French Ambassador François Delattre will be both keynote speaker and the recipient of an honorary doctorate of Francophone Studies at the Fall 2013 Commencement General Assembly Friday.
"In the past, Louisiana and France have shared many things. Having a French diplomat and peacemaker of Ambassador Delattre's stature wear the silks of the University underscores our common beliefs and desires," said Dr. Bradd Clark, interim provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at UL Lafayette.
The General Assembly ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. at the Cajundome. All graduates are required to attend and participate in full regalia.
Delattre was appointed ambassador to the United States in 2011. He was ambassador of France to Canada from 2008 to 2011.
He joined the French Foreign Ministry in 1989, and was posted in Bonn until 1991 at the French Embassy in Germany. There, he oversaw matters related to the economic impact of Germany’s unification and the environment.
Delattre also served in the Department of Strategic Affairs and Disarmament, and at the French Embassy in Washington, D.C.
He was also deputy director of the French Foreign Minister’s Office, and French consul general in New York City.
As member of President Jacques Chirac’s foreign policy team from 1995 to 1998, Dellattre was responsible for European and trans-Atlantic defense and security matters and managing the Bosnian crisis.