The University of Tampa has adopted the following procedure for the awarding of honorary degrees to deserving recipients at commencements, inaugurations, and other special University events.
A. The Concept of the Honorary Degree
Customarily institutions confer the special degree to bring honor to the individual and the institution alike. The honorary degree is the highest honor that the University confers.
The honorary degree will be conferred on individuals of special merit who have gained substantial professional recognition and whose outstanding achievements embody the goals and values of The University of Tampa.
This shall include:
- Major University friends, benefactors and outstanding alumni.
- Men and Women whose professional achievements embody the University of Tampa's mission as a comprehensive educational institution of higher learning. They shall include individuals who are recognized for their achievement in the arts, business, politics, or service to society.
- Outstanding scholars in all fields
The honorary degree should be awarded only after adequate and extensive research on the individual, leading to the conclusion that the individual possesses achievements that clearly meet criteria developed by the Honorary Degree Committee. The frequency of such recognition should set a level of distinction that is commensurate with the award of the degree.
As a general policy, honorary degrees shall not be awarded to active members of the University faculty or staff, nor awarded to retired faculty members for career distinction achieved at The University of Tampa. Likewise, the award of a special degree to an active or retired Trustee shall be an exceptional and rare occurrence.
The honorary degree is not automatically granted to a major commencement speaker.
B. Criteria
In awarding an honorary degree, the citation usually includes the phrase, “The University honors itself and you...” (or equivalent statement), that implies that at least two conditions are met: first, that the recipient is worthy of honor, and second, that there is significant value to the University in professing the degree. Thus two criteria need to be considered: (1) the worthy character of the individual, and (2) the evaluated professional contributions and potential future contributions of the individual.
One or more of these considerations will apply:
- Has the person contributed to society to an extraordinary extent?
- Has the person, through service to the University, contributed significantly to the betterment of the University, well above normal expectations?
- Has the person contributed something of unusual value to The University of Tampa?
C. The Selection Process
The Bylaws of the Board of Trustees of The University of Tampa designate the Educational Affairs Committee of the Board as having a pre‐eminent role in the selection process at Board level. The president will review the Committee's recommendations and will propose recipients from the Honorary Degree Committee to the Educational Affairs Committee of the Board of Trustees.
Recognizing the traditional interest of the faculty in degree‐granting matters and that of the senior class in the selection of the commencement speaker, the agreement that follows is designed to provide a process whereby the University may select honorary degree recipients with each constituency (trustee, faculty, student, and staff) playing appropriate roles.
D. Solicitation
The following methods will be used to solicit nominations for honorary degree recipients.
- A solicitation of the Faculty and the staff via a letter from the University president.
- A solicitation of the academic deans seeking up to five nominees via a letter from the provost.
- A solicitation of the members of the Board of Trustees, especially the Executive Committee and the Educational Affairs Committee, via a letter from the University president.
When submitting nominations, the nominator should consider criteria for awarding such degrees and shall provide written evidence for the suitability of the nominee for such an honor.
E. Review
All nominations will be kept in confidence and reviewed by the Honorary Degree Committee, which is chaired by the provost. Other committee members are the Faculty Senate president, the vice president for student affairs and strategic initiatives, and the student government president.
The Honorary Degree Committee will research each nominee and submit its recommendations to the president of the University.
The president will review the Committee's recommendations and will propose recipients from the Honorary Degree Committee to the Educational Affairs Committee of the Board of Trustees.
The Educational Affairs Committee will review the recommendation of the president. Its recommendations will be forwarded to the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees through the Office of the President.