Lakehead University Announces 2014 Honorary Degree Recipients
April 23, 2014 – Thunder Bay, ON
Over 2,000 degrees will be conferred during Lakehead University’s 2014 Convocation ceremonies. Graduates will celebrate their achievements with family and friends over the course of four ceremonies at our Thunder Bay and Orillia campuses, between May 30 and June 7.
In addition to commemorating Lakehead students on their graduation, five honorary degrees will be conferred – four in Thunder Bay, and one in Orillia.
“Convocation is a celebration of the time and hard work our students have dedicated to their studies,” said Lakehead President and Vice-Chancellor, Dr. Brian Stevenson. “This year, we are also proud to honour five exceptional people – this year’s honorary degree recipients – who will offer words of wisdom and inspiration to our new graduates as they move into the next phase of their lives.”
Please see the convocation schedule, below.
Friday, May 30, 2014 – 2 pm (Thunder Bay Community Auditorium)
Dr. Arnold Aberman will address graduates and undergraduates from the Faculty of Medicine and the Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences.
Dr. Aberman has contributed to the advancement of medicine for more than 30 years, including the creation of the Northern Ontario School of Medicine (NOSM), a joint initiative between Lakehead University and Laurentian University.
He was instrumental in the planning and development of NOSM. He can take credit for many aspects of NOSM’s unique structure and governance.
As a co-director of the Intensive Care Unit at Mount Sinai Hospital, Dr. Aberman was instrumental in securing recognition for the field of critical care medicine as an independent discipline in Canada.
Dr. Aberman will receive an honorary Doctor of Science.
Saturday, May 31, 2014 – 9:30 am (Thunder Bay Community Auditorium)
Richard Wagamese will address graduates and undergraduates from the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Business Administration.
Wagamese is an internationally renowned, award-winning author, newspaper columnist and reporter who has also done work in radio and television.
He is known for his many books including Indian Horse, which describes the life of an Ojibway man who, as a child, was taken from his family and his Northern Ontario home and put in the residential school system.
Wagamese’s writing has brought awareness to the horrors of the residential school system, to the discrimination that Native people have faced and the racism Native people have been subjected to.
He is an Ojibway man from Wabaseemoong First Nation in Northwestern Ontario.
Wagamese will receive an honorary Doctor of Letters.
Saturday, May 31, 2014 – 2 pm (Thunder Bay Community Auditorium)
The Honourable Bob Rae and the Honourable Frank Iacobucci will address graduates and undergraduates from the Faculty of Engineering, the Faculty of Natural Resources Management, the Faculty of Science and Environmental Studies, and the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities.
The Honourable Bob Rae is a senior partner at OKT - Olthuis Kleer Townshend LLP. He works with First Nations across Canada as legal counsel, advisor, negotiator, and arbitrator.
Rae was elected eleven times to the House of Commons and the Ontario Legislature between 1978 and 2013. He served as Ontario's 21st Premier from 1990 to 1995.
During his time in government, Rae completed a review of Ontario’s postsecondary school education for the Ontario Provincial Government that resulted in the 2005 report entitled Ontario: A Leader in Learning. This report led to significant policy and budgetary changes, including substantial increases to the base budgets of Ontario’s universities.
Rae acts as Advisor to the Matawa Chiefs Tribal Council respecting the potential development of the area in Northwestern Ontario known as The Ring of Fire. 
The Honourable Frank Iacobucci is representing the Province of Ontario in its negotiations with the Chiefs of the Matawa Council on the Ring of Fire.
He is also doing an independent review of various matters for Chief Bill Blair of the Toronto Police Service relating to police encounters with mentally or emotionally disturbed persons.
Iacobucci retired from the Supreme Court of Canada in June 2004 and served as interim President of the University of Toronto from September 2004 until June 2005.
He was the Federal Government’s Representative in the negotiations leading to the settlement agreement in 2005 relating to Indian Residential Schools, which is the largest financial settlement in Canada. In February, 2013 he submitted his Report as an Independent Reviewer for the Ontario Government on First Nations Representation on Ontario juries.
Rae and Iacobucci will each receive an honorary Doctor of Laws.
Saturday, June 7, 2014 – 10 am (West Orillia Sports Complex)
Mary Anne Chambers will address graduates and undergraduates in Master of Business Administration, Honours Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Business Administration, Bachelor of Education (Consecutive and Concurrent), Honours Bachelor of Social Work, Honours Bachelor of Arts and Sciences, and Bachelor of Arts and Science.
Chambers was elected as a Member of Provincial Parliament in 2003 and appointed to the Executive Council of Ontario where she served for four years, first as the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities and subsequently as the Minister of Children and Youth Services.
Chambers was a major supporter of Lakehead University’s Orillia campus during its initial stages. She has been recognized internationally as an active advocate for public education at all levels from pre-kindergarten to post-doctoral.
Her contributions while in government included substantial improvements to the Ontario Student Assistance Program, non-repayable income-based tuition grants for college and university students and stronger legislation to better protect students through the Private Career Colleges Act.
Chambers will receive an honorary Doctor of Laws.
Lakehead’s Thunder Bay campus convocation ceremonies will take place at the Thunder Bay Community Auditorium, May 30-31. For a complete schedule of Lakehead University’s 2014 Thunder Bay campus convocation ceremonies, visit https://www.lakeheadu.ca/current-students/graduation/thunder-bay-campus-ceremony/schedule.
Lakehead’s Orillia campus convocation ceremonies will take place at the West Orillia Sports Complex on Saturday, June 7, at 10:00 am. For a complete schedule of Lakehead University’s 2014 Orillia campus convocation ceremony, visit https://www.lakeheadu.ca/current-students/graduation/orillia-ceremony/convocation_schedule.
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Media: For more information, please contact Brandon Walker, Media Relations Officer, at (807) 343-8177, or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.
In 2015, Lakehead University will celebrate 50 years of exceptional education. Guided by a new Strategic Plan (2013-2018), our University is known for providing an education focused on independent thinking, unconventional scholarship, and a close sense of community. About 9,700 students and 2,000 faculty and staff learn and work in ten faculties at two campuses, in Orillia and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Home to Ontario’s first new Faculty of Law in 44 years (Fall 2013) and the Northern Ontario School of Medicine's West Campus, Lakehead is among Canada’s Top 10 undergraduate universities (2014 Maclean’s University Rankings), as well as 1st in Ontario and 2nd in Canada for its innovative research (Re$earch Infosource). Our Orillia campus is the first in North America to be built entirely to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) standards. Share your Lakehead story as it relates to our Strategic Plan at www.lakeheadu.ca/presidents-office/nurturing-passion, and learn more about Lakehead at www.lakeheadu.ca.