Honorary Degree Recipients

  • Donna E. Shalala, PhD
  • Arthur M. Pappas, MD
  • Suzanne and Bob Wright

Speaker - PappasArthur M. Pappas, MD

Throughout his career, Arthur M. Pappas, MD, has been a driving force in the success of the clinical system and the Medical School. Pappas was the founding chair of the Department of Orthopedics and is fondly recalled as “the first UMMS surgeon,” having admitted and operated on the first patient in 1976 at what was then the newly constructed UMass Hospital.

His teaching and patient interests are focused on the orthopedic care of handicapped children, and professional and amateur athletes. A pioneer in the field of sports medicine, he has published more than 100 articles related to orthopedic problems with children and athletes and has delivered more than 300 lectures worldwide. He was the medical director for the Boston Red Sox from 1978 to 2003; he is also a former president of the Association of Professional Baseball Physicians, a member of the Sports Medicine Committee for the American Academy of Pediatrics, president of the Massachusetts Amateur Sports Foundation and sponsor of the Bay State Games.

In 2003, multiple donors joined UMass Medical School in honoring Pappas by establishing the Arthur M. Pappas, MD, Chair in Orthopedics. David C. Ayers, MD, Chair and Professor of Orthopedics & Physical Rehabilitation, was invested as its first recipient.

 

Suzanne and Bob Wright

Suzanne and Bob Wright

Grandparents of a child with autism, Suzanne and Bob Wright founded Autism Speaks in 2005. Since then, the organization—now North America’s largest autism science and advocacy foundation—has committed more than $160 million to research through 2014 and to the development of innovative new resources for families. Based in New York, Autism Speaks is dedicated to funding research into the causes, prevention, treatments and a cure for autism; increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders; and advocating for the needs of individuals with autism and their families. In 2008, the Wrights were named to Time magazine’s “100 Heroes and Pioneers,” a list of the most influential people in the world, for their commitment to global autism advocacy.

Suzanne Wright has an extensive history of active involvement in community and philanthropic endeavors, mostly directed toward helping children. She is a trustee emeritus of Sarah Lawrence College, her alma mater. Suzanne has received numerous awards, such as the Child magazine Children’s Champions Award; the Luella Bennack Volunteer Award; the Spirit of Achievement Award by the National Women’s Division of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine; and the Women of Vision Award from the Weizmann Institute of Science.

Bob Wright is senior advisor at Lee Equity Partners, and chairman and CEO of the Palm Beach Civic Association. He served as vice chairman of General Electric and CEO of NBC and NBC Universal for more than 20 years. He also serves on the boards of the Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation, RAND Corporation and the New York-Presbyterian Hospital.