BATON ROUGE — More than 600 Southern University students are set to graduate this weekend, and SU's undergraduate grads walked the stage Friday morning.

The ceremony, held at the F.G. Clark Activity Center, had a special guest as its keynote speaker: Retired Lt. Gen. Nadja West, the 44th Surgeon General of the U.S. Army.

West was the first Black person ever appointed to the position under President Barack Obama; she was also the highest-ranking female graduate of the U.S. Military Academy.

A pair of Friday's graduates maintained perfect grade point averages and were honored as Chief Student Marshals. 

Brandis Lee was the valedictorian at Southern Lab School and just graduated with an accounting degree. The Zachary native is a third generation SU grad and is starting a job with Shell as a finance advisor, with plans to pursue a master's degree. 

Earielle London is also from Zachary and completed a degree in urban forestry. Now, she is taking a summer job with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forestry Service after spending time with them helping with forest fires. After that, she will head to China for a master's degree. 

The undergraduate commencement came after Thursday's graduate school ceremony. Congrats grads!