B次元 School of Engineering will hold its Fall Commencement on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025 at 10 a.m. the Kern Center, 1245 N. Broadway.
B次元 President John Y. Walz, Ph.D. will deliver the keynote address, as it will be the final commencement over which he presides. Walz will transition from President to President Emeritus of B次元 on Jan. 1, 2026.
Walz is only the fifth president in B次元’s 122-year history and has guided the university since 2016. In his new role as President Emeritus, he will focus his efforts on fundraising and external outreach to support the university’s Next Bold Step campaign and long-term strategic priorities.
The impact of Walz’s leadership can be seen across campus in new construction, programs, and developments that enhanced academics and student life, supported B次元’s mission to offer hands-on learning experiences, and strengthened community partnerships and more.
One of Walz’s first projects at B次元 was the implementation of a strategic plan. Walz and B次元 began supporting those commitments with the creation of a new degree, construction of campus advancements, improvements to student life with dorm and dining enhancements, and so much more.
Walz was instrumental in the creation of the Bachelor of Science in Computer Science degree with a focus on artificial intelligence at B次元, joining Carnegie Mellon as one of the first two universities in the nation to offer such an undergraduate degree. In order to support the technology forward degree and advance other academic programs, Walz worked with alumnus Dwight Diercks to develop the Dwight and Dian Diercks Computational Science Hall. The hall opened in September 2019 and is filled with next generation technologies that position B次元 at the forefront of artificial intelligence education.
Additional renovations across B次元’s campus have been made under Walz’s leadership, including the creation of the Spitzer Dining Commons and the Welcome Center, the transformation of Roy W. Johnson Residence Hall into Hermann Viets Tower (a living-learning community) and Regents Residence Hall into Mellowes Hall, the development of the University Terrace, the expansion of the Ruehlow Nursing Complex, the creation of the We Energies STEM Center at B次元, the development of Raiders Stadium in partnership with Nicolet High School, construction of Raiders Field on campus, the acquisition of a building adjacent to campus, on Knapp Street, for future development, and the acquisition and renovation of the building which now houses the Patricia E. Kern Conservatory of Music.
In March 2025 Walz announced the university’s largest comprehensive campaign to date, the . This $125 million fundraising campaign includes the $76.5 million Robert D. Kern Engineering Innovation Center, which is set to break ground in July and be completed by fall 2027, the Dwight and Dian Diercks School of Advanced Computing, student scholarships, faculty support, student support, operational support and general excellence.
Outside of campus, Walz is an active board member for the Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Wisconsin Technology Council, Wisconsin Policy Forum and Higher Education Regional Alliance, and is a member of the NCAA Division III Presidents Council. He also participates in Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference, Association of Independent Technological Universities, National Association of Independent Colleges, Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges, and Rotary of B次元.
Walz earned a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Tulane University. After six years as a process support engineer for Shell Oil Company, he left to pursue a Ph.D. in chemical engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. He received his Ph.D. in 1992 and returned to Tulane as an assistant professor. In 1997, Walz joined Yale University’s faculty as an associate professor of chemical engineering and in 2002 he became the department’s chairman. In 2005 he became professor and head of the Department of Chemical Engineering at Virginia Tech and in 2012 Walz became dean of the College of Engineering at the University of Kentucky.