Along with the hundreds of degrees Loyola will award to graduating seniors on April 29, three honorary degrees will be bestowed upon individuals whose lives reflect the university’s views on faith, justice and service.
R.W. “Johnny” Apple Jr. and Sally L. Stroup will both receive honorary degrees of Doctor of Humane Letters, while Pete Fountain will be awarded an honorary degree of Doctor of Music. Apple will give the College of Arts and Sciences’ commencement ceremony speech, while James Carville will speak at the College of Music, College of Business Administration and City College ceremony.
Loyola awards honorary degrees to individuals who have made outstanding achievements in areas that the university prides itself in upholding, according to the Honorary Degrees Commission.
Apple, a journalist, was born in Ohio in 1934 and graduated magna cum laude from Columbia University. He has worked for The New York Times since 1963, where he has reported from more than 100 countries, covering the Vietnam War, the Persian Gulf War and the fall of communism in East Germany, Czechoslovakia and Hungary.
Before joining the Times, Apple served in the Army as a speechwriter for a commanding general, wrote for The Wall Street Journal and covered the Civil Rights movement.
Apple holds honorary degrees from several schools, including Marquette University.
Stroup, an alumna of Loyola’s Law School, has been involved in higher education and student financial aid since graduating. In 1981, Stroup began working at a financial aid firm. In 1993, she joined the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Education and the Workforce. Stroup was an important part of getting the Higher Education Act
amendments of 1998 re-authorized. This act protects students’ freedom of speech and strives to reduce binge drinking on campus, among other things.
Stroup was the principal adviser to the U.S. Secretary of Education for postsecondary educational matters until she stepped down in March to work on the House Committee on Education.
Pete Fountain, a native of New Orleans, is a jazz musician who has played for four presidents and Pope John Paul II. Fountain, with more than 100 albums, is one of the most-recorded clarinetists in jazz history. Three of his albums have reached gold status.
Fountain recorded his first album with the Basin Street Six, a group he founded. He was also a member of the Dukes of Dixieland and the Lawrence Welk band before he started
leading bands under his own name. He owns Pete Fountain’s Jazz Club.
James Carville is a political consultant, analyst and a former co-host of NBC’s “Crossfire.”
Before politics, Carville had various jobs, including a high school teacher, a U.S. Marine and a litigator. He co-founded a consulting firm, Carville & Begala, which helped elect Bill Clinton to his first term as president. Carville then became Clinton’s senior political adviser. He is often called the “Ragin’ Cajun” for his dynamite debating style, according to CNN.com. Carville now works as Democratic strategist on “The Situation Room” on CNN.
Carville got his bachelor’s degree and law degree from Louisiana State University.
Commencement ceremonies will be held on April 29 in the Marquette Horseshoe. The College of Arts and Sciences will hold its ceremony at 9 a.m. The College of Music, College of Business Administration and City College will hold its ceremony at 4:30 p.m.
Carville, Fountain, Apple and Stroup were not available for comment as of press time.
Meghan Wasson can be reached at [email protected].
