Issue date: 4/30/08 Section: News

Frank Borman

The UA will continue the trend of a space-themed year by having astronaut Frank Borman speak at this year's commencement ceremonies.

Borman was the commander of Apollo 8, the first mission to fly around the moon.

UA President Robert Shelton selected Borman to speak, said Edith Auslander, vice president and senior associate to the president.

Borman calls Tucson home, is a Tucson High Magnet School graduate and his wife attended the UA, Auslander said.

"Because of him being an astronaut and the space program, and ours taking the lead in the Mars landing mission, it seems an appropriate time," Auslander said. "The president came up with the idea because it was a perfect match."

Auslander also went to Tucson High and has heard Borman speak at a reunion. She called him an interesting person who effectively conveys what he learned with NASA.

"I trust that whatever he talks about, it'll be worth listening to," she said.

Zoe O'Herin, a senior majoring in political science and psychology, said she was disappointed in the selection.

"I wanted somebody who was worth something to my education," she said. "Being an astronaut isn't an educational experience."

She said she thought an astronaut was too much of a "magical" profession to be related to most UA students.

"Who wants to be a cowboy or an astronaut?" she said. "Like, seriously?"

O'Herin said she was hoping for Sen. John McCain, who is running for president.

"He's from Arizona. Why not get him?" she said.

Mechanical engineering senior Bobby Cisneroz said he didn't care about the speaker because he wasn't planning on going to the large commencement ceremony.

He instead plans on attending the more personalized pre-commencement ceremony with his college.

"I'm excited," he said. "I can't wait."

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