Carnegie Mellon University

Anniversary Weekend at Homecoming

Alumni, students, faculty, staff and the community gathered on campus for an inspiring weekend to celebrate the founders who built the legacy of Carnegie Mellon University and the founders who will lead its future.

Attendees explored innovations of the past, present and future at an interactive exposition, and engaged with the leading thinkers on today's most contemporary topics.

View photos from the events at the links below.

Featured Events

Robot playing Go Fish at Expo

Founders
Exposition

View photos from the event

This extraordinary interactive demonstration and exhibit engaged minds and inspired souls with innovations from the last 50 years (and looking forward to the next 50) that have changed the world as we know it.

Female student speaking at Convocation

Founders Convocation and Keynote Address

View photos from the event

Interim President Farnam Jahanian and the Carnegie Mellon University Board of Trustees welcomed keynote presenter and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Thomas Friedman and other special guests in this celebration of the founders who shaped CMU into what it is today as well as those who will advance its legacy.

Homecoming football game Cheerleader

Homecoming Tailgate & Football Game

View photos from the event

Alumni, students and friends celebrated Homecoming with a tailgate lunch and games plus family activities, a photobooth and the KidZone, through halftime as the Tartans took on the Case Western Reserve Spartans.

Featured Speakers

Bestselling author, New York Times foreign affairs columnist and three-time Pulitzer Prize-winner Thomas L. Friedman presented the keynote lecture at the Founders Convocation Friday evening in Rangos Ballroom.

View photos from the event

Former U.S. Secretary of Transportation and former mayor of Charlotte, N.C., Anthony Foxx spoke about “Smart and Connected Cities” Friday afternoon in McConomy Auditorium. (Sponsored by the Center for International Relations and Politics, Institute for Strategic Analysis, and the Office of Government Relations.)

View photos from the event

Lectures and Panels

The Future of Work - Busy room

Friday, November 10
McConomy Auditorium

The Future of Work: Technologies and their Societal Impact


A panel of CMU experts discussed the ethical and policy issues that surround AI—how it will reshape jobs, organizations, political allegiances and even economic opportunities.

Man instructing student on computer

Friday, November 10
Kresge Theatre, College of Fine Arts

Founding Lessons

CMU alumni have a long history of shaping and disrupting fields from performance to production. Three such alumni shared their stories of success and the lessons they learned along the way.

Woman instructing students at white board

Friday, November 10
Kresge Theatre, College of Fine Arts

Trailblazers: Advancing Women @ CMU

Some of CMU’s most accomplished and celebrated women faculty leaders discussed their careers and how they develop other women, encouraging them to take risks, advance within their professions and transform their fields.

Robotic arms performing work in green light

Friday, November 10
McConomy Auditorium

The AI Initiative

Distinguished CMU faculty discussed emerging AI trends, why CMU was part of the birth of artificial intelligence and how it's still a leader in the field.

Full Schedule of Events

Friday, November 10


Veterans Day Memorial Ceremony at Flag Raising
7:45 A.M.
The Cut

Founders Exposition Opening and Picnic
11:30 A.M. - 1:00 P.M.
Kirr Commons

Student Exhibition
11:30 A.M. – 2:30 P.M.
Danforth Conference Rooms

Founders Exposition: Showcasing the Past 50 Years and the Next 50 Years of Innovations
11:30 A.M. - 4:00 P.M.
Wiegand Gym

Featured Lecture: Anthony Foxx
1:00 - 1:45 P.M.
McConomy Auditorium

Lectures & Panels:
The Future of Work: Technologies and their Societal Impact
2:00 - 2:50 P.M.
McConomy Auditorium

Founding Lessons
2:00 - 2:50 P.M.
Kresge Theatre, College of Fine Arts

Trailblazers: Advancing Women @ CMU
3:00 - 3:50 P.M.
Kresge Theatre, College of Fine Arts

The AI Initiative
3:00 - 3:50 P.M.
McConomy Auditorium

Founders Convocation and Keynote Address: Thomas L. Friedman
4:30 - 6:00 P.M.
Rangos Ballroom, Cohon University Center

Founders Reception in the Exposition
6:00 - 7:00 P.M.
Wiegand Gym

Saturday, November 11


Founders Exposition
continues
11:00 A.M. - 5:00 P.M. 
Wiegand Gym
Homecoming Tailgate
11:00 A.M. - 4:30 P.M. 
Tartans Pavillion
Homecoming Football Game: Carnegie Mellon Tartans vs. Case Western Reserve Spartans
2:00 - 4:30 P.M.
Gesling Stadium
Heinz College Historic Documentary Screening
6:00 - 6:30 P.M.
Hamburg Hall
Heinz College 50th Anniversary Gala
6:30 - 9:00 P.M.
Hamburg Hall