University of Cincinnati Commencement 2008

UC celebrates commencement 2008

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Alum, 'Waltons' creator gives commencement address

View video tribute to the "real" John Boy: Commencement speaker Earl Hamner, CCM '48, author and creator of the long-running television series, "The Waltons," said his work has been inspired by the family and neighbors he grew up with in the mountains of Virginia during the Great Depression. Video by Emmy-winning director David Ashbrock.

Read an insider's look at how the magazine editor got to "host" Earl Hamner and travel to L.A. to meet big names in the film industry.

Commencement highlights

UC President Nancy Zimpher congratulates each graduate on stage. All three ceremonies saw 4,555 students receive degrees.
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The largest graduating class in 20 years -- 4,555 students -- received degrees at the University of Cincinnati's 189th commencement, held June 13 and 14 in three ceremonies at Fifth Third Arena and attended by nearly 30,000 guests. By the end of the weekend, the ranks of UC's living alumni had swelled to more than 230,000.

For one graduate, the ceremony was her first visit to campus. Ligia Hendrie earned her associate's degree in early childhood education via distance learning from Watertown, N.Y. She was the first graduate of UC's bilingual program that assists Spanish-speaking teachers in Head Start Centers who are educating preschool-age, English-as-a-second-language children to succeed when they reach kindergarten.

Delivering Saturday's commencement address was Hollywood writer Earl Hamner, CCM '48, creator of the '70s family-TV classic "The Waltons," which aired for nine seasons and won him an Emmy. He was also the screenwriter of the original "Charlotte's Web" film, a screenwriter for the television show "The Twilight Zone" and producer of the 1980s series "Falcon Crest." He received an Honorary Doctorate of Performing Arts degree.

Because much of the author's writing has become a celebration of traditional American values, he told the graduates, "Some would have us believe that those values no longer have meaning, that they are quaint, outmoded relics of an older time. I believe they are more alive and well than our films and television and newspapers would have us believe.

"We'd be foolish to deny that stories of drugs, deception, scandal and crime capture the headlines, but that is not the America I know, nor is it the country I believe most of us know and honor. I believe there is more compassion than crime in our country, that there is more hope than heroin, more virtue than violence and more good than evil.

"I do ask you to keep those traditional values in a quiet place in your heart, and remember that they have sustained us as a country and a people for over 200 years. You are our hope for and our promise of a better world."

Honorary degrees presented

Special honorary degrees were given to the families of three local fallen heroes with special ties to UC and who had died in the line of service. Three empty chairs were draped with caps and gowns to recognize Staff Sergeant Keith Matthew "Matt" Maupin, who was a UC student when his Army Reserve unit was called up for service in Iraq; fire Captain Robin Broxterman, who was completing her bachelor's degree in fire science when she died fighting a fire; and firefighter Brian Schira, who was a graduate of the criminal justice program in the College of Education, Criminal Justice, and Human Services and died in the same blaze as Broxterman. At the ceremonies, President Nancy Zimpher called for a moment of silence to remember those fallen heroes, as well as Sycamore graduate and soldier Brandon Haunert, who had briefly attended UC.

The following three alumni were honored for their achievements with honorary degrees:

Stan Herman, DAAP '50, a three-time Coty award-winning designer and past president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, pioneered the "designer uniform" with clients such as FedEx, McDonalds, Avis, TWA and United Airlines. Considered a designer activist, he supported animal rights by being the first to commercialize faux fur and use his first showing of that line to raise funds for the Central Park Zoo. He has also led initiatives that raised millions for breast cancer and AIDS research.

Brigman "Brig" Owens, Ed '65, a 13-year veteran with the NFL, was named one of the Washington Redskins' 70 Greatest Players. He is also co-founder of the sports-management and real-estate-development firm, Bennett & Owens, as well as founder of the nonprofit youth program, Super Leaders, which instills leadership skills in at-risk high-school students. With more than 22,000 students graduating from the Super Leaders program, it claims a 98 percent high-school graduation rate and has seen 75 percent of its students go to college.

William "Bill" Wiesmann, A&S '68, who earned a medical degree after leaving UC, led research teams that developed a bandage to stop uncontrolled bleeding on the battlefield, which is now being used on civilian trauma cases. Holding more than 30 awarded or pending patents, he is founder, president and CEO of BioSTAR, a collective of companies specializing in lifesaving advances. He has received numerous national awards, has directed multi-million dollar programs for NASA and for the Department of Defense, and is president and CEO of a company developing anti-microbial materials that destroy drug resistant bacteria.

The UC Award for Excellence went to Milton Anderson, CCM '50, founder and director of The Young Americans, a nonprofit musical performance company formed in 1962 to reflect a positive image of the nation's youth through music and dance. The company produces seven major tours a year and sends teachers to strengthen music curriculums in schools throughout the world. His young people have performed for presidents and kings, recorded CDs and been featured on documentaries. Anderson also founded the California Pacific College of the Performing Arts.

Statistics on commencement

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