Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Donna Shalala will deliver the keynote address to incoming students at the College's 225th Convocation ceremonies on Sept. 21.
College President James Freedman confirmed Wednesday night that Shalala was going to speak.
Freedman said he wrote to Shalala, a long-time acquaintance, in mid-May inviting her to speak.
"I am sure she is going to be an excellent speaker," he said. "I assume she will speak about health care. She also knows how to speak to students."
Convocation, a formal ritual, marks the beginning of the academic year and is usually the first and often only time during the year when the College President addresses the faculty and students together.
Shalala, nominated by President Bill Clinton, became head of Health and Human Services on Jan. 22, 1993. The department receives 40 percent of the federal government's budget.
The Department of Health and Human Services oversees health, welfare, food and drug safety, medical research and income security programs.
Shalala was previously chancellor of the University of Wisconsin at Madison. In 1980, Shalala became the youngest woman to lead a major U.S. college when she took over as president of Hunter College in New York City.
"This will be an exciting moment to start the new academic year off at Dartmouth because Dr. Shalala speaks with experience in education and public service," College Spokesman Alex Huppe said yesterday. "Those two are vital issues for the future of Dartmouth and the U.S."
Freedman said he has known Shalala since his time as president of the University of Iowa.
Shalala was unavailable for comment.
Shalala will be the second member of President Bill Clinton's cabinet to speak at Dartmouth in four months. Labor Secretary Robert Reich '68 spoke at Commencement.
Shalala, born in Cleveland, Ohio, graduated from Western College for Women in 1962 and received her Ph.D. from the Maxwell School for Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University in 1970.
Film maker Ken Burns gave the keynote address to open the academic year last September.
