Commencement Speakers
Morning and Afternoon Speaker
Eric Schlosser
Investigative Reporter and Author
Eric Schlosser has been a correspondent for the Atlantic Monthly since 1996. After graduating from Princeton University with a degree in American History and from Oxford University with a graduate degree in British Imperial History, Schlosser tried his hand as a playwright, novelist, and screenwriter before turning to non-fiction in his early 30s. His first published article — an account of his week on duty with the New York Police Department Bomb Squad — appeared in the Atlantic Monthly in 1993. Other assignments soon followed. His two-part series, “Reefer Madness” and “Marijuana and the Law” in 1994, won a National Magazine Award for reporting, and “In the Strawberry Fields” (1995) received a Sidney Hillman Foundation award. In 1998 Eric Schlosser wrote an investigative piece on the fast food industry for Rolling Stone. What began as a two-part article turned into a bestselling book: Fast Food Nation: The Dark Side of the All American Meal (2001). It was on the New York Times bestsellers list for more than two years, as well as on bestseller lists in Canada, Great Britain and Japan. It has been translated into more than twenty languages. His second New York Times bestseller, Reefer Madness: Sex, Drugs, and Cheap Labor in the American Black Market (2003), was inspired by his Atlantic Montly research on pornography, illegal immigration, and the war on drugs. Mr. Schlosser’s latest book, Chew On This: Everything You Don’t Want to Know About Fast Food (2006), is an exposé geared toward young adults. It immediately topped the New York Times children’s bestsellers list. In Fall 2006, Fox Searchlight Films released the film version of Fast Food Nation, written by Mr. Schlosser and Richard Linklater and featuring Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke and Greg Kinnear. Currently Mr. Schlosser is at work on a book about America’s prison system.
Student Speakers
Steven Campbell
B.S. Business Administration
B.A. Economics
B.A. Political Science
Steven Campbell graduates with a bachelor of science in business administration (emphasis in accounting), and a bachelor of arts degree in both economics and political science, along with a minor in international studies. Steven is no stranger to his Sonoma State surroundings as a native of Sonoma County and a graduate of the Technology High School program housed on the Sonoma State University campus. While attending Sonoma State he has been the personification of a model student, graduating magna cum laude with a triple major and completing more than 200 units. At the same time, he has remained active in campuswide activities and the local community, serving as the elected Vice-President of Finance (CFO) of Associated Students for two consecutive years, was a member of an international fraternity, as well as a volunteer at the Roots for Youth teen center in Santa Rosa. Following graduation Steven will move to San Francisco to pursue employment with the Big Four international public accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Luis E. Gomez
B.S. Chemistry
Luis Gomez graduates today with a bachelor of science in chemistry. He has seven brothers, one sister and grew up in Labor de Solis in the state of Jalisco, Mexico. He emigrated from Mexico to the United States when he was 18 with advice from his brothers to prioritize an education over working and to learn English. After graduating from an English as a second language program, Luis earned his Associate’s degree from Santa Rosa Junior College. He excelled as an athlete and was voted All-American soccer player while there. Involvement in outside activities during his time at Sonoma State includes membership in the Chemistry Club and at his church, St. Rose in Santa Rosa. While Luis worked in the private sector, he decided it was time to return to school and achieve his goal of an education, his “American Dream.” Self motivation along with family support, especially from his wife, support from classmates and instructors made it possible for Luis to live his dream.
