Newswise — Dr. Donald A. Henderson, professor of medicine and infectious iseases and microbiology at the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Biosecurity, will be awarded an honorary degree from Clarkson University at its 113th Commencement in Potsdam, New York, Sunday, May 14.
Dr. Donald A. Henderson, most widely known for having directed the World Health Organization's (WHO) global program to eradicate smallpox, will address the more than 700 Clarkson students being granted bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees that day.
Henderson worked for more than 10 years on the global small pox eradication program and led WHO to discover and contain the final cases of smallpox in Somalia in 1977, which lead to the worldwide eradication of the disease.
Henderson received his medical degree from the University of Rochester and a master of Public Health degree from Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health. He is currently a professor of Medicine and Public Health and a Distinguished Scholar at the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Biosecurity.
Throughout his career, Henderson has played a leading role in developing policies and plans for national public health preparedness. In this role he has dealt with the challenges of new and emerging infections, such as avian influenza and monkey pox, and the threat of biological weapons. In 1966 he was appointed to direct the World Health Organization's (WHO) successful global smallpox eradication program. In 974, he was instrumental in initiating WHO's global program of immunization, which has vaccinated 80 percent of the world's children against six major diseases and has as a goal the eradication of poliomyelitis. From 1977 through August 1990, Henderson was dean of the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. He founded the Johns Hopkins Center for Civilian Biodefense Studies in 1998. In 2001, he became the first national director of the Office of Public Health Emergency Preparedness.
Henderson has served as a White House Science Advisor for the Life Sciences and in 2002 was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, our nation's highest civilian award. Recipients of the award include past presidents Ford and Carter, as well as Anwar Sadat and Margaret Thatcher. He has also received the National Medal of Science, the National Academy of Science's Public Welfare Award and the Japan Prize. He has received numerous honorary degrees as well as awards from 19 countries, WHO and the Pan American Health Organization. Henderson has been described as "a great general in mankind's war against disease."
Clarkson University, located in Potsdam, New York, is a private, nationally ranked university with a reputation for developing innovative leaders in engineering, business, the sciences, health sciences and the humanities. At Clarkson, 3,000 high-ability students excel in an environment where learning is not only positive, friendly and supportive but spans the boundaries of traditional disciplines and knowledge. Faculty achieves international recognition for their research and scholarship and connects students to their leadership potential in the marketplace through dynamic, real-world problem solving.
PHOTO CAPTION: Dr. Donald A. Henderson, professor of medicine and infectious diseases and microbiology at the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Biosecurity, will speak at Clarkson University's 113th Commencement in Potsdam, New York, Sunday, May 14. Henderson, who led the successful global effort by the World Health Organization to eradicate smallpox, will also receive an honor degree from the University.
A photograph for media use is available athttp://www.clarkson.edu/news/photos/henderson.jpg
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