The three speakers chosen for December’s commencement festivities are Ian Wilmut, the Scottish biologist responsible for the cloning of Dolly the sheep, Siemens AG President and CEO Peter Löscher and former NASA astronaut Winston Scott.

“Everybody knows about MSU in terms of academics and sports, and it’s a great university,” Scott said. “I have never been on the campus, so that’s another reason I’m looking forward to it.”

Scott, who served on the 1996-97 Endeavour and Columbia NASA missions and is the former executive director of the Florida Space Authority, will speak to undergraduate students at 2 p.m. Dec. 8.

Wilmut, also internationally recognized, made a name for himself when he successfully cloned Dolly in 1997. In 2005, he was awarded the top medical research award in Germany, the Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize.

Before Scott, Löscher will speak at 10 a.m. Dec. 8. They will be addressing undergraduate students. Wilmut’s speech at 7 p.m. Dec. 7 will be for students with advanced degrees. All ceremonies will be held at Breslin Center.

“For 150 years, MSU has made ethics the cornerstone of its educational philosophy — a philosophy that I admire personally,” Löscher said in an e-mail Monday.

“It’s made me more proud than ever to also be awarded an honorary doctorate in engineering from MSU.”

Löscher became president and CEO of Siemens, an international electrical engineering and electronics company, in 2007. He also has served as president and CEO of General Electric Healthcare and GE Healthcare Bio-Sciences in Britain.

“I think that’ll be a great one, especially for business students and people that are going to be getting out in the real world,” said John Dwan, an advertising and supply chain management senior graduating in December.

Staff writer Heather Guenther contributed to this report.