David Brennan will address winter graduates

COLUMBUS – David L. Brennan, chair of The Ohio State University Board of Trustees, will deliver the winter quarter commencement address on March 22. Approximately 1,500 graduates will receive degrees during the ceremony, which begins at 9:30 a.m. in St. John Arena.

A native of Akron, Mr. Brennan graduated from Ohio State in 1953 and earned his J.D. degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Law in 1957, where he also serves as a trustee.
In his address to graduates, Brennan plans to offer a patriotic message about America and Americans.

Brennan is chair of Brennan Industrial Group, Inc., and The Brenlin Group, Inc., both private holding companies of industrial and manufacturing entities headquartered in Akron; founder of Brennan Manna and Diamond LLC law firm; and chair of White Hat Management LLC.

In his experience as a manufacturing executive, Mr. Brennan became aware of the deficiencies of the American educational system and established learning centers at his manufacturing and industrial sites to help his employees and their families overcome gaps in their educational backgrounds and increase their capacity for success.

In 1992, he was appointed by Ohio Gov. George Voinovich to head a blue-ribbon commission on education, the report of which led to significant new opportunities in educational choice across Ohio, including the Cleveland voucher program. In 1997, he received The Governor’s Award for his unique contributions in the field of education.

In 1998, Mr. Brennan founded White Hat Management, a professional educational services firm, which has helped institute 16 new charter schools in Ohio, including eight elementary schools and eight LifeSkills high school programs. LifeSkills works with high school dropouts, helping them gain high school diplomas and on-the-job experience.

Mr. Brennan has served as a consultant to public and private schools, sectarian and nonsectarian schools, voucher schools, and charter schools, helping develop private and public scholarship funds and programs for needy children in urban school districts throughout the state.

Commencement Awards

Five persons will receive commencement awards. Honorary Doctor of Science degrees will be presented to Ray D. Owen, emeritus professor of biology at the California Institute of Technology, and Wilford Robert Gardner, dean and professor of soil physics emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley. Father Theodore M. Hesburgh, president emeritus of the University of Notre Dame, will receive the honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Award. Distinguished Service Awards will be presented to David W. Cole, professor emeritus of finance in the Max M. Fisher College of Business at The Ohio State University; and Ronald L. Racster, professor emeritus of real estate and finance at The Ohio State University, who have overseen, as owner representative, the continuing construction of the six-building complex for the Max M. Fisher College of Business.