Graduate School commencement speaker Chloe Knight Tonney told the graduates that they are now “a strategic asset of the institution with unprecedented opportunities to take charge of change.” She was the featured speaker at the 2013 ceremony, where 110 graduates earned master’s degrees. Read more about the class.

View photos from the ceremony.

View video highlights from the ceremony.

View the FULL ceremony.

Tonney, senior vice president for external affairs at the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Foundation, is a 1984 graduate of the College of Charleston.photo

She joined the CDC Foundation staff in 2002. As senior vice president for external affairs, she is responsible for overseeing the private‐sector fundraising program of the Foundation and the entire cycle of effective fundraising, impactful program implementation and stewardship.

Tonney is also responsible for developing, building and implementing public‐private sector partner strategies with national and international partners and Foundation advocates.