April 25, 2006 Source: :
http://www.dal.ca/news/media/2006/2006-04-24.html Dalhousie Announces Spring Convocation Honorary Degree Recipients During spring convocation ceremonies, May 23-May 31, 2006, Dalhousie University will award honorary degrees to nine prominent Canadians in recognition of their significant accomplishments. The following individuals will receive a Doctor of Laws, honoris causa, with the exception of Jack Flemming who will receive a Doctor of Engineering, honoris causa. Derek Brown, Tuesday, May 30, 9:30 am, Convocation for Management (Undergraduate).
In 1971, Derek Brown joined Pitfield Mackay Ross, a predecessor of RBC Dominion Securities Ltd. He spent his earliest years in the securities business before being promoted to investment banking. Specializing in the financing of large utility and energy corporations, he eventually became Vice-President and Director in Corporate Finance in Toronto and Calgary. Derek had senior responsibility for the privatizations of Air Canada, Alberta Energy and Petro Canada. In 1992, he played a lead role in the $852 million privatization of Nova Scotia Power – the largest single equity financing arrangement in Canada at the time. After almost three decades as an investment banker, he became an adjunct professor at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management where business students voted him "the most popular professor." He also became a Commissioner of the Ontario Securities Commission from 1997 to 2003. Over the years, he has served on several public company boards, and as a Director of the Canadian Institute of Chartered Business Valuators. Mary Lou Finlay, Tuesday, May 23, 2:30 pm, Convocation for: FASS (Language and Humanities). Mary Lou Finlay is one of Canada’s most respected journalists. In 1970, Ms. Finlay hosted the CBC public affairs show, Four for the Road. Five years later she co-hosted CBC’s Take 30 and then her own program, Finlay and Company. A brief switch to CTV in 1978 saw her co-hosting and producing the consumer show, Live It Up. She returned to CBC in 1981, teaming up with Barbara Frum to launch The Journal. At the time, it was completely unheard of that two women would host a prime-time national current affairs program. They developed an innovative approach to TV news, with in-depth reports, documentaries, interviews and debates. Radio beckoned in 1988, when she began hosting Sunday Morning on CBC, followed by the media watchdog program Now the Details. In 1997, she nearly ended up in academia as chair of a journalism program, but instead joined As It Happens, one of the longest-running and most successful programs in Canadian radio history. Ms. Finlay retired from CBC Radio several months ago. She continues to work on her own projects, and to contribute to CBC on a freelance basis. Jack Flemming, Wednesday, May 31, 9:30 am, Convocation for: Engineering. Jack Flemming established Ocean Contractors Limited – specialists in asphalt, ready-mix concrete and residential foundations in 1974. Today, the Ocean companies are recognized as leaders in the construction industry, employing almost 300 people. But it is Mr. Flemming’s community involvement, and his empathy for others, that truly establishes him as a leader. For more than three decades, Jack Flemming has displayed a remarkable record of community service and philanthropic support. Much of his work has helped young people and charitable organizations. Many organizations are stronger because of his involvement, including the Halifax YMCA; Bonny Lea Farm, for those with special needs; Phoenix House, for homeless youth; Adsum House, an emergency shelter for women and children; Shad Valley, a program for outstanding high school students; the IWK Health Centre, and various other boards and organizations. Alan Grant, Monday, May 29, 2:30 pm, Convocation for: Science (Physical Science). Dr. Grant is a marine geologist and geophysicist whose career has spanned more than 40 years. Known as the pre-eminent authority on the geology of the East Coast offshore area, Dr. Grant provided a crucial link between industry and the academic world. Through his work with the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, he ventured to sea 26 times to gather data. Over more than three decades he collected, complied, interpreted and synthesized thousands of kilometres of seismic lines to produce the clear picture we now have of the offshore geology. Dr. Grant became an authority for exploration companies in search of offshore hydrocarbons. His research has appeared in 200 publications ranging from Geological Survey of Canada reports to articles in Nature and Science magazines. Gary Hack, Wednesday, May 24, 9:30 am, Convocation for: Architecture and Planning; Computer Science. Gary Hack is recognized internationally as one of the most important urban designers and planners in the world. His plans and designs have taken him from his early career as a practicing architect in Halifax, to the United States, Japan, Thailand and Taiwan. In 2002, his collaboration with architect Daniel Libeskind won an international competition for the design of the re-developed World Trade Center. He is the author of several publications, including the text book Site Planning with Kevin Lynch, a best-seller in planning and design used throughout North America for teaching site planning techniques. He has also served as a visiting professor, lecturer and critic at universities throughout North America and Europe, the Middle East and Asia. At present, he provides intellectual leadership as Dean and Paley Professor of the School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania. He is credited with initiating the first joint programs in urban design in China -- involving both North American and Chinese students -- and with fostering programs that cross intellectual boundaries in design and planning. Dr. Hack has served as an advisor to governments in Canada, Saudi Arabia and Thailand. Many municipal governments have sought his advice. He was chief planner of the West Side Waterfront