2024 Commencement Speaker- Charles V. Payne

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  

Fulton, Mo. – May 1, 2024: Westminster College is pleased to announce that financial journalist Charles V. Payne of the Fox Business Network and Wall Street Strategies, Inc. (WSSI), will deliver the commencement address for the Class of 2024 at 2 p.m. on Saturday, May 11, in Champ Auditorium.*

Payne will be introduced by Brian Wesbury, chief economist with First Trust Advisors L.P. and frequent contributor to The Wall Street Journal and other national media outlets.

About Charles V. Payne

Payne is the highly recognizable name behind “Making Money With Charles Payne,” which Fox Business  Network launched in 2014. He also is the chief executive officer and principal analyst of WSSI, which he founded in 1991 with less than $10,000 in start-up capital.

Prior to his financial career, Payne served for four years in the U.S. Air Force and attended Minot State College and Central Texas College, majoring in criminal justice. In 1985, he began working at EF Hutton on Wall Street. That position led Payne to a career as a broker at a boutique brokerage firm.

The entrepreneur soon caught the attention of the financial media and began making regular guest appearances on CNBC, CNN-FN, Bloomberg and Fox News.

In 2009, Payne was named Man of the Year by the Congress of Racial Equality. He is the author of three books: Unbreakable Investor, Unstoppable Prosperity and Be Smart, Act Fast, Get Rich: Your Game Plan for Getting It Right in the Stock Market.

President and Chief Transformation Officer Donald P. Lofe, Jr., said Payne is already familiar with Westminster from a visit the College’s Blue Blazers Investment Committee made last year to Wall Street.

“Mr. Payne was extremely welcoming in February 2023 to our group of students, faculty, staff and alumni who visited the Fox Business Network, just before he went on air,” Lofe said. “I am confident he will deliver an address that will educate and inspire Westminster’s Class of 2024.”

About Westminster’s Commencement Ceremonies

Payne’s address is part of a number of commencement activities at Westminster, including baccalaureate at 10:30 a.m. in the Hermann Lounge of Hunter Activity Center.

This year, the graduation ceremony is a non-ticketed event in Champ Auditorium, with doors opening at 1 p.m. and a processional led by the Skulls of Seven beginning promptly at 2 p.m. Livestreaming is available on the College’s Facebook and livestream pages, with an overflow room located across the street in the Coulter Science Center Lecture Hall.

In addition to Payne’s address and a variety of awards, the ceremony will feature remarks by Senior Class President Mohamed Ismacil, '24 ΒΘΠ, and the conferral of three honorary degrees on the following: Payne; Professor Emerita and Former Acting President Carolyn Perry Hunt, PhD; and Audrey Remley, PhD, professor emerita of psychology and former associate dean of faculty.

Following the graduation ceremony, the Class of 2024 will participate in the Columns Ceremony, a time-honored Westminster tradition. Just as they are welcomed as freshmen into the Westminster community by walking through the Columns onto campus, graduates bid farewell to Westminster by walking the opposite direction through the Columns and out into the world.

A full schedule of commencement activities can be found on Westminster’s website.

ABOUT WESTMINSTER COLLEGE: Founded in 1851 and home of Winston Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech, Westminster College in Fulton is ranked prestigiously by U.S. News & World Report as the only National Liberal Arts College in Missouri. It is also listed as one of the top institutions in the country for economic mobility and return on investment, placing in the top 16 percent for graduate earnings with a more than 90 percent placement rate. Westminster is a Forbes Best Value College that focuses on educating and inspiring students to make an impact on the world around them. To find out more about Westminster, please visit our website.

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Contact Sarah Backer at 573-220-9038 or Sarah.Backer@WCMO.edu.

*All events are subject to change.