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 Former
NASA astronaut and U.S. Senator John Glenn was the featured speaker
during Elon University's Spring Convocation for Honors April 14
in the Koury Center on campus. The convocation honors Dean's List
and President's List students, the faculty, graduate students, the
Class of 2005 and members of the Elon Society and the university's
advisory groups, including the School of Communications Advisory
Board.
Dozens of communications
students were among the honors students and the Class of 2005, and
many of them were working at the event, putting together news reports
for classes and Elon student media organizations.
Glenn received
an honorary doctor of laws degree during the convocation, which
recognizes academic achievement and philanthropy. Honorary doctor
of humane letters degrees were also awarded to Furman Moseley, Jr.
'56, a successful business leader and generous Elon supporter, and
James B. Powell, a Burlington, N.C., philanthropist and community
leader.
Glenn made
history in 1962 when he circled the Earth three times aboard the
Friendship 7 space capsule, completing the first manned, orbital
mission by the United States. A native of Cambridge, Ohio, Glenn's
service to his country began long before he joined NASA. He was
commissioned into the Marine Corps in 1943, flying 59 combat missions
during World War II and 63 missions in Korea. He has been awarded
the Distinguished Flying Cross on six occasions and holds the Air
Medal with 18 Clusters.
He retired
from the Marine Corps in 1965 and entered the private sector as
a business executive. In 1974 he was elected to the U.S. Senate
and he served his native Ohio for 24 years, focusing on arms control,
nuclear proliferation, government efficiency and campaign-finance
reform.
Glenn returned
to space in 1998 aboard space shuttle Discovery, where he studied
the effects of zero gravity on an aging body. Upon his safe return,
he was treated to his second ticker-tape parade in New York City.
In 1999, NASA renamed its Cleveland Center the John H. Glenn Research
Center at Lewis Field in his honor.
Today, Glenn
runs the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy
at Ohio State University. He is chairman of the National Commission
on Service Learning, which focuses on integrating service with classroom
instruction in public schools.
His life is
chronicled in his autobiography, "John Glenn: A Memoir."
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