Ohio State honors six at autumn 2002 commencement

COLUMBUS – Six individuals will be honored at Ohio State University’s autumn 2002 commencement for their contributions to society and academics, and their dedication to the university. Ceremonies begin at 9:30 a.m. Friday (12/13) 13, in St. John Arena.

Honorary doctorates will be presented to commencement speaker Louis W. Sullivan M.D., founding dean and first president of the Morehead School of Medicine and former Secretary of Health and Human Services; Charles A. Ballard, founder and CEO of the Institute for Responsible Fatherhood and Family Revitalization and Howard E. LeFevre, a major force behind the development of The Ohio State University at Newark. Distinguished Service Awards will be presented to former faculty member Joan Leitzel, president emeritus of the University of New Hampshire; Barbara Trueman, owner of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course; and Richard I. Wells, a 1954 graduate who continues to serve Ohio State.

Charles A. Ballard, Doctor of Public Service

Charles A. Ballard is founder and CEO of the Institute for Responsible Fatherhood and Family Revitalization in Largo, Md.

A native of Alabama, Ballard received his undergraduate degree in sociology/psychology from Oakwood College in Huntsville, Alabama, and a master’s degree in social services administration from Case Western Reserve University’s Mandel School of Applied Social Science. He continued his training in 1992 at the National Leadership Development Institute, National Center for Neighborhood Enterprise, in Washington, D.C.

In 1976, he began his pioneering studies at Cleveland Metropolitan Hospital on the issues and problems affecting men who father children despite high-risk circumstances, such as substance abuse, poor health, a history of crime and violence, lack of education and unemployment. Over the next two years, he conducted extensive research on 400 fathers, creating a service model, called Teen Father Program: A Family Service, for fathers aged 13 through 21. From this organization, he founded the Institute for Responsible Fatherhood and Family Revitalization in 1982. The institute now has nine regional centers nationwide.

Since its inception, the institute has served more than 6,000 fathers and their families and has had a high degree of success in helping young, non-custodial fathers develop the stability and skills required for responsible parenthood. For the past two years, the U.S. Department of Labor has named it the lead agency in placing fathers in unsubsidized employment under the department’s Welfare-to-Work programs.

Ballard is nationally recognized as an advocate for the dignity of fatherhood and has received a number of honors, including the Martin Luther King Jr. Humanitarian Award from Cleveland’s Western Reserve Historical Society; the Fatherhood Movement – Call to Action Award from the Center for the American Experiment in Minneapolis, Minn.; Alumnus of the Year Award from Case Western Reserve’s Mandel School; and the Achievement Medallion, presented by President George W. Bush at the White House. He has appeared on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” “Eye on America,” and “Good Morning America.”

Howard E. LeFevre, Doctor of Humane Letters

A 70-year veteran of the trucking industry, Howard E. LeFevre is founder and retired chair and CEO of B&L Motor Freight Inc., now known as United Carriers Inc.

LeFevre graduated from Ohio State in 1929 with a degree in architectural engineering. As a longtime supporter of civic and community projects, especially in Licking County, he was the major force behind the establishment, development, and success of The Ohio State University at Newark. In 1957, he led the first fund-raising campaign for the planned campus and later helped raise $3 million to purchase land for the Newark Campus. He and his late wife, Catherine Bonner LeFevre, a graduate of Ohio State’s College of Education, made the lead gift in the 1988 Newark Campus Endowment Campaign. He continues to play a leading role in helping to raise funds for the $10 million Ohio State Newark’s Center for Emerging Technologies. He serves on the Newark Campus Campaign Board and is chair emeritus of the Newark Campus Development Fund Board. In 1993, the Newark Campus named LeFevre Hall in his honor.

In 1994, he founded the Institute of Industrial Technology in Newark, a museum dedicated to Licking County’s manufacturing history. Now called “The Works,” the museum has been expanded to include a glass studio, art gallery, teaching studio, and digital computer laboratory and is engaged in education for all ages. In honor of his many contributions to the quality of life in Newark, Mr. LeFevre was named Newark’s Man of the Century in August 2002.

