October 23, 2006
Honorary Degree: Doctor of Laws
Conferred on Her Excellency Ellen Johnson Sirleaf
Candidate presented by:
Ambassador David A. Straz, Jr., Member of the Board of Trustees
Her Excellency Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of the Republic of Liberia, is the first female democratically elected head of state in Africa, having been inaugurated on January 16, 2006. She is internationally known as a leading promoter of peace, justice, and democratic rule. Known as the “Iron Lady” for her strong will and determination as well as for her personal integrity, she is committed to ethical reform for the people of Liberia.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is internationally known as a leading promoter of peace, justice and democratic rule. Johnson Sirleaf grew up in the Liberian capital of Monrovia where she was married and had four sons. She later moved to the United States where she earned an accounting degree from the Madison College of business and then a masters degree in Public Administration from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
In her efforts to bring justice to her people in Liberia, she has spent more than a year in jail at the hands of the military dictatorship of General Samuel Doc and had her life threatened by former President Charles Taylor. She campaigned relentlessly for Taylor’s removal from office and has played an active and supportive role in the Transitional Government of Liberia as the country prepared for elections in October of 2005.
Madame Johnson Sirleaf was a presidential candidate in the 1997 Liberia general election, where she finished second in the field of 13. Before that she served for five years as Assistant Administrator and Director of the Regional Bureau for Africa of the United Nations Development Program as Assistant Secretary General of the United Nations. She was the first woman to lead the United Nations Development Projects for Africa.
Johnson Sirleaf was the Chairperson of the Governance Reform Commission of the National Transitional Government of Liberia for the past 18 months until she resigned in March 2004 to accept the nomination of the Unity Party of Liberia as its Standard Bearer.
In November 2005, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf became the first woman to lead an African nation, when she was elected President of Liberia. The former World Bank economist defeated popular world soccer star George Weah with an impressive 59.4% of the vote.
Professional Career at a glance (35 years)
- Minister of Finance for Liberia – First Woman of Finance
- President, Liberia Bank for Development and Investment
- Vice President, Citicorp
- Vice President, HSBC Equator Bank
- Senior Loan Office, World Bank
- Board Member and Regional Representative, West Africa, Modern Africa Growth and Investment Co. (MAGIC)
- Founder and CEO, Kormah Development and Investment Corp. (KODIC)
- Founder of Massignon, a nonprofit organization that supports community development and girls’ education
Madame Johnson Sirleaf has served as the governor representing her Liberia for several financial institutions, including the International Monetary Fund, the African Development Bank and the World Bank. In the latter capacity, she was chair and spokesperson of the African Caucus for the 1979 annual meeting. Notable advisory boards and committees:
- The International Crisis Group (USA)
- Songhai Financial Holdings Ltd. (Ghana)
- Center for Africa’s International Relations, University of Wiwaterstrand (South Africa) and Women Waging Peace (USA)
Special Honors
- Commander de l’Ordre du Mono of Togo (1996)
- Ralph Bunche International Leadership Award of United States (1995 and 1996)
- The Franklin D. Roosevelt Freedom of Speech Award of the United States (1988)
- Grand Commander of the Star of African Redemption of Liberia (1980)
Publications
- From Disaster to Development (1991)
- The Outlook for Commercial Bank Lending to Sub-Saharan Africa (1992)
- Co-Author: Women, War and Peace: The Independent Experts’ Assessment on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Women and Women’s Role in Peace-building (2002), a project of UNIFEM (the United Nations Development Fund for Woman)
Madame Johnson Sirleaf was one of seven international eminent persons designated by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) in 1999 to investigate the Rwanda genocide: one of the five commission chairs for the Inter-Congolese Dialogue (2002) and one of the two international experts selected by UNIFEM to investigate and report (200) on the effect of conflict on women and women’s roles in peace building. She served as the initial chairperson (2002-2003) of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa (OSTWA), is a member of the Soros Foundation Network and is visiting professor of Governance at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration (GIMPA). She was recently selected as an independent board member of the Humanitarian Accountability Partnership Internal (HAP).
Madame Johnson Sirleaf holds a Masters in Public Administration from Harvard University; she has four sons and nine grandchildren.
PÈRE MARQUETTE
DISCOVERY AWARD
HONORARY DEGREES
- Nominations for Honorary Degrees
- Listed by Year - Honorary Degree Recipients 1980 to present
- Listed by Name - Honorary Degree Recipients 1980 to present
FACULTY AWARDS FOR
TEACHING EXCELLENCE
- 2008 Recipients of the Faculty Awards for Teaching Excellence
- Past Recipients of the Faculty Awards for Teaching Excellence
LAWRENCE G. HAGGERTY AWARD
FOR RESEARCH EXCELLENCES
WAY KLINGLER FACULTY DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
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