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POMP AND CIRCUMSTANCE: UH SPRING COMMENCEMENT
TIP SHEET
Nearly 5,000 students will cross the stage during the University
of Houston 2006 spring commencement ceremonies this week. The youngest
graduate is a 17-year-old young woman who will receive her bachelor’s
degree in biochemistry and physical science; the oldest is a 72-year-old
man who will receive Ph.D. in geology. Please consider these stories
as you plan for graduation coverage.
THE DOCTORS ARE IN
U. S. Secretary of Education and UH alumna, Margaret Spellings,
along with Maconda Brown O’Conner, clinical social worker
and philanthropist, will each receive a Doctor of Humane Letters
Degree during a convocation at the Lyndall F. Wortham Theatre in
the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center for the Arts at the University
of Houston. UH President Jay Gogue will make the presentation at
4 p.m., Thursday, May 11.
PROFILES IN COURAGE
She’s not the valedictorian. She’s not a celebrity.
But the commencement crowd at the UH Conrad N. Hilton College of
Hotel and Restaurant Management will be cheering and on its feet
when Oriana Reginato crosses the stage. Six years ago, on Good Friday,
she had a brain aneurysm. For the next year, the hospitality major
put school on hold to re-learn how to walk, talk and write. With
no use of her right arm, Oriana worked extraordinarily hard to make
it to class, do the assignments and stay active in school. Her perseverance
led her to become vice president of the student chapter of the Convention
and Professional Management Association. Oriana will introduce commencement
exercises and receive a special recognition by Dean John Bowen.
MATTERS OF THE HEART
Receiving the first-ever undergraduate degree from UH’s biomedical
engineering program, Hassan Khalil is already an award-winning researcher
in his chosen niche of artificial hearts and circulation. His research
not only has pumped new life into artificial organs, but also has
opened doors to collaborations with the Texas Medical Center. Khalil
who came to the Untied States from Iraq at the age of 16, will receive
his bachelor’s degree from UH this May and will enroll in
the University of Texas Medical School at Houston this fall.
RE-NEW ORLEANS
A UH architecture student’s winning design entry to an international
design competition could be part of the renewal of hurricane ravaged
New Orleans. Zui Lig Ng’s design for the New Orleans House
Prototype Competition, “Reconstructing the Gulf Coast,”
is original for its sensitivity to New Orleans’ cultural heritage
and climate. The design also will be featured in the summer edition
of “Architecture Record” magazine. Zui will graduate
from the UH Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture.
HOUSTON, WE HAVE A GENIUS
His name is Andrew, and his star is rising. Andrew Abercrombie,
honored by the UH College of Education for his research work as
an undergraduate and graduate student studying the effects of zero
gravity on astronauts, is crossing the stage at UH and entering
the doorway at NASA. Andrew will receive a Ph.D. in kinesiology
during commencement ceremonies on Saturday. His studies have captured
the attention of Johnson Space Center and those outside of the industry
where the research has applications. Professors affectionately call
him Boy Genius.
Below is a list of speakers and commencement ceremonies.
Thursday, May 11
- Convocation of Honorary Degrees to Margaret Spellings and Maconda
Brown O’Connor, 4 p.m.,
Lyndall F. Wortham Theatre in the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Center
for the Arts at the University of Houston.
Friday, May 12
- College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences Commencement, 9
a.m., Hofheinz Pavilion.
- Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management
Commencement, 10 a.m., Cullen Performance Hall.
- Harriet Miers, counsel to President George W. Bush, UH Law
Commencement, 2 p.m., Hofheinz Pavilion.
- College of Technology Commencement, 6 p.m., Hofheinz Pavilion.
- Honors College Commencement, 6:30 p.m., The Houstonian Hotel,
111 North Post Oak Lane.
- Mark G. Papa, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of EOG Resources,
C.T. Bauer College of Business Commencement (graduate school only),
7 p.m., Cullen Performance Hall.
Saturday, May 13
- College of Education Commencement, 9 a.m., Hofheinz Pavilion.
- College of Pharmacy Commencement, 9 a.m., Cullen Performance
Hall.
- Nobel Laureate Jody Williams, Distinguished Visiting Scholar
of Social Work and Global Justice, Graduate College of Social
Work Commencement, UH Graduate College of Social Work, 1 p.m.,
Cullen Performance Hall.
- Aylwin B. Lewis, president and chief executive officer, Sears
Holdings Corp., C.T. Bauer College of Business Commencement (undergraduate
only), 1 p.m., Hofheinz Pavilion.
- Laurie Hawkinson, principal, Smith-Miller and Hawkinson Architects,
Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture Commencement, 1 p.m.,
Architecture Building, Atrium.
- Dr. Wesley Pittman, alumnus and past president of Texas Optometry
Association, College of Optometry Commencement, 4 p.m., Cullen
Performance Hall.
- Chester F. “Buddy” Barnes II, chief executive officer
and managing director, EniSys Technologies, LLP and founder and
president, Crystal Fuels Inc., Cullen College of Engineering Commencement,
5 p.m., Hofheinz Pavilion.
Sunday, May 14
- Nancy Chang, co-founder and board of directors chairman, Tanox
Inc., College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics Commencement,
2 p.m., Hofheinz Pavilion
About the University of Houston
The University of Houston, Texas’ premier metropolitan research
and teaching institution, is home to more than 40 research centers
and institutes and sponsors more than 300 partnerships with corporate,
civic and governmental entities. UH, the most diverse research university
in the country, stands at the forefront of education, research and
service with more than 35,000 students.
For more information about UH visit
the university’s ‘Newsroom’ at www.uh.edu/admin/media/newsroom.
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