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Commencement 2008
July/August 2008
Recipients of teaching prizes
Keith Wrightson, Randolph W. Townsend Jr. Professor
of History: the Sidonie Miskimin Clauss Prize for Teaching Excellence in the
Humanities.
Boris Kapustin, visiting professor of political
science and ethics, politics, and economics: the Lex Hixon '63 Prize for
Teaching Excellence in the Social Sciences.
Stanley Eisenstat, professor of computer science: the
Dylan Hixon '88 Prize for Teaching Excellence in the Natural Sciences and
Mathematics.
Cynthia Horan, lecturer in political science: the
Richard H. Brodhead '68 Prize for Teaching Excellence by a Lector or Lecturer.
Ludger Herbert Viefhues-Bailey, assistant professor
of religious studies: the Sarai Ribicoff '79 Award for the Encouragement of
Teaching at Yale College.
John Lewis Gaddis, Robert A. Lovett Professor of
Military & Naval History and professor of political science: the Harwood F.
Byrnes / Richard B. Sewall Teaching Prize.
Recipients of honorary degrees
John Lawrence Ashbery, "one of the truly original
poets of [our] time," for poems that "keep your exhilarated readers off
balance, capturing the spontaneous wonder of living in a world that resists the
ability to capture it," and for "incomparable artistry in expressing the flux
of life in a miraculous 'still performance'": Doctor of Letters.
Mercy Amba Oduyoye, African theologian and "the
mother of African women's theology," who has "expanded our perspective on the
sacred by considering the ways of women in the world and in the church," and
"served locally, nationally, and globally, always urging unity, integrity, and
inclusiveness": Doctor of Divinity.
Martin Rees, Astronomer Royal of the United Kingdom
and an authority on the origins of the universe, a "gifted teacher, a prolific
author, and a passionate advocate for science" who has "shed light on the way
the cosmos works, examining gravitational forces, galaxies, and gamma-ray
bursts": Doctor of Science.
Carla Anderson Hills '58LLB, former United States
trade representative who "made signal contributions to global prosperity as an
architect of both the World Trade Organization and the North American Free
Trade Agreement," for her "leadership in public and international affairs":
Doctor of Laws.
Sir Paul McCartney, a musician and composer whose "songs
awakened a generation, giving a fresh sound to rock, roll, rhythm, and blues"
and who has "played every chord, touched every emotion. Here, there, and
everywhere, you have pushed the boundaries of the familiar to create new
classics. We admire your musical genius and your generous support of worthy
causes": Doctor of Music.
Cesar Pelli, architect and former dean of the Yale
School of Architecture, whose "buildings enhance their surroundings and enrich
the lives of those who inhabit them. . . . From the Petronas Towers in Malaysia
to the World Financial Center in New York and the Pacific Design Center in Los
Angeles, you make our spirits soar": Doctor of Fine Arts.
Drew Gilpin Faust, historian and president of
Harvard, whose "books on the Civil War and the American South have explored
intellectual life amidst slavery, Confederate nationalism, Southern womanhood,
and the lives of African Americans. . . . We welcome you, the first woman to
serve as Harvard's president, to the Yale family": Doctor of Humanities.
Rajendra Kumar Pachauri, environmental scientist, "a
leading voice on climate change" and "a builder of bridges -- from scientific
evidence to public policy, from developed to developing countries" for
authoring one of the first major reports on global warming and leading the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change: Doctor of Humane Letters.
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