A Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and immigration activist will be delivering the University of Hawaii at Manoa’s commencement address Saturday morning at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Jose Antonio Vargas revealed in a New York Times essay two years ago that he has been living in the U.S. illegally since he was brought from the Philippines as a child to live with his grandparents.

He grew up in California where teachers and school administrators helped him gain college admission, a driver’s license and employment. He later landed a job at The Washington Post where he was part of a team that won the Pulitzer Prize.

About 1,100 Manoa students are eligible to receive degrees and certificates at UH-Manoa’s mid-year commencement program, which will begin at 9 a.m. The student procession starts at 8:30 a.m. and doors to the Stan Sheriff Center will open at 7:45 a.m. 

The event is free and no tickets are issued, so seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Balloons and strollers are not allowed inside the center, UH officials said. Free parking will be available in the lower campus parking structure, which opens at 6 a.m.