Ithaca College announced March 25 that Jason DeLand will be the speaker at the 129th Commencement ceremony. The 2024 commencement will take place at 10 a.m. May 19 at the Glazer Arena. 

DeLand graduated from the college in 1998 with a Bachelor of Science from the Roy H. Park School of Communications and founded Anomaly in 2004. DeLand has been recognized as one of Adweek’s “20 Most Influential People Under 40” and has gone on to win Anomaly awards like Fast Company’s “50 Most Innovative Companies in the World,” Ad Age’s “US Agency of the Year” in 2018 and Adweek’s equivalent honor in 2022. 

DeLand has also managed and acquired accounts like Coca-Cola, Major League Baseball, Disney Parks and Resorts, Panera and Dick’s Sporting Goods for Anomaly and has expanded the company into China and Nigeria. 

DeLand is most well known for working on three of the most popular and viewed Super Bowl ads in history, Budweiser ads “Best Buds,” “Lost Dog” and “Puppy Love.”

While DeLand has made a career in the advertising field, he is also an advocate for social responsibility and has been a board member of the DREAM Charter School in Harlem since 2014.

Recognized for his achievements and successful career, DeLand was awarded the 2017 Ithaca College Alumni Association’s Professional Achievement Award.