Ingwersen to address new graduates at Saturday commencement ceremonies

Auburn alumnus Dick Ingwersen, founder of Atlanta-based certified public accounting firm Gifford, Hillegass and Ingwersen and co-founder of Ingwersen & Taylor law firm, will be the keynote speaker for the university’s summer commencement ceremonies Saturday, Aug. 3. The university will confer 1,343 degrees during two ceremonies.

Ingwersen will speak at a 10 a.m. ceremony for the College of Architecture, Design and Construction; the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering; the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences; the College of Liberal Arts; and the College of Sciences and Mathematics. He will speak at a 2 p.m. ceremony for the College of Agriculture; the Harbert College of Business; the College of Education; the College of Human Sciences; and the School of Nursing.

Ingwersen graduated from the Harbert College of Business in 1970 with a bachelor’s degree in business management and later earned his juris doctor degree from Emory University Law School. Under his leadership, Gifford, Hillegass and Ingwersen became one of the top local certified public accounting firms in Atlanta. He was instrumental in completing a merger with Warren Averett LLC, the fifth largest accounting firm in the Southeast. As a member of the managing partner group for the Leading Edge Alliance, Ingwersen was recognized as the 2003 Innovative Firm Leader of the Year. The Leading Edge Alliance is the second largest international accounting association in the world and is composed of 220 firms operating in 110 countries.

Ingwersen was the recipient of the Auburn School of Accountancy’s 2008 Outstanding Alumnus award. He formerly served on the board of directors for the YMCA of Metropolitan Atlanta, where he was named Volunteer of the Year three times, and served on the advisory council for the School of Accountancy until 2018. In 1992, Ingwersen received the Public Service Award for the state of Georgia from the Georgia Society of Certified Public Accountants.

A former defensive end for the Auburn Tigers under Shug Jordan in the late 1960s, Ingwersen received the Walter Gilbert Award in 2016, an award recognizing former athletes who distinguished themselves after graduation. In 2019, he was the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Auburn Alumni Association, the highest award the association bestows upon members of the Auburn Family.

Auburn University will award 106 doctoral degrees, 310 master’s degrees, 20 specialist degrees, two pharmacy degrees, one veterinary medicine degree and 904 bachelor’s degrees. The bachelor’s degree by college and school are: College of Liberal Arts, 191; Harbert College of Business, 179; Samuel Ginn College of Engineering, 137; School of Nursing, 95; College of Human Sciences, 87; College of Architecture, Design and Construction, 69; College of Sciences and Mathematics, 59; College of Education, 43; College of Agriculture, 30; School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, 14.