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Utica University announces Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente ’94 as 2026 Undergraduate Commencement Speaker
Picente is the longest-serving in the county’s history and is currently the longest-serving County Executive in New York State.
As the Class of 2026 prepares to walk across the stage in May, Utica University is proud to announce the commencement speaker for the undergraduate ceremony.
Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente Jr ’94 has been selected as this year’s undergraduate commencement speaker on Sunday, May 5, 2026. Utica University has a long tradition of inviting prominent figures who have excelled in their respective professions to serve as our commencement speakers.
Attending Utica public schools, he holds an associate degree from Mohawk Valley Community College and a bachelor’s degree from then-Utica College in Criminal Justice.
The 13th Oneida County Executive, Picente is the longest-serving in the county’s history and is currently the longest-serving County Executive in New York State. He was appointed to the position on January 1, 2007 and was then elected to full four-year terms in 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023. Named Regional Director of Empire State Development (ESD) in 2001, two years later, he was promoted to ESD vice president, a position he held until 2006. He is a past president of the New York State Association of Counties as well as a former president of the New York State Association of County Executives.
Throughout his tenure, he has focused on advancing economic development in the county in high-tech areas such as nanotechnology, cyber security, unmanned aerial systems, quantum computing and artificial intelligence. This includes establishing Griffiss International Airport as the Northeastern United States’ only FAA-designated UAS Test Site; Skydome, the nation’s largest indoor drone testing site and the Innovare Advancement Center, which fosters collaboration in high-tech fields with the U.S. Air Force and the private sector. He also worked to secure funding that led to the renaissance of the Adirondack Bank Center at the Utica Memorial Auditorium, which is now home to the AHL’s Utica Comets and the MASAL’s Utica City Football Club.
He also created The Vision 2020 Initiative, bringing together stakeholders from across Oneida County for promoting job opportunities, as well as education, training and housing alternatives. Vision 2020 has now expanded to deal with transportation issues including connectivity, alternatives to automobiles and access.
Picente was instrumental in the state and county's reaching of the historic agreement in 2013 with the Oneida Indian Nation and was the leader in the establishment of Mohawk Valley Health Systems’ Wynn Hospital —the first new hospital built in New York State in decades— and constructed a new county parking garage to accompany it and downtown Utica’s growth. He spearheaded the county-funded Utica University Nexus Center, a youth sports tournament and training facility that brings in hundreds of thousands of visitors per year and has hosted international sporting events. He led the development of the Marcy Nanocenter, which is now home to Wolfspeed’s first, largest and only 200mm Silicon Carbide fabrication facility in the world; and the County’s Triangle Site at Griffiss International Airport, which will soon be home to Chobani’s new dairy processing plant, the largest ever investment in a natural foods production facility in the U.S.
“It is a tremendous honor to return to Utica University—a place that played such an important role in shaping my life and career—to deliver this year’s commencement address," Picente said. "As a proud member of the Class of 1993, I know firsthand the value of a Utica education and the strong foundation it provides for success. I look forward to celebrating the achievements of this year’s graduates and sharing in a moment that marks both the culmination of their hard work and the beginning of their next chapter. It is especially meaningful to come back to campus and stand alongside the next generation of leaders as they prepare to make their impact on our communities and beyond.”
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