Lawrence University alumni Campbell Scott and Robert McDonald to speak at commencement

APPLETON (WLUK) -- Two widely acclaimed Lawrence University alumni will address the 2025 graduating class this spring.

Actor and director Campbell Scott and pianist Robert McDonald will return to campus to address during Commencement weekend.

Both will receive honorary doctorate degrees at Commencement on June 15 on Main Hall Green.

Scott, a 1983 graduate, will be the featured Commencement speaker; McDonald, a 1973 graduate, will address the graduates and their families at the Baccalaureate service the day before in Memorial Chapel.

Scott is an accomplished actor of stage and film who first rose to prominence in 1990, seven years after graduating from Lawrence, when he starred in the groundbreaking film Longtime Companion, netting him a feature in Rolling Stone and a bevy of new film offers. He has since crafted an impressive career as an actor and director, starring in such films as Dying Young, Singles, The Amazing Spider-Man, Roger Dodger, Secret Lives of Dentists, and Jurassic World Dominion, and the television series Royal Pains. Most recently, Scott starred in Millers in Marriage (2024) and is in the upcoming comedy, Nonnas (2025).

On the directing front, Scott teamed with Stanley Tucci in 1996 to direct Big Night, winning both the New York Film Critics Circle Award and the Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best New Director. Other directing credits include Off the Map and Company Retreat.

Lawrence previously honored Scott in 1998 with its Nathan M. Pusey Distinguished Achievement Award. He later served on the Board of Trustees from 2002 to 2008.

McDonald has been a sought-after pianist for decades, performing in concerts and presenting masterclasses around the world. He has performed and recorded with Isaac Stern and Midori, as well as with numerous high-profile ensembles.

He is on the faculty at The Juilliard School and the Curtis Institute of Music, where he holds the Penelope P. Watkins Chair in Piano Studies. He has been the recipient of the gold medal at the Busoni International Piano Competition, the top prize at the William Kapell International Competition, and the Deutsche Schallplatten Critics Award. In addition to being the artistic director of the Taos School of Music and Chamber Music Festival in New Mexico, he has participated in the Bergen, Lucerne, and Salzburg festivals in Europe, the Four Seasons, Marlboro, and Brevard festivals in the United States, the Steans Institute at Ravinia, as well as at the Banff Center in Canada and the Music Academy of the West.

McDonald holds degrees from Lawrence, the Curtis Institute of Music, and Juilliard. He has taught at Juilliard since 1999 and the Curtis Institute since 2007. He was honored by Lawrence in 1990 with the Nathan M. Pusey Distinguished Achievement Award and was awarded an honorary doctorate from the Manhattan School of Music in 2018.