Attorney General Janet Reno will deliver the 1996 University of California, Davis, law school commencement address at 10:30 a.m. Saturday, May 18. Reno is the nation's first female attorney general, having begun her service in the Clinton administration on March 12, 1993. As attorney general, she is the highest-ranking law enforcement official in the nation and heads the U.S. Department of Justice. In her role as attorney general, Reno has stressed several key priorities, including reducing crime and violence by incarcerating serious, repeat offenders, and by finding alternative forms of punishment for first-time, non-violent lawbreakers. Reno also has focused on prevention and early intervention efforts to keep children away from gangs, drugs and violence and on the path toward strong, healthy and self-sufficient lives. In addition, Reno has sought to enforce civil rights laws to ensure equal opportunities and to keep natural resources pollution-free. Prior to becoming a federal official, Reno served as state attorney in Miami, Fla., initially appointed to the position in 1978 by the governor of Florida and subsequently elected to the office four times. As state attorney, Reno was responsible for an office with 940 employees, an annual budget of $30 million and a yearly docket of 120,000 cases. She established a career criminal unit that worked with federal officials and local law enforcement to arrest and convict career criminals and sentence them to substantial prison time. Between 1976 and 1978, Reno was a partner in the Miami-based law firm of Steel, Hector & Davis. Prior to that, she served as an assistant state attorney and as staff director of the Florida House of Representatives' judiciary committee. Reno was born and reared in Miami. She received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Cornell University in 1960 and her LL.B. degree from Harvard Law School in 1963. The law school's 27th commencement ceremony will be held from 10:30 a.m. to noon in the UC Davis Recreation Hall. The ceremony is open to the public. Bruce Wolk, dean of the law school, will give welcoming remarks and present the Law School Medal, which goes to the top student in the graduating class. Other speakers during the ceremony will include faculty speaker Professor Martha West and student speaker Jason Rabinowitz. A reception for the 149 graduating students and their families will be held following the ceremony at the University Club.