Dr. Harold M. Maurer, Chancellor of the University of Nebraska Medical Center and internationally-recognized medical scientist, will deliver the address at Nebraska Wesleyan University’s 123rd annual commencement.
Commencement exercises will be held Saturday, May 12 at 6:30 p.m. on Taylor Commons.
Maurer has served as UNMC’s chancellor since 1998. Before that, he served as dean of its College of Medicine for five years. He came to Nebraska after 25 years as professor and chair of the Medical College of Virginia’s Department of Pediatrics.
A pediatric oncologist, Maurer is internationally known for his expertise in rhabdomyosarcoma, a childhood cancer. He served as principal investigator of NIH research grant awards and chaired the national Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study Group for 26 years. The group has been credited with raising the cure rate from 20 to 75 percent. In 2003, the Children’s Oncology Group awarded Maurer with a Lifetime Achievement Award.
He led the merger of University Hospital and Clarkson Hospital to form the Nebraska Health System, now known as The Nebraska Medical Center, advancing its excellence in education, research and clinical care. As chancellor, he has seen UNMC add nine new facilities with a 10th underway.
Nebraska Wesleyan will award Maurer with an honorary degree. Angie L. Muhleisen, president of Union Bank and Trust Company, will also be awarded a honorary degree.
Approximately 500 undergraduate and graduate students will receive their degrees.