Media Release

For Immediate Release

May 13, 2008

David F. Sobey to be installed as Chancellor at Saint Mary’s Spring Convocation

Dr. David F. Sobey will be installed as the Chancellor of Saint Mary’s University May 23 when the University celebrates its Spring Convocation at the Halifax Metro Centre.

Dr. Sobey is the Chairman Emeritus of Sobeys Inc. and one of the most widely respected business leaders in Canada. He was appointed Chancellor by the Board of Governors this past January, and will serve as Chancellor until May 2010. He will act as a key ambassador and advocate for the University, and sit as an ex-officio member on its Board of Governors.

Dr. Sobey has been a tireless supporter of Saint Mary’s over the last three decades. In the mid-1980s he was appointed to the Board of Governors of the University. From 1993 to 1998 he chaired Saint Mary's Building on Strength capital campaign which raised more than $24 million for various initiatives at the University, including the creation of the Sobey Building - today home to the Sobey School of Business, one of Canada’s most prestigious business schools.

As Chancellor, Dr. Sobey’s first duty will be to present degrees to more than 1,000 students graduating from the Faculties of Arts, Commerce, Science and Graduate Studies and Research.

The ceremony for the Faculties of Arts and Graduate Studies and Research will begin at 9:30 a.m.; the ceremony for the faculties of Commerce and Science will begin at 3 p.m. Jeff Lohnes will be the valedictorian for the morning ceremony with Chelsea Pridham as the hooding candidate. Meghan Van Gaal will be the valedictorian for the afternoon ceremony, with Zhen Ya Guo (Jacky Paul) as hooding candidate.

Dr. Sobey, who was awarded an honorary Doctor of Commerce degree from Saint Mary's University in 1991, will also present honorary doctoral degrees to Dr. Jamal Badawi, Arthur Donahoe, Q.C., Dr. Gary Mooney and Nancy Smithers -- individuals noted for entrepreneurial drive, international development, community building and health care innovation.

Dr. Jamal Badawi will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Civil Law at the afternoon ceremony. Dr. Badawi is a professor, an Imam and an international scholar on Islam. He is a Professor Emeritus with Saint Mary’s and has devoted his career to promoting a better understanding of Islam to audiences ranging from theology students to the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission. He is a Fulbright Scholar and has published widely on Islam and management studies. His academic achievements include a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Ain-Shams University in Cairo, a Master of Business Administration degree and a Doctorate of Philosophy from Indiana University. After teaching Management at the University of Maine, he joined Saint Mary’s in 1970 as a faculty member in the Department of Management, where he taught until retirement in 2005. Since retirement, he has continued to teach part time with the Department of Religious Studies. Throughout his career, his active role in building community and promoting understanding has included service as the Nova Scotia representative for Human Concerns International (a non-profit international relief organization), the founding of the Maritime Muslim Academy and the Islamic Information Foundation, and participation as a member of the FIQH Counsel, a group of Islamic scholars who interpret Muslim religious law. Too, he is an Imam in the Islam Association of the Maritime Provinces and the Halifax Mosque. This Honorary Doctorate recognizes the contribution Dr. Badawi has made to civil society around the world, as well as his long service and commitment to Saint Mary’s University.

Arthur Donahoe will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Laws at the afternoon ceremony. Donahoe is a Santamarian who went on to become a lawyer, politician and public servant. He has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Saint Mary’s and a Law degree from Dalhousie Law School. He practiced law in Halifax, and from 1978 until 1992 was a member of the Nova Scotia Legislature, where he served as Speaker of the House from 1981 until 1991. During his time as Speaker he was instrumental in a modernization of the House procedures, including a complete revamping of the committee system. In 1992, following a Commonwealth-wide selection process, he became the first Canadian chosen to be Secretary General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), based in London, England. The CPA promotes parliamentary democracy, and during his two terms in office, Donahoe managed a substantial growth in the size and operations of the organization, which resulted from the implementation of the Commonwealth’s Harare Declaration. He remains the only Canadian to have served as CEO of the organization in its nearly 100-year history. His community service includes being the Honorary Vice Consul of Barbados, membership on the board of the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Public Affairs (CCEPA), acting as one of trustees of the Patrick Power Estate, and assisting in the campaign to raise funds for the completion of the auditorium at the new Citadel High School. He is also a past president of the Charitable Irish Society, a former vice president of the United Way, a former chairman of the board of management of St. Vincent’s Guest House, and a past president of the Ashburn Golf Club. This Honorary Doctorate recognizes the contribution Arthur Donahoe has made promoting democracy and democratic processes throughout the world, as well as his ongoing support for Saint Mary’s through his work with the Patrick Power Estate.

