The Department of the Commerce (Trade) of the Riga Polytechnical Institute is one of the most recent departments – founded in 1868. Celebrating the 150 year anniversary of the University in 2012, the most prominent graduates were remembered, one of whom is Zigfrīds Anna Meierovics – the first Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia, graduated from the Riga Polytechnical Institute in 1911. He was one of 45 graduates of the Department of Commerce, the department which had the largest number of graduates in 1911 compared to the other six departments of the Riga Polytechnic Institute. The graduates have taken different paths in their lives – as employees of private and governmental institutions, managers of commercial enterprises, teachers in various cities and countries (Latvia, Estonia, Russia, and Poland). The group of graduates has been ethnically diverse – containing Jewish, Estonian, Russian, Polish, German, and Latvian (40 % of graduates). One of the most recognizable graduates is Juhan Kukk, the president of Estonia (1922–1923). Another prominent graduate is the Latvian politician, journalist, and pedagogue Oto Nonācs.