RADNOR, Pa. (March 15, 2012) — J. Eustace Wolfington, a Philadelphian with international business interests, will receive an honorary doctor of humane letters and address bachelor’s degree candidates at Cabrini College’s undergraduate Commencement on Sunday, May 20.
Anne Marie Borneman, Ed.D., senior fellow at Saint Joseph’s University’s Center for Catholic Urban Education, will address master’s degree candidates at Cabrini’s graduate Commencement later that day, and also will receive an honorary doctor of humane letters degree. Dr. Borneman is a 1980 graduate of Cabrini.
Also receiving honorary degrees are Janice Taylor Gordon, Ph.D., who will receive an honorary doctor of science, and Maestro Jonathan Sternberg, who will receive an honorary doctor of fine arts.
At the 10 a.m. Commencement, the College will award bachelor’s degrees to more than 320 undergraduates, while more than 725 graduate students will receive master’s degrees at the 3:30 p.m. Commencement. This year marks Cabrini’s 52nd Commencement exercises.
“The College’s Commencement speakers and honorary degree recipients are excellent representatives of the values of a Cabrini education,” said Dr. Marie Angelella George, College President. “Their dedication and support to Catholic education and to Catholic organizations is extraordinary. J. Eustace Wolfington is a fine role model in his personal and professional lives, and his generosity has impacted directly thousands of Cabrini students. Dr. Borneman’s work and research on Catholic urban schools is deeply meaningful and relevant for students earning graduate degrees, many of whom are in the education field. We are proud that she is an alumna of the College.”
Wolfington and the Eustace Foundation have for decades been tremendous supporters of Catholic institutions in the Philadelphia region. His philanthropic commitment to Cabrini helped to establish the Wolfington Center, an office designed to promote the College’s “Education of the Heart” and integrate Cabrini’s Catholic identity across campus.
Since its founding, the Wolfington Center has offered service programs grounded in Catholic Social Teaching; local and global opportunities in such places as Norristown, West Virginia, Central and South America, and Africa; and has played a leading role in helping the College develop partnerships with educational, professional and non‑profit organizations in the municipality of Norristown, with Catholic Relief Services, and with the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the College’s sponsoring order.
Professionally, the Wolfington family has been affiliated with transportation for more than a century, beginning with Eustace’s great-grandfather, who began building carriages in Philadelphia in 1876. After graduating from Saint Joseph’s University in 1956, Wolfington started working at a family automobile dealership; by 1962, he had purchased a Plymouth and a Chevrolet dealership, and from 1967 to 1972, he was responsible for placing 2,500 General Motors dealers into the retail leasing business.
In 1980, Wolfington founded Half-a-Car (HAC) Group, a company that provided learning, customer relationship management and Web services to automotive retailers and manufacturers. Two years later, he introduced the “customer for life” concept to the Ford Motor Company. Between 1982 and 1999, the HAC Group expanded to more than 18 countries with more than 4,000 dealerships in its system. Wolfington sold the HAC Group in 2000.
Wolfington has received numerous awards and honors for his efforts, including the Commodore Barry Award from the American Catholic Historical Society and the Shield of Loyola Award from Saint Joseph’s University. After studying at the University of Notre Dame and serving in the United States Army in Korea, Wolfington earned a bachelor of science degree at Saint Joseph’s University.
Dr. Anne Marie Borneman
Anne Marie Borneman, Ed.D., senior fellow at Saint Joseph’s University’s Center for Catholic Urban Education, will address master’s degree candidates at Cabrini’s graduate Commencement later that day, and also will receive an honorary doctor of humane letters degree. Dr. Borneman is a 1980 graduate of Cabrini.
In addition to her role as senior fellow, Dr. Borneman is the research team leader for the University’s Alliance for Catholic Education. She has researched extensively on Philadelphia Catholic schools, and has more than 30 years of experience working in urban and suburban schools.
Dr. Borneman earned a bachelor of science in elementary and special education from Cabrini College, a master of arts in human development and a school psychology certification from Bryn Mawr College, and a doctorate in educational leadership from Saint Joseph’s University.
Her dissertation, on Catholic urban schools in low-income neighborhoods of Philadelphia, earned Saint Joseph’s Nicholas S. Rashford, S.J., Award. Dr. Borneman is a member of the Women’s Leadership Council of Saint Joseph’s University and serves as a pro bono consultant and board member for several Catholic urban schools in Philadelphia and Camden, N.J.
Dr. Janice Gordon
Now retired, Dr. Gordon formerly held several positions at Philadelphia’s Hahnemann University Hospital, including professor of medicine in the Division of Endocrinology. She has served on the Franklin Institute’s Committee on Science and the Arts, on the board of the Philomathean Society of the University of Pennsylvania, on the central committee for the Philadelphia Orchestra, and was president of the Franklin Inn Club, a Philadelphia literary society. Dr. Gordon earned her doctoral, master’s and bachelor’s degrees at Bryn Mawr College. Cabrini College is honoring Dr. Gordon for her service to the cultural and medicinal fields.
Maestro Jonathan Sternberg
The American conductor Jonathan Sternberg began his professional career on Pearl Harbor day, Dec. 7, 1941, when he conducted the National Youth Administration Orchestra of New York. After serving in World War II, Sternberg moved to Vienna, Austria, when he conducted the Vienna Symphony Orchestra. Over the next two decades, Sternberg helmed the Halifax Symphony Orchestra in Canada and the Royal Flemish Opera in Belgium, before returning to the United States to serve as musical director and principal conductor of the Harkeness Ballet York and musical director and conductor of the Atlanta Municipal Theater.
Sternberg also held faculty positions at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, N.Y., at Temple University, and at Chestnut Hill College. From 2004-2008, he was musical and artistic director of the Bach Festival of Philadelphia. In January 2009, Sternberg received the Conductors Guild’s Award for Lifetime Service in recognition for his long-standing service to the art and profession of conducting. Cabrini College is honoring Sternberg for his long-standing contributions to the fine arts.
The undergraduate Commencement begins at 10 a.m., Sunday, May 20, while the graduate Commencement begins at 3:30 p.m. Both ceremonies will take place under a tent on the Cavalier Athletic Field, 610 King of Prussia Road, Radnor, Pa. On Saturday, May 19, Commencement Mass will be celebrated at 4 p.m. in the same location.
The Mother Ursula Award—named for the founder of the College—also will be presented at Cabrini’s Commencement. The award is given to a senior who, in the opinion of classmates, has best fulfilled the ideals of the College through academic achievement, participation in extracurricular activities, leadership and service to classmates and the College.
Cabrini College Commencement 2012 Recap
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Commencement Mass: Saturday, May 19, 4 p.m., Cavalier Athletic Field
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Undergraduate Commencement: Sunday, May 20, 10 a.m., Cavalier Athletic Field
Commencement Speaker: J. Eustace Wolfington
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Graduate Commencement: Sunday, May 20, 3:30 p.m., Cavalier Athletic Field
Commencement Speaker: Anne Marie Borneman, Ed.D.
Contact: Dan DiPrinzio, Media Relations Manager, 610-902-8255
About Cabrini College
Students do extraordinary things at Cabrini College, a residential Catholic college welcoming learners of all faiths, cultures and backgrounds. Since its founding in 1957 by the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the College has provided a transformational “education of the heart,” focusing on academic excellence, leadership development and a commitment to social justice.
Cabrini offers more than 30 majors, pre-professional programs, concentrations and minors. The College also has graduate and professional studies programs at its main campus in Radnor, Pa., and at 15 off-site locations. The College’s serene 112-acre campus is located 30 minutes from Philadelphia.