UC Berkeley School of Information

Vera Zakem, the first woman to serve as California’s chief technology innovation officer, former chief digital democracy and rights officer at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and UC Berkeley executive fellow in applied technology policy, will deliver the commencement address at the School’s commencement ceremony on Tuesday, May 19, 2026.

Zakem brings deep experience at the nexus of technology, democracy, industry, and public interest that resonates closely with the I School’s mission. She previously served in the Biden-Harris Administration as the U.S. Agency for International Development’s first-ever chief digital democracy and rights officer, where she led an agenda focused on rights-respecting technology, global coalition building, and AI for more than 100 lower- and middle-income countries. 

Elijah Baucom, director and lecturer of the UC Berkeley Cybersecurity Clinic at the School of Information and its Center for Long-Term Cybersecurity (CLTC), will receive the Chancellor’s Award for Community-Engaged Teaching, which honors leadership by faculty in developing or teaching community-engaged courses or in engaging students in community-based research. This award will be presented at the annual Chancellor’s Awards for Public Service, taking place on Monday, May 11, 2026, at 2:30 pm at the Cal Alumni House.