A founding member of The Presidents Club, Mr. LeFevre remains committed to strengthening Ohio State as a whole. He served on the National Campaign Committee for the university’s 1985–90 campaign and on the Alumni Advisory Board. He established the Howard E. LeFevre ’29 Fellowship at the Austin E. Knowlton School of Architecture, and has supported the WOSU stations and the Department of Athletics. In recognition of his many years of leadership and support, he has been the recipient of Ohio State’s most prestigious awards: the Alumni Centennial Award in 1970, the Distinguished Service Award in 1976, the Ralph Davenport Mershon Award in 1986, and the Everett D. Reese Medal in 1999.

Louis W. Sullivan, M.D., Doctor of Public Health

Louis W. Sullivan M.D. is the founding dean and first president of the Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM). With the exception of his tenure as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from 1989 to 1993, he was president of MSM for more than two decades. On July 1, 2002, he left the presidency, but continues to serve on the MSM Board of Trustees, to teach, and to assist in national fundraising activities on behalf of the school.

A native of Atlanta, Sullivan graduated magna cum laude from Morehouse College in 1954, and earned his medical degree, cum laude, from Boston University School of Medicine in 1958. He is certified in internal medicine and hematology.

Sullivan was instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School from 1963-64, and assistant professor of medicine at Seton Hall College of Medicine from 1964-65. In 1966, he became co-director of hematology at Boston University Medical Center and, a year later, founded the Boston University Hematology Service at Boston City Hospital. Sullivan joined the Boston University School of Medicine in 1966 and remained until 1975, holding positions as assistant professor of medicine, associate professor of medicine, and professor of medicine.

Sullivan became the founding dean and director of the Medical Education Program at Morehouse College in 1975. The program became The School of Medicine at Morehouse College in 1978, admitting its first 24 students to a two-year program in the basic medical sciences. In 1981, the school became independent from Morehouse College and became Morehouse School of Medicine, with Sullivan as dean and president. In 1983, MSM became a member of the Atlanta University Center. MSM was fully accredited as a four-year medical school in April 1985 and awarded its first 16 M.D. degrees in May of that year.

Sullivan left MSM in 1989 to accept an appointment by President George H.W. Bush to head HHS. In his post, Sullivan managed the federal agency responsible for the major health, welfare, food and drug safety, medical research and income security programs serving the American people. In January 1993, he returned to MSM and resumed the office of president.

A member of numerous medical organizations, including the American Medical Association and the National Medical Association, Sullivan was the founding president of the Association of Minority Health Professions Schools. He is a former member of the Joint Committee on Health Policy of the Association of American Universities and the national Association of Land Grant Colleges and Universities.

Barbara C. Trueman, Distinguished Service Award

Barbara Trueman is owner of Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and majority owner of TrueSports, Inc., which she founded with her late husband, Jim Trueman. Following her husband’s death in 1986, she continued to manage their businesses, which included Red Roof Inns, continuing the tradition of good corporate management and growth. She sold Red Roof Inns in 1993.

A 1961 graduate of Ohio State’s College of Education, Trueman is a longtime supporter of her alma mater and, in particular, its College of Veterinary Medicine. Her strong love of animals and her recognition of the care given her horses at Ohio State’s Veterinary Medicine Hospital led her to fund the Barbara Trueman Chair in Equine Medicine and Science, the first endowed chair in the 115-year history of the college.

As a member of the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Development Advisory Council, Trueman has taken a leadership role, becoming instrumental in planning for the college’s advancement. Because of her example, three more endowed funds were established in veterinary medicine following the endowment of the Trueman Chair.

Her extraordinary service to Ohio State encompasses the entire university. She has served on The Ohio State University Foundation Board since 1994 and was a member of the National Campaign Executive Committee during the university’s successful “Affirm Thy Friendship” campaign. She is a member of the Wexner Center for the Arts’ board of trustees and has served on the National Council for Ohio State Women.

Trueman is also a dedicated and sought-after community volunteer, serving as a director at the Columbus Zoo, Recreation Unlimited, the Greater Columbus Convention Center and the Columbus Museum of Art. Her past service includes membership on the boards of the J.M. Smucker Company, Bank One, and Children’s Hospital.

