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For
more information contact:
Sheri
Woodland
Office
of Public Affairs
Acadia
University
Phone:
(902)
585-1362
Fax:
(902) 585-1072
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Acadia
University honours prominent alumni and community members
For Release: May 3, 2002
(Wolfville,
NS) - At
spring convocation, May 12 -13, the latest Acadia graduates will
officially become alumni. Joining this year's graduating class are
five honourary degree recipients, including three outstanding Acadia
alumni.
During
convocation ceremonies on Sunday, May 12, the Reverend Professor
Alan P. F. Sell will receive a Doctor of Divinity. On Monday, May
13, Doctor of Civil Laws degrees will be bestowed on Mr. J. R. Pat
Ellis, Mr. Donald M. Gillis '37, Q.C. and Mr. Laurie B. Stevens '55,
and a Doctor of Science will be awarded to Dr. Charles H. Read, Jr.
'39.
Born
in Sydney, NS, J. R. Pat Ellis began work with the Bank of Montreal
in 1937 and was Senior Vice-President, Atlantic Provinces from
1973-1984. Ellis joined the Acadia Board of Governors in 1979 and
since then has served for over 22 years. He has been a member of the
Executive Committee for 21 of those years and was Chairman from
1990-1999. The J. R. (Pat) Ellis Scholar-Bursary was established in
1999 to reflect his wish that all students who are academically
eligible should have the privilege of attending Acadia. Ellis has
also served with organizations such as the Atlantic Canada
Opportunities Agency, The Victoria General Hospital Foundation and
the Canadian Bible Society.
A
native of Centreville, NB, Donald M. Gillis graduated from Acadia
with a Bachelor of Arts in 1937. During the Second World War, Gillis
earned the Military Cross for bravery. In 1946, he graduated with a
BCL from the University of New Brunswick and became a partner in the
law firm Gilbert McGloan Gillis. Appointed to the Queen's Counsel in
1958, Gillis was soon known as New Brunswick's leading counsel. Well
known within the Canadian legal profession, Gillis is regarded as
the dean of New Brunswick litigators. Gillis has served as President
of the New Brunswick Law Society, a member of the Canadian Bar
Association and a fellow of the American College of Trial
Lawyers.
Dr.
Charles Read Jr. was born in Amherst, NS and graduated from Acadia
in 1939 with a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Biology. Later he
graduated from McGill University with a MDCM and specialized in
Pediatrics. In 1946, Read began a residency at the Children's
Memorial Hospital, Montreal, studying hematology and leukemia
research. He accepted an appointment as Research and Clinical Fellow
at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts General Hospital.
Read continued his research and later assumed positions in Winnipeg
and Iowa. Read devised the Constant Carbohydrate Diet for people
with insulin dependant diabetes. Having published many scholarly
papers, Read is a member of several medical associations involved in
diabetes research.
Born
in Surry, UK, Alan P. F. Sell received a Certificate in Biblical
Knowledge (1954) and a BA (1957) from the University of Manchester.
He also holds a Bachelor of Divinity (1959), a MA (1961), a
Doctorate of Philosophy and was ordained to ministry. Sell was
appointed to his first academic post at West Midlands College of
Higher Education, Walsall in 1968. In 1993, Sell became Professor of
Theology at United Theological College in Aberystwyth, Wales and
retired in 2001. Sell holds Honourary Doctorates in Divinity from
Ursinus College (Pennsylvania) and the University of Manchester
(UK), and an Honourary Doctorate of Theology from the University of
Debrecen (Hungary). Sell has produced scholarly materials in the
areas of systematic, historical and philosophical theology and
ecumenical dialogue.
Laurie
Stevens graduated from Acadia in 1955 and earned a Bachelor of Civil
Engineering from the Technical University of Nova Scotia in 1956. He
joined the family business, B.D. Stevens Ltd., and started L.B.
Stevens Construction Ltd., with a focus on land development, in
1959. This company grew to become the Stevens Group of Companies.
Stevens has participated on numerous corporate boards and was
inducted into the Junior Achievement Nova Scotia Business Hall of
Fame in 2001. With over 22 years of service to Acadia, Stevens is
currently a member of the Board of Governors, a member of the
Investment Committee and Board Finance Committee. Stevens has also
served on the Board Fund-Raising Advisory Committee and the
University Senate.
During
the spring convocation, over 750 students will graduate from Acadia
University in the faculties of Arts, Pure and Applied Science and
Professional Studies, as well from the faculty of theology.
-30-
For more information contact:
Sheri Woodland
Communications Manager
Office of Public Affairs
Acadia University
(902) 585-1362
Acadia
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