Providence College will the following five distinguished individuals with honorary degrees at the College’s Eighty-Eighth Commencement Exercises on Sunday, May 21, 2006. Actor and entrepreneur John O'Hurley, will deliver the College's Commencement address.
The honorary degree recipients are:
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Edwin N. Forman, M.D.
Pediatric Hematologist/Oncologist, Hasbro Children's Hospital
Alan G. Hassenfeld Professor of Pediatrics, Brown Medical School
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Carolyn Yauyan Woo
Martin J. Gillen Dean, Mendoza College of Business, University of Notre Dame
Ray and Milann Siegfried Chair in Entrepreneurial Studies, University of Notre Dame
Edwin N. Forman, M.D.
In a medical career that has spanned more than four decades, Dr. Edwin N. Forman has devoted extraordinary time and effort to improving the lives of children afflicted with cancer and to guiding the personal development of physicians.
Forman, who received the 2003 Rhode Island Hospital Outstanding Physician of the Year Award, served as director of the pediatric hematology/oncology division of Rhode Island Hospital in Providence from 1972-2005. He also served as associate physician-in-chief and as vice chair of pediatrics at Rhode Island Hospital and at the adjacent Hasbro Children's Hospital, which he was instrumental in developing and which opened in 1994.
In the latter two positions, he directed both the Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Program and the Pediatric Residency Training Program for more than 25 years.
The founder and current chair of the Rhode Island Hospital Ethics Committee, Forman was named last year as the Alan G. Hassenfeld Professor of Pediatrics at Brown Medical School, where he has taught since 1973. At Brown, he conducts ethics roundtables for residents and medical students and teaches undergraduate bioethics courses.
Forman was the co-founder of the Providence Ronald McDonald House and of The Tomorrow Fund, which provides financial and emotional support to children with cancer and their families. He was instrumental in developing Camp Hope, a camp for children with cancer and their siblings. He also helped found and was co-chair of the Alliance for Childhood Cancer, an organization dedicated to improving the care of children stricken by the disease.
A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Forman attained his bachelor's degree from Brown University and his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He served as a physician in the U.S. Air Force for three years.
The co-author of Ethical Dilemmas in Pediatrics and The Parents' Handbook on Leukemia, Forman and his wife, Sylvia, are the parents of three children and reside in Providence.
John O'Hurley '76
John O'Hurley '76 is probably most recognized for his Screen Actors Guild Award-winning portrayal of J. Peterman on the legendary Seinfeld sitcom. That's only part of the television, screen, and stage actor's story; he's also a TV show host, a pianist, a composer, a business entrepreneur, and more.
Always reaching for a challenge, O'Hurley made his Broadway debut this spring as the male lead, Billy Flynn, in the hit musical Chicago. His love of theater has led to starring roles on national tours of Pirates of Penzance, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, and Brigadoon.
Television, though, is where America finds O'Hurley most. He is hosting the Dick Clark Production of TV's Funniest Bloopers on ABC and is the new face of the popular syndicated show Family Feud.
Each Thanksgiving, he hosts NBC's The National Dog Show, presented by Purina. Last summer, he starred in the first series of ABC's hit show Dancing with the Stars.
O'Hurley's television career began in daytime shows. His credits include The Young and the Restless and All My Children. His TV career also includes ABC's Over the Top and A Whole New Ballgame, and his more than 50 guest starring roles include appearances on Murder She Wrote, Frasier, and The X Files.
A film veteran as well, O'Hurley starred in Race to Space opposite James Woods and Billy the Kid with Val Kilmer. Currently, he is producing The Richard Petty Story. He also lends his voice to some of America's most popular cartoons, such as "King Neptune" in SpongeBob SquarePants.
O'Hurley recently released a three-part instructional dance DVD, Dance with John
and Charlotte. Last year, the Kittery, Maine, native released his first CD, Peace of Our Minds, a collaboration of piano and cello compositions by O'Hurley and renowned
cellist Marston Smith. On the business side, he is principal partner of Round One Investments in Los Angeles, Calif., and Heritage Capital Investment in Atlanta, Ga. He also is part-owner of the real-life J. Peterman Company.
An avid golfer who plays on the Celebrity Players Tour, O'Hurley and his wife, Lisa, live in Beverly Hills, Calif.
Reverend Robert J. Randall
Rev. Robert J. Randall--a priest, educator, and scholar--was a member of the Providence College faculty for more than 25 years and established the College's first endowed chair, The Rev. Robert Randall Distinguished Professorship in Christian Culture, in 2002.
While serving nearly continuously at PC from 1975-2004, Father Randall taught courses in English, theology, and philosophy, including honors courses in the Development of Western Civilization Program. He became assistant professor of English in 1976 and associate professor in 1989, serving as department chair from 1983-1985. He has taught at the collegiate level for 50 years, including 19 years at Our Lady of Providence Seminary in Warwick, R.I.
