SALT LAKE CITY — Samuel H. Smith, WSU president emeritus and a founding member of the board of Western Governors University, www.wgu.edu, was awarded an honorary doctoral degree at WGU’s summer commencement on July 11 in Salt lake City, Utah. Smith was the eighth president of WSU. During his 15-year tenure, he led the effort to establish WSU’s three regional campuses–WSU Spokane, WSU in Tri-Cities, and WSU Vancouver, as well as fostering development of the university’s Distance Degree Programs. Under his leadership, WSU grew in size and stature, and its teaching, research, and public service activities received worldwide recognition. Before his presidency at WSU, Smith spent 16 years at Pennsylvania State University as a faculty member, department head, and dean in the College of Agriculture.
In addition to serving on the Western Governors University Board of Trustees, Smith has chaired the Executive Committee of the NCAA and the Board of Directors of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges. He earned bachelor’s and doctoral degrees from the University of California at Berkeley.
In the past year, the university has awarded more than 1,500 bachelor’s, post-baccalaureate, and master’s degrees. The graduating class for this 6-month period is the largest to date, with 514 undergraduate and 377 graduate degrees awarded. For graduates who were not able to attend in person, WGU broadcast the ceremony live over the Internet via streaming video. To view WGU’s Summer Commencement, go to http://www.wgu.edu/wgu/graduation_july09.
