NEW LONDON, Conn. (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris will be this year's commencement speaker at the Coast Guard Academy, school officals announced Friday.

Harris will deliver the keynote address at the May 18 ceremony in New London, Connecticut, Rear Adm. Bill Kelly, the Coast Guard Academy's superintendent, said in a news release.

“We are honored to host the Vice President and look forward to having her present the Coast Guard’s newest leaders with their commissions,” Kelly said. “This will also be a memorable moment for our graduates before they head out across the country and around the globe to take their places in the fleet.”

Vice presidents traditionally address the graduating class at one of the service academies on a rotating basis. Harris was the commencement speaker at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, last year.

President Joe Biden spoke at last year's Coast Guard Academy commencement ceremony, telling the graduates that “The best way to meet the wide array of threats we meet today is by investing in America’s enduring advantages.”

The Associated Press