Congressman Chris Van Hollen will speak at the Class of 2012 graduation ceremony June 6 at DAR Constitution Hall. A committee of senior class officers, teachers and principal Alan Goodwin decided to invite Van Hollen, who represents Montgomery County and the rest of Maryland’s Eighth Congressional District on Capitol Hill.

Prior to beginning his U.S. congressional career in 2002, Van Hollen also served in the Maryland House of Delegates and Senate. He graduated from Swarthmore College, the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and Georgetown University Law Center.

Senior class president Alex Luta said Van Hollen is a good choice for speaker because of his work on behalf of Montgomery County.

“Van Hollen is a part of the Montgomery County community,” Luta said. “He has extensive political experience, and we are confident that his words will be inspiring and valuable.”

English teacher Todd Michaels, who is the senior class sponsor, agreed that Van Hollen is a good choice, citing Van Hollen’s participation as the top Democrat on the House Budget Committee since 2010.

“He’s such a high-ranking congressman on such an important committee,” Michaels said. “It’s very timely.”

Goodwin also emphasized Van Hollen’s political prowess as a reason for having invited him to speak.

“He’s becoming more and more prominent person in the congressional world,” Goodwin said.  “He’s liked by both parties, according to the newspapers, so he just seemed like a good choice.”

In recent years, lieutenant governor Anthony Brown, journalist Bob Schieffer and Honest Tea president Seth Goldman have all spoken at graduation.