AUGUSTA — The University of Maine at Augusta has chosen state Sen. Elizabeth Mitchell, D-Vassalboro, to speak at this year’s graduation ceremony.

Mitchell is currently the Democratic Majority Leader in the state Senate. She was first elected to the Maine House of Representatives in 1974. She became Maine’s first female House Majority Leader in 1980. In 1996, she became the first female Speaker of the House.

Mitchell was elected to the state Senate in 2004. Before being elected Senate Majority Leader in 2006, she served as Senate chair of the Legislature’s joint Committee on Education and Cultural Affairs.

The graduation ceremony, UMA’s 40th, will be held Saturday, May 10 at 10 a.m. at the Augusta Civic Center. Approximately 600 students will receive degrees.

At the ceremony, the university will award MaineGeneral Health President and CEO Scott Bullock an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.

The college will also honor Maine educator and humorist Gary Crocker with a Distinguished Service Award. Crocker is currently the Director of State and Federal Programs for the Maine Community College System. He also sits on UMA’s Board of Visitors.

Two students will receive Distinguished Student Awards at the ceremony.