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Turning Point USA CEO and Chair Erika Kirk has been named as the 2026 commencement speaker for Hillsdale College, the institution announced Friday.
Mrs. Kirk is the widow of the late Turning Point President Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated last September while speaking on campus at Utah Valley University.
“Charlie Kirk became a national and international sensation, and he built something amazing,” said College President Larry Arnn, per “The Collegian,” Hillsdale’s school publication.
Arnn continued, “At his memorial service were the great, the near-great, and tens of millions watching. We loved him because he was, at heart, a student who worked hard to get it right. Erika Kirk, brave and widowed, intends to carry on. And we will help her.”
Mrs. Kirk said in a statement that being invited to speak was a “great honor.”
“Charlie loved Hillsdale deeply and was often a grateful student of its online courses, learning from Dr. Larry Arnn and the remarkable faculty, who are so committed to truth and the pursuit of wisdom,” she added.
Erika Kirk took the reins of TPUSA just days after her husband’s assassination and was unanimously elected by the board.
“My husband’s mission will not end, not even for a moment,” she vowed in September, when speaking about her intentions to carry on his legacy through TPUSA.
Since stepping into a leadership role at the organization, she has spearheaded TPUSA’s annual AMFEST and organized the Super Bowl alternative programming, “The All-American Halftime Show.” She was also a recent personal guest of the Trump family during the president’s State of the Union address in late February.
In her statement shared by The Collegian, Mrs. Kirk noted, “Hillsdale represents something rare in our time — a steadfast devotion to faith, learning, and the principles that sustain a free nation. I am sincerely grateful for the invitation and look forward to being there with all of you. God bless you.”
The commencement address is scheduled for May 9.
