Mount Saint Mary College will confer 685 degrees at its 40th annual commencement ceremonies Saturday (May 17).
Eli J. Segal, founder of AmeriCorps, will deliver the address at the 10 a.m. ceremony. Journalist Joseph L. Galloway will speak at the 2 p.m. ceremony. The Mount will confer 460 bachelor's degrees and 225 master's degrees.
The Mount will confer the honorary degree of doctor of humane letters on Segal and Galloway along with educator William A. Carter. The college will present the Trustees Award for Distinguished Service to Dr. Richard M. Dickerman, who recently retired as the Mount's Vice President for Finance and Administration and Treasurer.
Mr. Segal, an attorney, was responsible for the design and enactment of the legislation that created AmeriCorps, the national service initiative. Through AmeriCorps the Brooklyn native galvanized the American spirit of community and helped realize the dream of a vital civilian service corps. AmeriCorps has given thousands of young people, including Mount graduates, a chance to serve their communities while earning money for college.
Dr. Dickerman enjoyed being around students and calmed many a student distressed with financial problems. On the other end of the college community spectrum, he served with distinction as secretary to the Mount's Board of Trustees.
The college changed a great deal during his two decades on campus. The budget quadrupaled to more than $34 million. Enrollment more that tripled to 2,500. And virtually every campus facility was either refurbished or built during his tenure.
Mr. Galloway is one of America's pre-eminent war correspondents. He spent 22 years as a foreign and war correspondent and bureau chief for United Press International and nearly 20 years as a senior editor and writer for U.S. News and World Report. Today he is the senior military correspondent at Knight-Ridder Newspapers.
He received the National Magazine Award in 1991 for a U.S. News and World Report cover article on the 25th anniversary of Ia Drang, the first major battle of the Vietnam War. He received the National News Media Award of the U.S. Veterans of Foreign Wars in 1992 for coverage of the Gulf War. He co-authored the 1992 bestseller about Ia Drang, We Were Soldiers Once∑and Young, which was adapted into the 2002 movie, We Were Soldiers, starring Mel Gibson.
Mr. Carter gained his reputation as an outstanding educator at Mechanicstown Elementary School in the Middletown school district, where he started teaching physical education in 1965. Four years later he became the school's principal, supervising, among other tasks, student teachers from the Mount. He served as principal for 23 years. He created "School Is a Feeling," a humanistic approach to education, used by schools in several states and Canada. In 1967 he founded Middletown Youth Clubs, involving 3,000 children and 200 volunteers. He is also an outstanding golf coach.
Both ceremonies will be held outdoors under a tent on Kaplan Field.
Visit the Mount at www.msmc.edu.
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