Joan R. Leitzel, Distinguished Service Award

Joan Leitzel, president emeritus of the University of New Hampshire, made lasting contributions to the academic excellence of The Ohio State University during her 25-year tenure as a member of the Department of Mathematics faculty.

After earning her B.A. from Hanover College in 1958, her M.A. from Brown University in 1961, and her Ph.D. from Indiana University in 1965—all in mathematics—she joined Ohio State as an assistant professor of mathematics. She served as vice chair of the department from 1973 to 1979 and was named full professor in 1984. In 1985 she became the university’s associate provost, working directly with three successive provosts during a period of remarkable change at Ohio State.

As associate provost, she oversaw the initial steps of the university’s transition to selective admissions, its increased attention to honors students and programs, and the development and implementation of a new undergraduate curriculum. Her skillful leadership during this period helped enable the adoption and implementation of all three initiatives, all of which remain a fundamental part of the university today.

Her commitment to improved mathematics and science education also had a major impact on her academic department as she worked to improve the articulation between the university’s introductory math courses and the existing K-12 curricula. She worked closely with the College of Education to design courses to prepare the next generation of math teachers, and those courses continue today. In addition, she continued to serve on major committees within the Department of Mathematics and on more than 20 major university-level committees. Her service was recognized in 1980 with the university’s Rosalene Sedgwick Award for Service to the Arts and Sciences, and, in 1982, she was awarded Ohio State’s prestigious Alumni Distinguished Teaching Award.

In 1990, she was appointed director of the Division of Materials Development, Research, Information Science Education at the National Science Foundation, where she was responsible for initiating and supporting science, mathematics, and technology education projects. In 1992, she assumed the position of senior vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In 1996, she was named president of the University of New Hampshire, retiring in July 2002. She currently chairs the Mathematical Sciences Education Board of the National Research Council at the National Academy of Sciences.

Richard I. Wells, Distinguished Service Award

Richard I. Wells is a consultant to Prudent RX, Inc., a prescription drug benefit consulting and pharmacy auditing company.

A 1956 graduate of Ohio State’s College of Pharmacy, Wells began his service to Ohio State as an undergraduate. He was editor of the 1954 Makio and the College of Pharmacy student publication, The Spur; an officer of Ohio Staters and the Ohio Union board; and a member of the senior honorary, Sphinx.

After several years as a pharmacist in Cleveland and Los Angeles, Wells became interested in mail-order dispensing of prescriptions. In 1974, he founded Prescription Health Services, a California-based firm that pioneered the use of money-saving generic drugs and managed-care pharmacy services nationwide. Following the sale of the company in 1991, he founded Managed Care Consultants in Los Angeles, serving as its president.

A resident of Los Angeles for the past 40 years, Wells has retained close ties to his alma mater. When Ohio State opened its Western States Regional Development Office, he provided office space, assistance, and encouragement. He has been a member of the National Major Gift Committee for the Western States since 1995 and currently serves as Ohio State’s director of the Big Ten Club of Southern California. As a lifetime member of the Alumni Association, he often hosts special events for alumni in Southern California. He is a charter member of the College of Pharmacy’s Dean’s Corporate Council and is active in the Pharmacy Alumni Association.

His generosity and wide-ranging interests at Ohio State have resulted in an endowed scholarship fund in the College of Humanities to support study abroad opportunities for humanities majors, an endowed scholarship in the Office of Financial Aid for student support, and the Raphael A. Wells Memorial Scholarship in the College of Pharmacy, in honor of his late brother, a 1945 Ohio State pharmacy alumnus. His support also extends to Parkinson’s research, cancer research at the Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute, Ohio State’s wetlands project, and the John Glenn Institute for Public Service and Public Policy.

Wells’ dedication and service have been recognized at Ohio State with the College of Pharmacy Distinguished Alumni Award, the Ohio State Alumni Association Citizenship Award, and the John B. Gerlach Sr. Development Volunteer Award.