Thousands of students will receive their degree certificates from Vice Chancellor Professor Iain Martin during ceremonies to be held at the Corn Exchange, Cambridge, between Monday 17 and Thursday 20 October.
They will be joined by several special guests who have been chosen to receive honorary degrees from Anglia Ruskin for excellence in their respective fields and their contribution to society.
The guests include Nalo Hopkinson, a critically-acclaimed author, Professor of Creative Writing at the University of California, Riverside, and valued mentor to several of Anglia Ruskin’s Creative Writing students. Nalo’s passionate and insightful commitment to the literary exploration of issues such as race, class and sexuality, exemplify the focus, determination and talent required to excel at the highest level. She will receive the award of Honorary Doctor of Letters.
Suzi Quatro is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, poet, author and radio presenter. Having sold over 55 million albums worldwide, she is a global rock legend. Anglia Ruskin has enjoyed links with Suzi for some time, and she has expressed an interest in collaborating on a number of projects, specifically the Popular Music undergraduate degree course, and the University’s ongoing work in Music Therapy. Suzi will receive the award of Honorary Doctor of Music.
Wilko Johnson is a guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor, icon of the British music scene, and treasured East Anglian. His band, Dr. Feelgood, were the vanguard of the British pub rock movement, and Wilko’s innovative style and stage presence were the driving force behind the band’s early success. Wilko will receive an Honorary Doctor of Arts award.
Jenni Middleton is editor of the Nursing Times, the voice of the nursing community, and the UK’s leading source of nursing news and best practice. Since joining the title, Jenni has launched student-nursing-times dot net, an online subscription package for student nurses. She has steered The Nursing Times to three Online Media Awards, two British Media Awards, a Professional Publishers’ Association New Talent Award, the PPA Great Leap Forward Award, an Association of Online Publishers Award for Digital Audience Engagement, and two British Society of Magazine Editors' Awards. Jenni will receive the award of Honorary Doctor of Health Science.
Sir Jonathan Asbridge has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in nursing, rising through the ranks to reach the pinnacle of his profession, as Chief Nurse at Barts and The London NHS Foundation Trust, and Inaugural President of the Nursing and Midwifery Council. In 1989, Sir Jonathan moved to Addenbrooke’s, taking on the position of General Manager, then later, that of Director of Clinical Care Service – his first executive role. Sir Jonathan has served as trusted advisor to Government, and as Chair of the Government’s review of General Intensive Care. He will receive the award of Honorary Doctor of Health Science.
Anne Streather is Chief Executive of Cam Sight, the Cambridge charity that provides practical and emotional support to people with sight loss, helping them to maintain their independence and quality of life. Anglia Ruskin has enjoyed long links with Cam Sight, and Anne has been the driving force in ensuring there is an equitable visual impairment service for people within our region. Anne will become an Honorary Fellow of Anglia Ruskin.
Jack Zipes is an American academic, author, teacher, and former Leverhulme Visiting Professor at Anglia Ruskin University. He is widely recognised as one of the world’s foremost scholars of children’s literature. Jack has supported creativity and research within Anglia Ruskin University in numerous thoughtful and practical ways – one example is that he commissioned illustrations from students of the Cambridge School of Art for his book The Golden Age of Fairytales. Jack will receive the award of Honorary Doctor of Arts.
Steven Bendelack is a BAFTA-winning film and television director, and celebrated Anglia Ruskin alumnus. He has directed shows such as Spitting Image, Never Mind The Buzzcocks, The League of Gentlemen and Little Britain. Throughout his career, Stephen has continued the Cambridge School of Art’s exceptionally strong tradition in graphic humour and satire. And he demonstrates the enormous drive, talent, creativity and determination required to excel at the highest level. He will receive the award of Honorary Doctor of Arts.
Professor Bogan Wilamowski has enjoyed a long and highly distinguished career in the field of microelectronics and computational intelligence. Formerly President of TheIndustrial Electronics Society, he is currently director of The Alabama Microelectronics Science and Technology Center, at Auburn University, Alabama. He has published 9 books and more than 300 refereed papers. Professor Wilamowski has close associations with Anglia Ruskin University, having supported the IEEE conferences we hosted in both 2008 and 2015. He will receive the award of Honorary Doctor of Science.
Professor Iain Martin, Vice Chancellor of Anglia Ruskin University, said: “Thousands of students will be celebrating the formal completion of their degrees and I am looking forward to fantastic celebrations across the University to mark their achievements.
“This is a very special day for those receiving their awards and it will be a great pleasure to be part of the graduation ceremonies, hand our graduates their certificates and honour their achievements. They all deserve to feel both pleased and proud as they mark this important transition.
“The recipients of honorary degrees are exceptional individuals with a connection to the region or the work we do here at Anglia Ruskin University. The award acknowledges their contributions to society and we hope will serve as an inspiration to our graduates as they take the next step in their lives.”
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For more press information please contact:
Jon Green on t: 01245 68 4717, e: jon.green@anglia.ac.uk
Jamie Forsyth on t: 01245 68 4716, e: jamie.forsyth@anglia.ac.uk
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