redevelopment in New York City and the Prudential Redevelopment Project in Boston. He also led the team that prepared a new metropolitan plan for Bangkok, Thailand. Stephen Lewis, Thursday, May 25, 9:30 am, Convocation for: Health Professions (BSCNursing, DNPS, MN, BSW, MSW). In 1963 at age 25, Stephen Lewis became an elected representative in the Ontario legislature, serving as provincial leader of the New Democratic Party from 1970 to 1978. He was Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations from 1984 to 1988. He chaired such groundbreaking committees as the Five-Year UN Program on African Economic Recovery, and the first International Conference on Climate Change. He also served as the UN Secretary General’s Special Advisor on Africa, from 1986 to 1991. In the mid-1990s, Mr. Lewis coordinated an international study for UNICEF on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Children, and became Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF at its global headquarters in New York. UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed him Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa in 2001. In this role, Mr. Lewis has shed light on the disproportionate impact of HIV on women and children in Africa. His efforts have led to meaningful policy change. Aware that far more needed to be done, he created the Stephen Lewis Foundation in 2003. The foundation provides small-scale funding to African communities dealing with AIDS. In 2003, Mr. Lewis was appointed a Companion of the Order of Canada, this country’s highest honour for lifetime achievement. That same year, Maclean’s magazine anointed him its inaugural Canadian of the Year. Last year, TIME named him one of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Ralph Medjuck, Friday, May 26, 2:30 pm, Convocation for: Law. Ralph Medjuck has been the driving force behind some of the most innovative development on the Halifax peninsula since the 1950s. As Chairman and CEO of Centennial Group Limited and affiliated companies, he’s employed a workforce of more than 1,000. His developments include The Lord Nelson Hotel, Prince George Hotel, Cambridge Suites Hotel, the Toronto Dominion Bank, the Joseph Howe Building, Maritime Life and Halifax Insurance buildings, Summit Place, Park Victoria, Embassy Towers, the Carlyle, the residences of Saint Mary’s University, several senior citizens’ residences, and the Halifax Police Boys’ Club. An active volunteer, he was a founding Governor of the International Development Research Centre, Chairman of the United Appeal and the Neptune Theatre Foundation, and a Council Member of the Halifax Board of Trade. He’s been a Director of the Nova Scotia Rehabilitation Council, the Canadian Mental Health Association, the Nova Scotia Human Rights Foundation, and the Canadian Housing Design Council. He has also been an advisor to the Nova Scotia Housing Commission, and a member of the National Boys’ Clubs of Canada. Barbara Newman, Tuesday, May 30, 9:30 am, Convocation for Management (Undergraduate). Barbara Newman taught for several years in the Dartmouth public school system, and became a guidance counselor. Working with her late husband, Norman Newman, she made an indelible mark on this community. Norman Newman, was a hugely-successfully entrepreneur who shaped this region’s retail grocery, drug store and restaurant industry. It was always Barbara Newman who was at his side, supporting his efforts and helping ensure his success. It was in recognition of her husband’s accomplishments that Mrs. Newman provided generous support to Dalhousie’s Faculty of Management. Because of her gift, the Norman H. Newman Centre of Entrepreneurial Studies was established at Dalhousie. This centre ensures that Dalhousie continues its leadership role in promoting entrepreneurship throughout Atlantic Canada, nationally and internationally. The centre is a catalyst for researchers, students and entrepreneurs who will share their discoveries and findings worldwide. In addition, Mrs. Newman endowed a scholarship at Dalhousie devoted to students interested in, and working in, family-owned businesses. Frank Sobey, Friday, May 26, 9:30 am, Convocation for: Dentistry, Medicine, Health, Informatics. Frank Sobey is Chairman and Vice-President of Development, Crombie Properties Ltd., which extends throughout the Maritimes, and into Ontario and Quebec. He also sits on the Board of Directors of Sobeys Inc., Fisheries Products International and Wajax Limited. Beyond his business successes, Mr. Sobey has made major contributions to the Dalhousie community and the Province of Nova Scotia. As the driving force behind the Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation, he has significantly advanced medical research in our region. Mr. Sobey serves as Chair of the Executive and Board of Directors of the Dalhousie Medical Research Foundation (DMRF), which has experienced unprecedented growth under his skilled leadership. In the last six years, the DMRF has revitalized cancer research, hired accomplished new chairholders and boosted the Brain Repair Centre’s renowned presence in Canadian neurological research. Frank Sobey is keenly interested in post-secondary education in the region, especially commerce education. Sobeys Inc. and the Sobey family have created opportunities for students through initiatives like the Sobeys Inc. Scholarship Program for employees, their children and spouses; and the Frank H. Sobey Fund for Excellence in Business Studies. This fund awards six scholarships of $8,000 annually to university business students in the Atlantic Provinces. Dalhousie’s Class of 2006
Dalhousie’s spring convocation ceremonies will be held in the Rebecca Cohn Auditorium of the Dalhousie Arts Centre where 3436 Dalhousie students will graduate. Dalhousie is a comprehensive, research-intensive university with an enrolment of more than 15,300 students. Media inquiries, contact:
Charles Crosby
Charles.Crosby@dal.ca
Phone: (902) 494-1269
Fax: (902) 494-1472
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