Providence College recently held its Ninety-Third Commencement Exercises at the Dunkin' Donuts Center. In all, the P.C. awarded 1,135 degrees - 906 baccalaureate, 184 graduate, 38 from the School of Continuing Education, and seven honorary - including bestowing the first honorary bachelor's degrees in school history on two World War II veterans.
The College awarded the honorary bachelor's degrees to George Fisher and Paul V. Salley, two members of Unit #1188 of the U.S. Army Specialized Training Program (ASTP). The ASTP was a rigorous military training program instituted in 1943 by the U.S. Army at more than 120 American higher-education institutions. The members of this unit were enrolled as undergraduate students at the college in 1943, but were called to service in March 1944 and never returned to complete their education.
Following the reading of the citation given to Fisher and Salley on behalf of the nearly 400 ASTP students who studied and trained in the ASTP at PC, the audience of approximately 10,000 stood and gave the two honorary degree recipients a minute-plus standing ovation.
Thirty-seven of these members of Unit #1188 of the U.S. ASTP were killed in action in Europe. A memorial plaque was dedicated to them at P.C.'s War Memorial Grotto in 1998.
For more information about Providence College and the ASTP, please visit:
Providence College: PC to Honor WW II Student-Soldiers at Commencement (18 APR 11)
For more information about the commencement and the principal address given by John Ratzenberger in the commencement exercise, please visit:
Providence College: Ratzenberger: Road to Success Paved by Responsibility, Hard Work (16 MAY 11)
Providence Journal: Providence College celebrates 1,128 graduates (16 MAY 11)
To access a video presentation of the entire Commencement 2011 program, please visit:
Providence College: Commencement 2011
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