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McGill conferring honorary degrees to four exceptional individuals

World-renowned infectious disease expert, to Quebec advocate for rural affairs among the five exceptional men and women celebrated
Published: 21 October 2021

McGill University is proud to confer honorary degrees to highly talented and engaged individuals who serve as an inspiration for our community of students, professors, researchers and staff.

This fall, the University will be honoring the achievements of Ms. Claire Bolduc, former president of Solidarité Rurale du Québec and advocate for rural affairs, agriculture and agronomy in Quebec, Prof. Andrew J. Cherlin, renowned American scholar in marriage, cohabitation, and societal trends in family formation, Prof. Gilles G. Patry, President Emeritus of the University of Ottawa and current Executive Director of the U15 – Group of Canadian Research Universities and Mr. George D. Schindler, President and CEO of CGI, a global information technology and business consulting company headquartered in Montreal.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the world-renowned infectious disease expert who has spent decades on the front lines battling HIV/AIDS, Ebola, Zika and COVID-19, delivered the 67th Beatty Lecture earlier this month. The Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences bestowed Dr. Fauci with an honorary doctorate in an online event on October 1.

“This year’s honorary doctorate recipients are being awarded to exceptional leaders in their respective fields, who also embody McGill’s vision and values, and have made outstanding contributions to the betterment of society,” said Professor Suzanne Fortier, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of McGill University. “We look forward to welcoming them into the McGill family. They will inspire the Class of 2021 to create positive change in our communities, and tackle today’s most critical challenges.”

Honorary doctorates are McGill University’s highest honors. The degrees will be awarded in a ceremony on October 21 at 1 p.m. To tune in, click here. Additional honorary degrees will be awarded at Fall Convocation in November.

To see the full list of the honorees and their bios, click here.


About McGill University

Founded in Montreal, Quebec, in 1821, McGill University is Canada’s top ranked medical doctoral university. McGill is consistently ranked as one of the top universities, both nationally and internationally. It is a world-renowned institution of higher learning with research activities spanning three campuses, 11 faculties, 13 professional schools, 300 programs of study and over 40,000 students, including more than 10,200 graduate students. McGill attracts students from over 150 countries around the world, its 12,800 international students making up 31% of the student body. Over half of McGill students claim a first language other than English, including approximately 19% of our students who say French is their mother tongue.

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