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April 27, 2011

Former Louisville Mayor Jerry Abramson to deliver commencement address

Watch the full commencement video above, or view two videos with interviews of recent graduates: 1 | 2
Bellarmine University will award approximately 485 graduate and undergraduate degrees during spring commencement on Saturday, May 14, at noon in Knights Hall. The university will grant honorary degrees to Louisville attorney and civic leader C. Edward Glasscock and former Louisville Mayor Jerry E. Abramson, who also will deliver the commencement address.

Jerry E. Abramson

Abramson, who served as Louisville’s mayor for 21 of the past 25 years before leaving Metro Hall in January, currently serves as an executive-in-residence at Bellarmine. He was a leader in the successful movement to merge Louisville and Jefferson County governments in 2003.

Before leaving office in 2010, he launched the 55,000 Degrees initiative to increase the number of Louisville citizens earning college degrees. He is currently a candidate for Lt. Governor of the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

Abramson has served as president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, and has been recognized as America’s Local Public Official of the Year by Governing magazine, one of the nation’s top mayors by Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report, and as Kentucky’s best civic leader by Kentucky Monthly. He holds a bachelor of science in business economics from Indiana University, and a law degree from Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.

C. Edward Glasscock

Glasscock is a business lawyer and chairman emeritus of Frost Brown Todd, one of the region’s largest law firms.

During Glasscock’s 31 years of leadership, as managing member and co-managing member (1977-2008), the firm grew from two offices with 38 attorneys to nine offices in five states with 432 attorneys.

A past chairman of Bellarmine’s Board of Trustees, Glasscock remains active with his law firm and has been called one of the most influential attorneys in Kentucky. His work can be seen throughout Kentucky, most recently his involvement with the Louisville Arena Authority, NUCLEUS Louisville Medical Center Development Corp., The Bridges Coalition, The Kentucky Center for the Arts and the University of Louisville’s Athletic Board. He earned his bachelor’s and law degree from the University of Kentucky.

During the commencement ceremony, which marks the completion of Bellarmine’s 60th anniversary celebration, Abramson will receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters and Glasscock will receive an honorary Doctor of Laws.

Other highlights of the commencement exercises include these honors:

• The Archbishop's Medal of Scholastic Excellence, awarded to the graduate with the highest cumulative grade point average.
• The Wilson W. Wyatt Fellowship, presented to one graduate based on academic and personal excellence.
• The In Veritatis Amore award, named for the university’s Latin motto – which means in the love of truth – is given to the best all-around male and female students, as voted on by Bellarmine’s faculty.

Bellarmine’s graduates come from the university’s six schools: Bellarmine College, W. Fielding Rubel School of Business, Donna and Allan Lansing School of Nursing & Health Sciences, Annsley Frazier Thornton School of Education, School of Continuing andProfessional Studies, and School of Communication.