Ordained a priest in the Diocese of Providence in 1951, Father Randall served in several parishes and other positions until his "retirement" in 1997. Among his responsibilities, he was rector of Our Lady of Providence Seminary from 1970-1980 and was pastor of both St. Andrew Church on Block Island and St. Sebastian Church in Providence. At St. Andrew, he established a charity fund for the needy and elderly of Block Island.
Since 2001, he has assisted at St. Joan of Arc Church in Boca Raton, Fla., where
he lectures on poetry, psalms, modern novels, and church reform. He returns to
Rhode Island each June for five months to assist at two parishes in the southern part
of the state.
Born in Newport, R.I., Father Randall received his bachelor's degree in philosophy from St. Mary's Seminary College in Baltimore, Md. He holds a licentiate in sacred theology (S.T.L.) from The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., a master's degree in American literature from Brown University, and a doctoral degree in English literature from Brown. As a Fulbright Scholar, he studied at Oxford University in 1960-1961 under Dame Helen Gardner, an expert in 17th century poetry.
A passionate golfer, Father Randall is a former caddy and club pro at Newport Country Club and is an eight-time champion at Point Judith Country Club in Narragansett, R.I. He also enjoys playing the piano and composing church music and popular songs.
Hon. Donald F. Shea '50
The Honorable Donald F. Shea '50 holds an exemplary record of public service at the legal, judicial, legislative, and community levels. He retired last year after a professional career that spanned 50 years--including 33 years as an associate justice at the Superior Court and Supreme Court levels in Rhode Island.
Shea's career as an attorney began in 1955, and he remained in private practice in Providence until 1968. During that time, he served in the R.I. House of Representatives from 1960-1968 and was deputy majority leader in 1967-1968. He was appointed executive assistant to then-R.I. Gov. Frank Licht in 1968 and was named associate justice of the Superior Court of Rhode Island four years later.
Shea became associate justice of the Supreme Court of Rhode Island in 1982. Though he retired in 1995, he remained active on the bench for the next 10 years. He authored more than 500 opinions during his Supreme Court tenure, ranging from issues involving private citizens, industry, and criminal law to the media and municipal government.
The lifelong Rhode Island resident was born in Pawtucket and earned a bachelor's degree in political science from PC in 1950. Shea received his juris doctor (J.D.) degree from Georgetown University School of Law.
His distinguished record includes serving as: a judicial member of the State Council on Substance Abuse, chair of a committee of judges that drafted a new "Code of Judicial Conduct for Rhode Island," a member of the Providence College President's Council, and a co-founder and first president of the St. Thomas More Society of Rhode Island. He remains an active member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society at St. Brendan Church in Riverside, R.I.
Shea has been married to the former Ursula Rafferty for 55 years. The couple, who resides in Warwick, has five children and 11 grandchildren. Two of their children, Michaela Shea McInnis '77 and Sara Shea McConnell '81, are PC alumnae.
Carolyn Yauyan Woo
Dr. Carolyn Yauyan Woo is a widely published scholar who has brought her expertise in entrepreneurship, strategic planning, and more to higher-education settings for 25 years.
Woo assumed her two current positions at Notre Dame in 1997 following a 16-year career at Purdue University. She joined the Purdue faculty in 1981 as an assistant professor of managment in the School of Management and in the Krannert Graduate School of Management, becoming full professor 10 years later. She directed the Professional Master's Programs of Krannert from 1993-1995 and served as the university's associate executive vice president for academic affairs from 1995-1997.
A prolific writer, Woo has authored or co-authored dozens of articles and book chapters. Her research focuses on strategy, entrepreneurship, and organizational systems, with concentrations in strategic management entrepreneurship, technological innovation, and organizational change. Her writings have appeared in more than a dozen journals and other publications, including the Academy of Management Journal, the Harvard Business Review, and Advances in Strategic Management.
Born in Hong Kong, Woo received her bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees
from Purdue in economics, industrial administration, and strategic management, respectively.
Woo has an impressive record of service that extends well beyond the classroom. She serves on the boards of three Fortune 400 companies and is a former chair of AACSB (Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business) International, which is the accreditation association for business schools. She also is a board member of Catholic Relief Services and of the University of Portland.
Her scholarly contributions have brought Woo substantial acclaim. Among her many honors, she received the 2002 Excellence Award for Education from the Asian American Alliance and, in 1997, she was inducted into the Order of the Griffin by Purdue University for exceptional service and commitment.
Woo and her husband, David E. Bartkus, have two sons and live in South Bend, Ind.
RETURN TO COMMENCEMENT 2006 PRESS KIT