Veritas, Vol. 38, No. 08, May 1996

              VERITAS
ulty and Staff of the Unh
May 1996 Volui
"UM""
Commencement defines achievements of students, honorary doctorates
It's time for scholars to don their
academic regalia and mark the
solemn—and joy-ous—ritual of
commencement.
The May 10 ceremonies will take
place at 8:30 a.m. on the lawn
between the Otto G. Richter Library
and the Whitten University Center.
.An estimated 2,326 students will
receive their degrees at the general
commencement exercises, including
1,203 undergraduate, 579 graduate,
406 law-, and 138 medical degrees.
Sister Jeanne O'Laughlin, president
of Barry University, will deliver the
commencement address. She will be
given the honorary degree of Doctor
of Humane Letters and will be joined
by seven other individuals distinguished in their fields to receive such
honors.
Sister Jeanne O'Laughlin
When Sister Jeanne was a young girl
in her native Detroit, she got her own
glimpse of the pain of racial prejudice^—she was spat upon after assisting an African-aVmerican family- on a
streetcar. Her father explained that the
man acted out of ignorance. "I felt
something happen inside me at that
moment," she recalls. "I knew ignorance was bad. I w-anted to do something to eliminate that terrible thing,
and the only way you get over ignorance is through education."
A Catholic nun of the Adrian
Dominican order, she has devoted her
life to educating elementary schoolers
to university- students. Barry- University-
has thrived during her 15-year tenure.
Enrollment, faculty, and staff have
expanded, and the growing campus
reflects a healthy financial picture. Her
zeal also extends to a variety of civic
involvements. "Sister Jeanne doesn't
just put her imprimatur on good
causes and then leave the work to
others," noted a recent Miami Herald
tribute. "She's inspiringly different."
William Danforth
William Henry- Danforth "caught the
drive for excellence." he says, in 1951
when he joined the Washington University- medical faculty-. Appointed
chancellor in 1966—a post he held for
nearly- 25 years—he elevated that institution into the upper echelons of higher education. The physician,
researcher, teacher, and academician
will be awarded the honorary degree
of Doctor of Humane Letters for
his unparalleled contributions to
education.
Sister Jeanne
O'Laughlin
Michael S. Brown and
Joseph L. Goldstein
Michael S. Brown and Joseph L.
Goldstein will together be awarded the
honorary- degree of Doctor of Science
for their achievements in the field of
human genetics. Partners in the Nobel
Prize-winning discovery of the biochemical and genetic origins of cholesterol buildup and its role in promoting
atherosclerosis and heart attacks, their
findings enabled researchers to produce new- drugs that reduce the risk of
heart attacks.
David McCullough
Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer, historian, lecturer, and teacher, David
McCullough will be given the honorary
Doctor of Letters. The author of several
acclaimed books, including Truman,
one of the most popular aAmerican
biographies of all time, McCullough is
known to millions of television v-iew-ers
as the host of The American Experience, and as narrator of Ken Burns'
The Civil War.
Don Shula
The -winningest coach in NFL
history" and a champion off the field
as well. Don Shula w ill be awarded
the honorary degree of Doctor of
Laws, in recognition of his leadership
with the Miami Dolphins. In a career
that spanned a total of 33 years as a
head coach. Shula set the standard of
excellence, breaking league records
and winning Super Bowls. Shula. who
will soon be inducted into the football
Hall of Fame, also extends his leadership to a wide range of community
and charitable endeavors.
Don Shula Michael Tilson
Michael Tilson Thomas
A dedicated promoter of the works of
American composers and commited to
the development of the next generation of musicians, conductor Michael
Tilson Thomas will be aw-arded an
honorary Doctorate of Music. He is
known locally- as the founder of The
New World Symphony, the professional training orchestra headquartered in
Miami Beach, but the reach of his
extraordinary talent is international.
Tilson Thomas is credited w-ith restor
ing the prominence of the London
Symphony- Orchestra, and has received
much critical notice as the music director of the San Francisco Symphony.
Norman Schwarzkopf
Once described as a "warrior with a
soul," retired U.S. aArmy- General H.
Norman Schwarzkopf will be awarded
the honorary degree of Doctor of Public Service in recognition of his dedication to the defense of his country and
to preserving world peace. Commander of Operation Desert Shield and
Operation Desert Storm, Schwarzkopf
earned the admiration of not only his
troops in the field but of much of the
rest of the world, as the Allied Forces
reclaimed Kuwait from Iraq. The
much-decorated, four-star general
remains a man of action in retirement,
serving on a range of charity boards
and coordinating community <
Faculty, administrators, candidates,
and trustees should be in their
assigned area by 7:30 a.m. The procession will form at 8 a.m. and begin
promptly- at 8:30 a.m.
A hooding ceremony for the School
of Medicine will take place May 11 at
2 p.m.: hooding for the School of Law
w-ill take place May 12 at 2 p.m. Both
are held at the Hy-att Regency-James L.
Knight Center. 400 S.E. 2nd Avenue.
News media analyze presidential campaign
A group of high-powered pundits
debated presidential politics from the  I
stage of the Jerry Herman Ring
Theatre as part of the CNBC Town
Hall, a political roundtable broadcast
live the weekend before the Florida
primary. "Politics '96: The Campaign
and the Media" included top
journalists giving their perspective of
media coverage of the campaign and I
the candidates. Joseph Angotti,
communication studies chair,
organized the event, which was also
earned on America's Talking cable
networks.
Among the panelists were George I
Stephanopoulos, special assistant to
the president; moderator Chris Matthews, of CNBC and trie San Francisco
Examiner: and The Baltimore Sun's Jack Germond.
Is serious news getting lost in the barrage of talk? The profusion of talk
shows has really hurt the process.' says NBC News anchor Tom Brokaw. "On a
24-hour cycle they're concentrating on who's up and who's down.'