Blayne Alexander, Acclaimed Dateline NBC Correspondent, to Deliver 2025 Commencement Address at Agnes Scott College
Journalist Known for Impactful Storytelling to Inspire Graduates at the College’s 136th Commencement Ceremony
DECATUR, Ga. – Agnes Scott College will celebrate its 136th Commencement on Saturday, May 17, 2025, at 9:15 a.m. EDT on the college’s campus.
This year’s Commencement speaker will be award-winning journalist Blayne Alexander, a correspondent for Dateline NBC, the network’s longest-running primetime program. Prior to her current role, Alexander served as an Atlanta-based correspondent for NBC, contributing to NBC Nightly News, the Today Show and MSNBC.
Throughout her distinguished career, Alexander has reported on some of the most defining events of the last decade, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 U.S. presidential election, the passing of civil rights icon Congressman John Lewis and the nationwide reckoning around racial injustice.
A four-time Emmy Award nominee, Alexander began her journey at WRDW-TV in Augusta, Georgia, and went on to become a lead reporter and anchor at Atlanta’s 11Alive News. Her work has been recognized by the Atlanta and National Associations of Black Journalists, the Atlanta Press Club and the Alliance for Women in Media.
Alexander’s reporting has taken her across the globe—from the White House and Wimbledon to Singapore, Melbourne and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro. Her global perspective closely aligns with Agnes Scott’s commitment to preparing students for leadership in a global society.
“Blayne Alexander’s voice and vision as a reporter and correspondent represent the kind of purposeful leadership we strive to cultivate at Agnes Scott,” said Leocadia I. Zak, president of Agnes Scott College. “Her dedication to truth-telling, her global outlook and her personal integrity will no doubt leave a lasting impression on our graduates as they begin their own journeys of impact.”
Joining Alexander on stage as student speaker will be Wambũi Gitahi, who was selected to address the graduating class through a competitive process led by our Center for Writing and Speaking. A mathematics and philosophy major, Gitahi has been actively involved in the Scottie community by serving as an Environmental Resident, Center for Writing & Speaking tutor, Forte Foundation Campus Ambassador, student researcher in the ‘Every Person By Name’ Project funded by the Mellon Foundation and Catalyst Fellow. Following graduation, Gitahi looks forward to joining Smurfit Westrock as a financial analyst in their Financial Leadership Program.
