LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Bellarmine University will award 70 graduate and 339 undergraduate degrees during spring commencement exercises on Saturday, May 9, at noon in Knights Hall. Bellarmine will grant honorary degrees to Bishop John J. McRaith, who led the Diocese of Owensboro for more than 25 years, and New York City Ballet principal dancer Wendy Whelan. Whelan also will make the commencement address.
Whelan spent much of her childhood on the Bellarmine campus during the 1970s, when her mother Kay Whelan coached the women's basketball team for five seasons. McRaith headed the 32-county Diocese of Owensboro from 1982 until he stepped down due to health concerns in January of this year. The diocese was recognized for its growth and high mass attendance during his tenure. He previously served 22 years as a priest in Minnesota.
Other highlights of the commencement exercises will be awarding the Archbishop's Medal of Scholastic Excellence, the Wilson W. Wyatt Fellowships and the In Veritatis Amore award. The Archbishop's medal is awarded to the graduate(s) having the highest cumulative grade point average; the In Veritatis Amore award is named after Bellarmine University’s Latin motto, which translated means in love of truth, and it is given to the best all around male and female.
Bellarmine University is an independent Catholic university offering more than 50 majors, as well as graduate degree programs and a doctor of physical therapy. Forbes magazine and the Princeton Review rank Bellarmine among America’s best colleges, and U.S. News and World Report consistently ranks Bellarmine as a top tier university.
*Revised to reflect updated graduation numbers May 10, 2009.
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