State
Senator, Avenue of the Arts President and CEO to
Deliver Commencement Addresses at Widener University
Deliver Commencement Addresses at Widener University
Growing
enrollment, increased retention prompt
separate commencement ceremonies for first time
separate commencement ceremonies for first time
Chester, Pa.—Pennsylvania Senate
Majority Leader Dominic Pileggi and Philadelphia Avenue of the Arts, Inc.
President and CEO Paul Beideman will deliver the commencement addresses at
Widener University, which is splitting its Main Campus commencement into
separate graduate and undergraduate ceremonies for the first time.
Growing enrollment combined with
increased retention prompted the university to conduct separate commencement
ceremonies this year for the first time. More than 500 students earning
master’s and doctorate degrees will graduate on May 16, and about 800 students
earning associate’s and bachelor’s degrees will graduate on May 17. Students,
parents, alumni and faculty and staff can participate in the social media
dialog leading up to commencement using the hashtag #widener2014.
Beideman will present the address
for the Graduate Commencement at 9 a.m. Friday, May 16, and Senator Pileggi
will present the address for the Undergraduate Commencement at 9:45 a.m.
Saturday, May 17. Both will receive honorary doctor of public service degrees
from the university during the ceremonies which will take place in the Bown
Garden behind Old Main.
Maureen F. Curley, the retiring
president of Campus Compact, the only national higher education association
dedicated solely to campus-based civic engagement, will also receive an
honorary doctor of public service degree during the undergraduate commencement
ceremony.
“Paul Beideman, Maureen Curley and
Senator Pileggi embody the principles of leadership and public service that
Widener strives to instill in all of our graduates,” Widener President James T.
Harris III said. “They are strong supporters of Widener, of higher education
and the communities in which they live and are very deserving of the honor.”
A lifelong resident of Chester,
Senator Pileggi has served Pennsylvania’s ninth district, including parts of
Delaware and Chester counties, since 2002 and has served as the majority leader
of the state Senate since 2006.
As majority Leader, Senator Pileggi
determines legislative priorities, manages the Senate calendar, builds
consensus on legislation and serves as one of the chief negotiators of the
annual state budget. He chairs the Rules and Executive Nominations Committee
and is a member of the Senate Appropriations and Senate Judiciary Committees.
As a leader in Pennsylvania
government, Senator Pileggi also represents the state at the national level. He
currently serves on the Advisory Committee of the U.S. global Leadership
Coalition; the Board of Directors of the State Legislative Leaders Foundation;
and the National Conference of State Legislatures Redistricting and Elections
Committee.
A 1979 graduate of Widener with a
master’s in finance, Beideman has served as president and chief executive
officer of the Avenue of the Arts, Inc. since 2012. The Avenue of the Arts
corridor is a 3.5-mile section of Broad Street from Glenwood Avenue in North
Philadelphia to Washington Avenue in South Philadelphia. Avenue of the Arts,
Inc. has played a vital role in the creation of several key performing arts
venues and has advocated for the physical improvements of the district’s
streetscape. It also services as a catalyst for policies, programs and projects
that encourage economic and cultural development on the Avenue of the Arts.
A member of the Widener Board of
Trustees, Beideman and his wife, Caroline, made a $500,000 commitment to
Widener in 2011 to establish the Beideman Visiting Scholar program within the
Oskin Leadership Institute. Through their gift, distinguished scholars from
outside institutions spend time at Widener sharing their expertise and guiding
faculty and student discussion and research. Prior to joining Avenue of the
Arts, Inc., Beideman served as chairman of the board and CEO of Associated
Banc-Corp.
Since becoming president of Campus
Compact in 2006, Curley led an action-oriented, member-driven approach to
supporting the community involvement of colleges and universities. Curley led
the efforts to establish a strong strategic plan and improved organizational
structure for the association which grew to more than 1,100 members with 34
state affiliate offices under her leadership. She also directed the
association’s efforts to examine the impact of higher education’s community
engagement on critical contemporary issues such as college retention and
economic development.
In 2011, Campus Compact launched
Connect2Complete. Funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the program
works with community colleges in Florida, Ohio and Washington to utilize peer
mentoring and service learning to help the most vulnerable community college
students achieve academic success and engage with their peers, the college and
the broader community.
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