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Founders' Day Convocation Sept. 28 in Duke Chapel

Honorees to include philanthropists Russell Robinson II and his wife, Sally Dalton Robinson; Ruby Leila Wilson, dean emerita of Duke School of Nursing; and longtime university photographer William "Jimmy" Wallace Jr.

Duke University will honor outstanding students, faculty, employees and alumni at its annual Founders' Day Convocation in Duke Chapel at 4 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 28.

Honorees at the service, which is open to the public, include philanthropists Russell Robinson II and his wife, Sally Dalton Robinson; Ruby Leila Wilson, dean emerita of Duke School of Nursing; and longtime university photographer William "Jimmy" Wallace Jr.

The convocation address will be delivered by board of trustees member Paula Phillips Burger, Class of 1967, who is dean for undergraduate education and vice provost at Johns Hopkins University. President Richard H. Brodhead will preside over the service. The convocation will be held one day before the university's Board of Trustees opens its fall meetings.

Wallace and Wilson have been selected to receive the University Medal for Distinguished Meritorious Service, one of the university's highest awards.

A Durham native, Wallace took a wide range of photographs during his 47-year career under seven of Duke's nine presidents. Memorable subjects included the 1969 Allen Building takeover, as well as visits to Duke's campus by U.S. presidents Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan, Bishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and Queen Noor of Jordan. Wallace also shot hundreds of football and basketball game films -– the latter from atop the Cameron Indoor Stadium crow's nest. Wallace retired earlier this year.

Wilson, a professor of nursing, assistant professor of medicine and assistant to the chancellor for health affairs, came to Duke's nursing school in 1955 as a young faculty member. She helped develop a pioneering undergraduate curriculum and graduate nursing program, serving as the school's dean from 1971 to 1984. Wilson continues her commitment to innovation and advocacy for nurses and their patients through numerous boards, committees and good works.

The Robinsons, who married while attending Duke, will receive Duke's Distinguished Alumni Award, the most prestigious award given by the Duke Alumni Association. Russell Robinson was a member of the Class of 1954 and graduated from Duke Law School in 1956; Sally Dalton Robinson was a member of the Class of 1955.

Russell Robinson's Charlotte law firm, Robinson, Bradshaw and Hinson, P.A., was one of the first in the country to win the American Bar Association's pro bono work award. He has also served on numerous boards and committees, and now chairs the board of trustees of The Duke Endowment, the private, Charlotte-based charitable foundation that is the university's main benefactor. He is also a member of the Duke Law School's board of visitors, chairman of the UNC-Charlotte Foundation's board of directors and serves as counsel for the John Motley Morehead Foundation. He has been repeatedly recognized for his work, most recently with the Council for Advancement and Support of Education Service Award and the YMCA John R. Mott Award.

Sally Dalton Robinson's service at Duke has been wide ranging, including her membership on the university's board of trustees from 1995 to 2004. She is currently on the boards of the Center for Documentary Studies and the Robertson Scholars Program and co-chair of Duke's Financial Aid Initiative Committee. Beyond Duke, she co-founded the St. Francis Jobs Program (now the BRIDGE Jobs Program), helped created the Levine Museum of the New South, and is a member of several boards, including the National Humanities Center, MDC Inc., and the Foundation for the Carolinas.

The Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Teaching Award, given by the Duke Alumni Association, will go to Seymour Mauskopf, a professor of history, former director of Duke's Program in Science, Technology and Human Values and, from 1995 to 2003, director of the Focus Program, an innovative interdisciplinary living and learning experience for first-year students. "He has done nothing less than change the way I think about [how] the sciences and humanities -– two giant entities that are often kept apart in contemporary times -– can be analyzed in interconnected ways," wrote one of his students in nominating Mauskopf, who came to Duke in 1964.

The University Scholar/Teacher of the Year Award, given by the Board of Higher Education and Ministry of the United Methodist Church, will be presented to Erwin Chemerinsky, Alston & Bird Professor of Law and Professor of Political Science. Chemerinsky, who joined the Duke faculty in 2004, is one of the most prolific and well-respected constitutional law scholars in the United States. He has written four books and more than 170 law review articles, book reviews, and book chapters. He also advises federal, state and local governments; participates in many organizations, including the NAACP, the ACLU, and the American Constitution Society; and has undertaken many pro bono cases at the trial and appellate levels, including before the United States Supreme Court.

Other faculty awards will be presented to:

-- James R. Bettman, Burlington Industries Professor of Marketing, Fuqua School of Business: Dean's Award for Excellence in Mentoring.

-- John Board, Anne T. and Robert M. Bass Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering; associate professor, Department of Computer Science: Lois and John L. Imhoff Distinguished Teaching Award.

-- Lisa M. Campbell, Rachel Carson Assistant Professor of Marine Affairs and Policy, Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences: Dean's Award for Excellence in Mentoring.

-- Stephen L. Craig, assistant professor, Department of Chemistry: David and Janet Brooks Trinity College Distinguished Teaching Award.

-- Linda Franzoni, professor of the practice, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science; associate dean for student programs, Pratt School of Engineering: Capers and Marion McDonald Award for Excellence in Mentoring and Advising.

-- Henri Gavin, W.H. Gardner Jr. Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, director of undergraduate studies, Pratt School of Engineering: Klein Family Distinguished Teaching Award at the Pratt School of Engineering.

-- Jehanne Gheith, associate professor and director, Women's Studies; associate professor and chairwoman, Department of Slavic and Eurasian Studies; director, International Comparative Studies: Richard K. Lublin Distinguished Award for Teaching Excellence.

-- Sonke Johnsen, assistant professor, Department of Biology; adjunct professor, Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences: Robert B. Cox Trinity College Distinguished Teaching Award.

-- Linda Orr, professor emeritus, Department of Romance Studies: Dean's Award for Excellence in Mentoring.

-- Thomas Robisheaux, associate professor and director of undergraduate studies, Department of History: Howard Johnson Distinguished Teaching Award.

-- David Schaad, adjunct assistant professor, assistant chair, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering: Capers and Marion McDonald Award for Excellence in Mentoring and Advising.

-- David Smith, Augustine Scholar and Associate Professor, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering: Stansell Family Distinguished Research Award.

-- Adam Wax, assistant professor, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Pratt School of Engineering: Capers and Marion McDonald Award for Excellence in Teaching and Research.

Those to be honored during the Founders' Day service include Angier B. Duke Scholars, Benjamin N. Duke Scholars, James B. Duke Graduate Fellows, Reginaldo Howard Scholars, University Scholars, Robertson Scholars, Faculty Scholars, The Duke Endowment Fellows and many other undergraduate and graduate scholars.

Founders' Day celebrates the founding of the university and provides an opportunity each year for the university to reflect on its history and heritage and to recognize major contributions by students, faculty, administrators, employees and alumni.

The occasion will mark the 105th anniversary of the first event honoring the Duke family at this institution. In 1901, when the school was Trinity College, the school held a Benefactors' Day to pay tribute to university namesake Washington Duke.