Award from the Yale School of Management, the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund National Equal Justice Award and the National Minority Quality Forum’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

In 2018, Frazier received the Harvard Law School Association Award, the highest honor given by the prestigious association, in recognition of his extraordinary service to the legal profession, Harvard Law School and the public. InÌýthe same year, Frazier was named one of the World’s Greatest Leaders byÌýFortuneÌýmagazine and was also included inÌýTIME’s 100 Most Influential People list; he was againÌýcelebrated byÌýTIMEÌýon that list in 2021.

In 2019, he became the first recipient of the Forbes Lifetime Achievement Award for Healthcare. In 2021, Frazier's peers named himÌýChief ExecutiveÌýmagazine’s CEO of the Year. Most recently, he received the highly esteemed Fordham-Stein Prize from Fordham Law School, an honor bestowed for work embodying the highest standards of the legal profession, and the Lifetime Achievement Award fromÌýAmerican LawyerÌý³¾²¹²µ²¹³ú¾±²Ô±ð.

Frazier received his bachelor’s degree from The Pennsylvania State University and holds a JD from Harvard Law School.