As graduating seniors prepare for their life after the University of Wisconsin, the school officially announced Wednesday that two alumni who have dedicated time and become some of UW’s most recognized donors will help ring in their commencement ceremony next weekend.

This year’s senior class officers selected two of the campus’ key benefactors, John and Tashia Morgridge, to address graduating undergraduate, masters and doctorate students at the ceremonies on Saturday, May 14 and Sunday, May 15.

The Morgridges were instrumental in the development of the Wisconsin Institute of Discovery project, Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation spokesperson Janet Kelly said. John Morgridge continues to be instrumental in the WARF Board of Trustees, she said, which was a major actor in the recent addition to campus and owns two-thirds of the facility.

“The Morgridges have said what they want to do is spark interest among talented young people to pursue careers in science and technical fields,” Kelly said. “They want to inspire the next generation of scientists.”

The duo has also played a significant role in making multiple contributions to other new UW facilities, Kelly said, including the UW School of Business, the UW School of Education and the Morgridge Center for Public Service, which Tashia Morgridge helped to establish.

Kelly said one of the Morgridges’ most recent significant contribution included the initial $50 million commitment to the building of WID, a project which the couple remained extremely involved in through the project’s completion.

While at Stanford, John Morgridge became acquainted with a program that focuses on interdisciplinary collaboration in scientific research, Kelly said.

“The whole project came about because of Mr. Morgridge’s service on the WARF board and his role as a trustee at Stanford University,” Kelly said. “He saw a model at Stanford similar to WID that he liked, and he was extremely interested in making that happen in his native state.”

After receiving a bachelor’s degree from the UW School of Business and a master’s degree from Stanford University, John Morgridge served on several boards for non-profit organizations and earned an honorary degree from UW.

Kelly said John Morgridge had hoped WID would encourage interaction among scientists from different disciplines and of all ages.

He is also currently chair emeritus on the board of Cisco Systems, according to a statement from UW. Cisco Systems supplies networking equipment and web-based network management.

Tashia Morgridge earned a bachelors degree from the UW School of Education and a master’s degree from Lesley College in Massachusetts, according to the statement. After her career as a special education teacher, she is now a volunteer teacher for the learning disabled and a member of the UW School of Education’s Board of Visitors.

WARF is a private and non-profit organization which regulates and assigns patents and licenses for UW faculty developments, Kelly said. She said WARF also makes a financial contribution to UW every year, last year giving $44 million dollars.

Other speakers at the ceremonies will include a member of the Board of Regents and senior class officers, Secretary of the Faculty Joseph Farrenkopf said. He said a connection to UW is always a favorable criterion for a speaker, but it is not required for selection.