Guide to the Westminster College President's Office honorary degree citations

Honorary degrees were first conferred upon individuals by Westminster College in 1945. The first degree was awarded to The Rev. Herbert Ware Reherd, President Emeritus of Westminster College. Honorary degrees have continued to be awarded each year, with the exception of 1946. From 1945-1989, one hundred and fifty-nine degrees were awarded and are represented by this collection. While this collection ends in 1989, degrees have continued to be awarded. The last degree in this collection was awarded to Sr. Robert F. Weyher (Doctor of Humane Letters). Honorary degrees are often given to contributors to the college and their family members. Prominent names included are Eccles, Duddy, Hogle, Buzza, Hansen, Malouf, Matheson, and Wheatlake. Also, beginning in 1976, Special Awards began to be given to individuals comparable to honorary degrees. The Board of Trustees Medallion for Distinguished Achievement was the first of the Special Awards, as was given to Dr. Manford A. Shaw, as retiring President of Westminster College. Other such awards include the Distinguished Scholar Award given to Dr. Keith Good in 1977, for maintaining a 4.0 grade point average in 76 class hours during the previous two years at the age of 73. Also in 1977, the Presidential Citation was given to Elizabeth Syme for serving Westminster College as the coordinator of the Shaw Center for 23 years. Twelve Honorary degrees were awarded to women. The first woman who received it was The Reverend Cristina C. Albana, Doctor of Pedagogy in 1967.

This collection consists of the citations and letters of introduction for the recipients of honorary degree awarded to various individuals between 1945 and 1989 by Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah. It also includes a list of recipients from 1946-2006 and other honorary degree indices.

The majority of records are copies of the citations read during Commencement Exercises, and a few Convocations honoring the recipients. Citations were most often read by members of the Board of Trustees, faculty members, or other prominent individuals connected with the College. Each citation includes a brief biographical sketch of the degree recipient that emphasizes the impact the individual made to the Westminster community and/or to the surrounding society. Typical degrees include: Doctor of Humanities (D.H.), Doctor of Humane Letters, Doctor of Sacred Theology (S.T.D.), Doctor of Divinity (D.D.), Doctor of Laws (LL.D.), Doctor of Civil Law (D.C.L.), Doctor of Music (Mus.D.), and Doctor of Letters (Litt.D.). Other degrees presented by Westminster College are Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Doctor of Pedagogy (D.Paed.), Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.), Doctor of Literature (D.L) and Doctor of Science (D.S).

The files also include information on Dr. Hugh Nibley. He did not receive an honorary degree; however, he was a candidate and was supported by Kenneth Calder, Professor of French at Westminster College. Dr. Nibley was not the recipient in the following year. He remains the only entry into the collection who did not received an honorary degree. The records were organized in 1976, during President Manford Shaw's administration. The most consistent and complete records were kept during President Fred Arbogast's administration (1963-1968).

The final file (Box 2, Folder 5) labelled "Index: Honorary Degree lists" contains:

• Index of honorary degree recipients, 1945-2006 (alphabetical by recipient's name)
• Honorary degrees conferred by Westminster College, 1945-2000 (by year and including degree and recipient's name
• Honorary degress conferred by Westminster College, 1945-1983 (by year and including degree, recipient's name and occupation, and indications if they were a Commencement or Baccalaureate speaker as well)
• Honorary degrees conferred (a list of degree titles and abbreviations)
• Honorary degrees conferred by category, 1945-1976 (a summary breakdown of total number of degrees conferred by type of degree and date range)

Gaps in the collection: citations are missing for Robert Denham Steele (1952), Theodore Roosevelt McKeldin (1952), Walter W. Wampler (1952), John M. Wallace (1954), Manford Avis Shaw (1957), George Keith Funston (1961), Hugh Nibley (1977), and Will Steger (1991).

Restrictions on Access:

Open to public research.

Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Twenty-four hours advance notice is encouraged.

Restrictions on Use:

It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain any necessary copyright clearances.

Permission to publish material must be obtained from the director of the Giovale Library.

Preferred Citation:

Westminster College President's Office honorary degree citations, 1945-2006, ACC-075, Giovale Library Archives, Westminster College, Salt Lake City, Utah.

Arrangement:

Arranged alphabetically by the name of the degree recipient.

Acquisition Information:

The President's Office transferred these records to the Archives in June 2003.

Processing Note:

Processed by Alana Dela Cruz in June 2005 and revised by Arlinda Shtylla in February 2007. While the honorary degree materials were initially contained within the Commencement records collection (ACC-069), they were separated to form this Honorary degree citations collection (ACC-075).

Creator:

Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983). President's Office

Westminster College of Salt Lake City. Office of the President

Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- ). President's Office

Language:

Collection materials are in English.

Quantity:

0.4 linear feet

Language of the Finding Aid:

English.

Author of the Finding Aid:

Finding aid written by Alana Dela Cruz in June 2005 and revised by Arlinda Shtylla in February 2007.

EAD Creation Date:

2012 October 15 by Sarah Shaw

Standard:

Describing Archives : A Content Standard (DACS)

Subarea:

Related Material:

Related collections in Giovale Library Archives:

• Westminster College commencement records, 1898-2001 (ACC-069)
• Westminster College convocation records, 1950-2010 (ACC-099)
• Westminster College commencement publications, 1903-2011 (ACC-100)
• Westminster College President's Office commencement speeches, 1945-2007 (ACC-131)

These related collections further document the process of selecting degree recipients, often contain additional biographical information on the recipients (such as newspaper articles and photographs) as well as copies of speeches given by the recipients.

Corporate Names:

Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983)--Awards
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983)--Degrees
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1902-1983). President's Office--Archives
Westminster College of Salt Lake City--Awards
Westminster College of Salt Lake City--Degrees
Westminster College of Salt Lake City. Office of the President--Archives
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--Awards
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- )--Degrees
Westminster College (Salt Lake City, Utah : 1998- ). Office of the President--Archives

Subject Terms:

Academic decorations of honor--Utah--Salt Lake City
Commencement ceremonies--Utah--Salt Lake City
Degrees, Academic--Utah--Salt Lake City

Form or Genre Terms:

Citations
Indexes (reference sources)
Letters of introduction
Lists (document genres)

Geographical Names:

Salt Lake City (Utah)--History--Sources