Hearth Exec to Speak to CLU Graduates

The more than 500 students graduating from Cal Lutheran University on May 13 will hear commencement speaker Francis X. Maguire, chief executive of Hearth Communications Group in Westlake Village.

Maguire will have a positive message.

“There’s never been more opportunity to grow, all around us, not just in the high-tech world,” Maguire said. “This is the time to invent your future and to have total self-confidence.”

The student population has risen to more than 3,000 graduate and undergraduate students, among the highest in the school’s history. As a result, this year’s 37th commencement is one of the largest graduating CLU classes in years, officials said. There are 651 students graduating this year, up from 544 in the 1997-98 academic year.

“I’m going to talk to them about the opportunities they have as the future unfolds,” said Maguire, 65. “Times like graduation, people get a little bit stressed and nervous. I just want them to know there’s never been more opportunity than there is now to enjoy the future.”