Newswise — Tony and Emmy-award winners, a pediatric neurosurgeon, a psychologist and two judges will be among those taking part in the University of Richmond's 176th commencement exercises May 13-14.
Some 756 baccalaureate and 70 graduate degrees will be awarded May 14 at 2 p.m. in the Robins Center.
Ceremonies for the Schools of Continuing Studies and Law will take place May 13 in the Robins Center at 9 a.m. and 2 p.m., respectively. The law school will award 135 J.D. degrees, and SCS will present 122 associate's, bachelor's and master's degrees.
Jennifer L. Hyde, director of development for CNN Productions, will be the alumni speaker May 14. The Hon. F.G. Rockwell III, judge of the 12th Judicial Circuit and an adjunct law faculty member, will speak at the law school commencement. Belle Wheelan, president of the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) and former Virginia secretary of education, will speak at the SCS commencement ceremony.
Actor, singer and dancer Ben Vereen will be among four honorary degree recipients May 14. Others will be: Dr. Benjamin Carson, director of pediatric neurosurgery at Johns Hopkins University; Dr. Deborah G. Kemler Nelson, chair of psychology at Swarthmore College; and the Hon. Frederick P. Stamp, judge, U.S. District Courts, Northern District of West Virginia.
Dr. Michael Garbee, R'89, who was working as a neurology resident at Charity Hospital in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, will receive the President's Medal, givenfor exceptional and meritorious service to the university, nation or world.
Leonard S. Goldberg, retiring vice president for student development, will receive the Trustees Distinguished Service Award, presented in recognition of unselfish dedication and meritorious service to the university.
At CNN, Hyde is responsible for originating, developing and supervising the documentary programming of two series. She has won more than a dozen broadcasting and journalism awards, including a Peabody, two national Emmys and an Academy Award nomination. Prior to joining Turner Broadcasting in 1994, Hyde worked at NBC, the Virginia Film Office and in freelance production.
Rockwell is a 1979 graduate of the University of Richmond School of Law and served as judge of the Chesterfield-Colonial Heights Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court from 1994"2002, when he was appointed judge of the 12th Judicial Circuit. He is a member of the Judicial Liaison Committee of the Department of Juvenile Justice and is president of the Chesterfield-Colonial Heights Criminal Justice Board.
Wheelan earned a B.A. from Trinity University, Texas, a master's degree from Louisiana State and a doctoral degree in educational administration from the University of Texas. She previously has been provost of Tidewater Community College's Portsmouth campus and president of both Central Virginia and Northern Virginia community colleges. In 2002, she became the first African-American woman named Virginia secretary of education. In July 2005, she took on her current role as president of the Commission on Colleges of SACS.
Garbee joined Charity Hospital in 2005 as a neurology resident. On duty when Hurricane Katrina struck, he worked marathon shifts with other resident physicians for nearly a week while waiting for help. Rationing food and supplies and without electricity, running water, clean sheets and diagnostic tools, he made rounds, doing what he could to treat patients. On the fourth and fifth days, Garbee helped evacuate patients down 12 flights of stairs. He later resumed his residency at Earl K. Long Medical Center in Baton Rouge, La. He is a sociology graduate of the university and earned his medical degree from the American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine in British West Indies.
Goldberg has served as vice president for student development at the University since 1987. He previously was dean of educational services at Dickinson College, vice president for student affairs at University of Maine, Presque Isle, and dean of students at Roger Williams College. He has served in a variety of capacities for NASPA (National Association of Student Personnel Administrators), including regional vice president, chair of the Health Education and Leadership Program advisory committee, editorial board member of NASPA Journal and NASPA Monograph, and NASPA's liaison to the Inter-Association Task Force on AIDS. He has published articles and given presentations on leadership development and AIDS on college campuses.
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