To: All Faculty <everybody@illinois.edu> 
    From: "Professor Mary Mallory, Chair, Honorary Degrees" <mmallory@uiuc.edu>
Reply-To: djmorris@uiuc.edu

 Subject: MASSMAIL - Request for Honorary Degree Nominations

DATE:   September 8, 2005
TO:     UIUC Senators, Deans, Directors, Faculty
FROM:   Mary Mallory, Chair, Committee on Honorary Degrees
RE:     Nominations for Honorary Degrees for May 2006 and 2007
Commencements


The Senate Committee on Honorary Degrees is pleased to invite
nominations for the May 2006 and 2007 honorary degree awards.
Nomination procedures are detailed below.  You are urged to
nominate, through your unit (department, school, college,
etc.), outstanding candidates for Honorary Degree
awards.


The committee requests that nominations and supporting
materials for the May 2006/2007 commencements be submitted by
September 30, 2005.  The Committee urges all
units contemplating submitting a nomination to begin their
preparation as soon as possible.  Please note that in order
to maintain absolute confidentiality and avoid possible
embarrassment to the candidate and to the University in case
of lack of approval, under no circumstances is any
potential candidate to be contacted even to obtain lists of
references and/or vitae.  You may contact her/his secretary,
colleague, etc., swear the person to absolute secrecy and
obtain such a list. Please use only non University of
Illinois persons for references.  Only the President and/or
Chancellor may contact candidates.


The Committee appreciates your help in identifying
outstanding individuals whom the University can honor and, in
so doing, honor itself.  If you have any questions or need
additional information, please contact the Senate
Office (333-6805).  For your convenience, a nomination form
is at (http://www.senate.uiuc.edu/hd_form.html).


REQUEST FOR NOMINATIONS FOR HONORARY DEGREES


The prime, controlling consideration should be distinction.
The person should have made a distinguished contribution to
knowledge and creativity in the relevant field of endeavor,
and have shown sustained activity of uncommon merit.  The
contributions may be made in a wide range of
activities; the following list is not exhaustive:


- Scholarship, in any discipline:  major breakthroughs in
knowledge in fields of scholarly work.
- Creative Arts, in the broad sense of the term:  literature,
music,
architecture, engineering, et al; the development of new
frontiers of creativity.
- Professions:  distinguished contributions, innovative work
of distinction.
- Public Service:  outstanding achievement in statesmanship,
administration, legislative activity, the judiciary, or in
non-govermental civic activities.
- Business, Industry and Labor:  outstanding, innovative
activity in the business and/or labor community.


Following Senate guidelines
(http://www.senate.uiuc.edu/criteria.html),
the Committee will consider, but not be bound by, the degree
to which the candidate has had some association with
Illinois - the University or the State.  While alumni of the
University should not be excluded, honorary degrees are not a
means of recognizing their contributions; other awards
exist for this purpose.  Current administrators, faculty, or
staff of the University ordinarily are not eligible; while
emeriti are eligible even if engaged in teaching or research
at the University.  Elected officials of the State of
Illinois and its subordinate units and members of the
Legislature, during their terms of office, ordinarily are not
eligible.


Senate guidelines emphasize recommendations by departments
and other academic units.  A nomination coming to the
Committee from a member of the Board of Trustees, an
alumnus/alumna or friend of the University, will be
referred to the proper academic unit for support of the
faculty.


For full consideration by the Committee, the nominator or
nominating unit should supply the following information to
the Committee by September 30, 2005:


1.     A brief letter of nomination, summarizing the
candidate's qualifications for this honor, and certifying the
support of the appropriate academic unit.


2.     A brief curriculum vitae of the nominee, including
addresses, telephone numbers, or other means by which the
nominee can be reached.  If the nomination finds substantial
initial support in the Honorary Degrees Committee, additional
information may be requested from the department to develop
the case and to provide the Senate with the materials it
needs for the final decision.


3.     The names and addresses of at least four
professionally-distinguished individuals who could be
contacted for letters of support or further information about
the candidate.  It is hoped that oral communications among
professional colleagues will help assure the confidentiality
of the decision process.


Nominations and full dossiers should be marked confidential
and sent to the Committee on Honorary Degrees, c/o Senate
Office, 228 English Building, MC-461.
This mailing approved by:
The Office of the Chancellor

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