Week
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May 30, 2001
Inside the Register
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Nearly 900 students get degrees at Regis ceremonies
U.S. ambassador to the Vatican nominee Jim Nicholson awarded honorary doctorate
Years of all-night study sessions, missing family events to write yet another paper, and lively classroom discussion ended this month for almost 900 Regis University students after they received diplomas.
About 750 degrees were conferred by Regis University during three commencement ceremonies the weekend of May 5-6 on the university's Lowell campus. Another 150 students graduated May 12 at the Pikes Peak Center in Colorado Springs.
Although
days of wet weather moved the first ceremonies inside to the Field House,
it didn't dampen the enthusiasm of the graduates or of community leaders
who received special recognition from the university.
Jim Nicholson, former chairman of the Republican National Committee and presidential nominee to become the U.S. ambassador to the Vatican, received an honorary degree, "Doctor of Public Service, Honoris Causa," during the School for Professional Studies undergraduate commencement ceremony.
Civis Princeps, or First Citizen, awards, were presented to Michael K. Durkin, president and CEO of Mile High United Way and to Norman L. Haug, a Colorado doctor and medical director at Del Norte's Rio Grande Hospital. Regis University presents the Civis Princeps, its highest honor, to recognize individuals in the Colorado community whose work exemplifies the Regis Jesuit mission of "leadership in service of others."
Nicholson, a 1961 West Point graduate and long-time Denver resident, was introduced by his long-time friend and Regis University Trustee Jim Lyons.
Like Ignatius Loyola, who founded the Society of Jesus after a career as a soldier, Nicholson is a man of both war and peace who has served his community in a variety of capacities, Lyons said.
Nicholson had little trouble relating to the mostly adult learners receiving undergraduate degrees from the School for Professional Studies. When he attended the University of Denver, College of Law, he was a husband, father of two, and worked full-time.
"I know what you've gone through" to get to graduation day, Nicholson told the students.
He suggested all of the grads deserved "at least a minor in juggling," for trying to find balance with demands from family, school, bills, and more. But, he added, "Education is the great equalizer in America today. ... You'll be glad you did what you did."
Durkin, introduced by Regis University President Father Michael J. Sheeran, S.J., as someone who daily helps others, has been with the United Way for more than 20 years, serving in various capacities.
Durkin said he was a sophomore 27 years ago at Boston College — "intent on becoming the world's next great journalist" — when he questioned whether his time as a volunteer mentor was really worth it.
He soon found the answer was `yes,' and his life since has been devoted to serving others. He suggested the same to the graduates, urging them to "Bring hope. ... That's the job that we all have."
Of the Civis Princeps, Durkin said, "I see it as a challenge to keep on going."
Haug received the Civis Princeps award during the commencement ceremony for Regis College and School for Health Care Professions undergraduates, outside on Boettcher Commons. Haug, a 1958 graduate of Regis College, noted how the campus has changed since he sat in their place, including the fact that the spot where they were seated in front of the library had simply been a field.
One constant, though, has been Regis' mission of "leadership in the service of others" and what that means to graduates.
Haug, who received the 1999 Colorado Rural Health Center's Rural Health Care Excellence Award, the most prestigious award available for rural health care, has continued that mission through his years after college.
Haug said that while at Regis he learned many lessons about life, and urged graduates to serve family, neighbors, and community, telling them it was a responsibility to be there to help their classmates when they had family or professional problems a few years down the road.