Dr. Gary Mooney will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Commerce in the morning ceremony. Mooney is a Santamarian, former Jesuit priest, lawyer, entrepreneur, community leader and patron of the arts and scholarship. He is currently the President and Chief Operating Officer of Fidelity National Financial (FNF) Canada, Chief Title Agent for Chicago Title Insurance Company and the Senior Partner with the law firm Anderson Sinclair. He attended Saint Mary’s for two years in the mid 1960s, has a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Guelph, a Master of Arts from the University of Toronto, a Master of Divinity from the University of Toronto, a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Cambridge, and a Law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School. He has also studied at the University of Florence and Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. Mooney has received many awards as an academic and as a business and legal professional. In 2003 he was a finalist for the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. In 2004 he was recognized by the Mississauga Board of Trade as the Business Person of the Year, and in 2005, the same year he received an Alumni Gold Key Award from Osgoode Hall Law School, he received the Arbour Award from the University of Toronto. He is active in community service as a member of the Governing Council of the University of Toronto, the Principals’ Advisory Board of the University of Toronto, Mississauga (UTM), the Deans’ Advisory Board of Osgoode Hall Law School and the Board of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. He is also a member of the National Board of Learning Disabilities Association, the Canadian Orthopedic Foundation and a trustee with Landmark College in Vermont. His other community service activities include ongoing work with the Rotary Club of Mississauga, Credit Valley, and support for many arts, cultural, health and philanthropic organizations, such as the Newfoundland Symphony Youth Choir, the University of Montreal Geriatric Institute and the UTM Scholarships for Students with Learning Disabilities. This Honorary Doctorate recognizes the contribution Dr. Mooney has made to business and civil society as well as his record of service to educational institutions, community groups and foundations.

Nancy Smithers will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Civil Law at the morning ceremony. Smithers is an entrepreneur and community service volunteer with more than 25 years of business experience in financial management, accounting, personnel management, marketing, strategic planning and international trade development. She is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Naturally Nova Scotia Health Products Limited, an organic herb farm and manufacturing facility. The company employs 30 people and supplies herb products and nutraceuticals to retailers across Canada and Japan. She leads all aspects of the company’s operations, including research and product development, market development, promotion, human resources and financial development. She has received several grants from the National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP) to study the active ingredients of herbs and the stability of vitamins and minerals, as well as optimal extraction and production methods. She also co-sponsors NSERC-funded research. In 2004, she earned a Premier’s Commendation recognizing leadership in Quality Management Practice, and in 2007, she won a Nova Scotia Women of Excellence Award. She is a past member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Coalition for Health, Freedom and Citizens for Choice in Health Care, a member of the Natural Health Product Directorate’s Management Advisory Committee on Natural Health Products, and a member of the Saskatchewan Herb and Spice Association advisory board. She is also a director of the Dartmouth General Hospital Charitable Foundation and the Dalhousie University Art Gallery, and sits on the Dalhousie University Faculty of Management advisory board. She has studied natural health through Alberta’s Wild Rose College since 1995, completing diploma courses in herbology, pharmacology and vitamins and minerals. She has also completed course work in Japanese at Saint Mary’s, as well as other course work in economics, computer science and liberal arts at Dalhousie University. This Honorary Doctorate recognizes the value Nancy Smithers provides as a role model for entrepreneurial students and her ongoing support for academic research.

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For more information:

Blake Patterson
Public Affairs Officer
Saint Mary's University, Public Affairs
(902) 420.5514
E-mail: blake.patterson@smu.ca
www.smu.ca