Dear Colleagues,
As chair of the Honorary Degrees and Special Awards Committee, I am writing to request your nominations for UNC-Chapel Hill honorary degrees to be awarded in 2025 or later. Faculty members are entrusted with the conferral of degrees, and you are encouraged to consider suitable candidates and to nominate them for the committee’s consideration. Nominations are kept active for three years.
The deadline to submit a nomination is Monday, January 22, 2024.
Honorary degrees are conferred at Spring Commencement each year to recognize individuals who have rendered outstanding service to humanity in the global arena, in our nation, in the American South, or in the State of North Carolina. This honor is intended for people who have made significant contributions to knowledge in the world of scholarship, people whose talent and creativity in the world of the arts has enriched our lives, and people whose devotion to and support of our University merits our highest recognition.
The awards committee seeks to have a broad and diverse pool of extraordinary candidates, including individuals from underrepresented groups, to consider for this honor. We request a detailed letter of nomination that describes your nominee’s accomplishments and outlines why this individual should be considered for an honorary degree from Carolina. If possible, please include a CV or similar document.
Full information about this award, including criteria, eligibility, a list of past recipients, and the process for submitting a nomination is available on the Faculty Governance website.
Nominations may be submitted at this link.
Please contact the Office of Faculty Governance at facgov@unc.edu with questions about honorary degrees or the nomination process.
Thank you and all the best for the winter break!
Lynn White Blanchard, PhD, MPH
Chair of the Honorary Degrees and Special Awards Committee
Associate Professor of Health Behavior
