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UNB to grant three honorary degrees one professor emeritus and two Allan P Stuart Teaching Awards

Author: Communications

Posted on Oct 22, 2014

Category: UNB Saint John

On top of celebrating the success of its graduates, UNB will honour outstanding professors, business leaders and alumni at this year’s graduation ceremonies.

Fredericton will celebrate the 60th Convocation on Thursday, Oct. 23, 2014 and Saint John’s 32nd Fall Convocation will be the following day, Friday, Oct. 24. 

Honorary Degree Recipients

UNB will grant honorary degrees to renowned couple, Beth and Peter Powning in Saint John; and business leader, Christopher Huskilson at the Fredericton ceremony.    

Beth Davis Powning

Born in Putnam, Connecticut, Beth Powning is a well-known author to New Brunswick, Canadian and international readers. Some of Powning’s critically acclaimed works include The Sea Captain’s Wife, The Hatbox Letters, Edge Seasons and Shadow Child. In 2010 she received the Lieutenant-Governor’s Award for High Achievement in English-Language Literary Arts.  She is a participant of UNB Saint John’s Lorenzo Reading Series, and will read from her latest novel, A Measure of Light, in April 2015. Powning is actively involved in her community with such organizations as the Kings County Solid Waste Committee, Project Ploughshares, and her Local Service District. She is a member of the Conservation Council of New Brunswick, the New Brunswick Writer’s Federation and The Writer’s Union of Canada.

Peter Wilson Powning

Ceramist and sculptor, Peter Powning lives, and works, as an artist in Southern New Brunswick. His work has appeared in galleries around the world, from Canada and the U.S. to Japan.  For the past 10 years, he has installed 14 large public commissions across Canada, and locally his work appears at Saint John Energy, Market Square, the Saint John Free Public Library and Saint John Harbour Passage. He is the recipient of several awards, including the 2006 Saidye Bronfman Award, which a year later became the Governor General’s Bronfman Award. Powning is advisor to the NB College of Craft and Design, and a member of the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts. 

Christopher Huskilson

UNB alumnus, Chris Huskilson is president and CEO, Emera Inc., located in Halifax, N.S. A leader in his field, Huskilson is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers of Nova Scotia and also serves on the board of directors for Innovacorp, as well as on many other for-profit and not-for­ profit boards of directors.  In 2013, Huskilson was named Canadian Energy Person of the Year in recognition of the contributions he has made to the  energy sector in Atlantic Canada. A strong advocate of UNB, Huskilson was a member of the Forging Our Futures campaign cabinet and has been involved with many UNB events, as  well as sponsoring the Entrepreneurial Leadership Program through the Wallace McCain Institute. 

Professor Emeritus Honourees 

Two outstanding professors who have had distinguished careers at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton will be honoured for their accomplishments during the Fredericton ceremony.

Ellen Carusetta, to be professor emerita in education, began her career at UNB in 1993 as an assistant professor and was promoted to associate professor in 2000 and professor in 2006.  Carusetta served as acting, followed by associate dean for graduate programs and research for the faculty of education from 2005, through to her retirement in 2011, and was interim dean of education from July 2009 through June 2010.  Aside from taking many additional roles at UNB, she coordinated the Canadian Society for the Study of Education (CSSE) section (the largest section) of the Congresses of the Social Sciences and Humanities held at UNB.

She has had 16 articles published or accepted for publication in refereed journals and has participated in 34 refereed conference proceedings.  Along with holding various administrative roles, she has served the university through membership on various senate and search committees. 

Edward Veitch is a native of Scotland and will be named professor emeritus in law. He began his career at UNB in 1979 as dean of law. During Edward’s term as dean, he recruited a large cadre of law teachers, most of who would remain at UNB for the rest of their teaching careers.  His influence turned the faculty of law into a serious academic institution of high reputation.  He oversaw the design and construction of the expansion to Ludlow Hall, has published 67 articles and commentaries, seven chapters in books, and 42 book reviews. In 2003, he was awarded the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Medal for legal services to Canada and the Distinguished Service Medal from the Canadian Bar Association.  As both dean and colleague, Edward has encouraged junior faculty members in their work. Although now formally retired, he continues to serve UNB law as an active contract academic instructor.

Allan P. Stuart Teaching Award Recipients 

Two outstanding professors will receive the Dr. Allan P. Stuart Memorial Award for Excellence in Teaching at Fredericton’s ceremony.

Sean Kennedy is a professor in the department of history. His research interests are in the fields of modern French political and intellectual history, and the study of war and society. He has published two books and participated in UNB’s Travel Study in France program. Kennedy helps his students develop the skills of the discipline by setting the stage in class, presenting alternative perspectives, and having students build on this framework by reading original documents and interpretations by scholars, deepening their understanding through discussion and reflection, and producing their own written material.

Sherry Rose is an assistant professor in faculty of education, with a focus on early childhood education. She is also co-director of the UNB Early Childhood Centre. Rose is also involved in curriculum development and has presented and taught internationally in countries such as China, Finland, Israel, Trinidad and St Lucia. A sought after expert in early childhood education, Rose’s innovative teaching techniques are: co-constructing with students the criteria for major assignments; seeking feedback from students on the effectiveness of teaching methods for the purposes of continuous improvement, treating education students as colleagues; and balancing safety and risk-taking in the learning environment by providing a safe place to discuss controversial topics anonymously, but substantially.

For media interview requests pertaining to the Fredericton graduation ceremony, please contact Natasha Ashfield

For media interview requests pertaining to the Saint John graduation ceremony, please contact Heather Campbell.  

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