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Liverpool Hope University announces 2017 honorary degrees

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Liverpool Hope University is to award honorary doctorates to EMMY-award winner David Suchet CBE, Vice-Chancellor of Lille Catholic University Pierre Giorgini, and academic and educationalist Sister Dr Maura O’Carroll SND.

They will receive their awards next week during Liverpool Hope University’s graduation ceremonies at Liverpool Anglican Cathedral.  

David Suchet CBE will be awarded Doctor of Letters (honoris causa) on Tuesday 18th July.  In 1989, Mr Suchet took the title role of Hercule Poirot in the long-running television adaptation of Agatha Christie’s Poirot. He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Royal Television Society for his 25-year role as the fictional TV detective in 2014. Mr Suchet’s long and illustrious acting career also includes roles in theatre, film, and radio plays, as well as audiobooks and voice-over narrations. His many awards include an Olivier Award for the Best Revival of Long Day’s Journey into Night, What’s on Stage award for his role as Joe Keller in All My Sons, and an International EMMY Award for Best Actor when he played Robert Maxwell.  In 2013, he made a recording of the whole Bible (unabridged) that now has a worldwide outreach. This year he read the whole of St Mark’s Gospel to a capacity audience in St Paul’s Cathedral.

?Sister Dr Maura O’Carroll will be awarded Doctor of Education (honoris causa) on Wednesday 19th July. Sister Dr O’Carroll began her teaching career in 1958 at Notre Dame High School, Everton Valley, Liverpool. She has worked in education across the UK, including as Headmistress at Notre Dame High School Oxford, Headmistress at Notre Dame High School St Helens, and Secretary and Registrar at Heythrop College, University of London. She was appointed Principal at Notre Dame College, Liverpool to continue her predecessor’s work in establishing an ecumenical Institute of Higher Education from Notre Dame, Christ’s College and St Katharine’s. She has served on a number of governing bodies, has a PhD in medieval studies and has organised a number of colloquiums.

Pierre Giorgini will be awarded Doctor of Education (honoris causa) on Thursday 20th July. He began his career at the National Institute for Telecommunications Executives at Villeneuve d’Ascq, and has a long career in technology education. In the 1990s he created LASER, The Laboratory for Building Systems of Shared Teaching, and invented and developed the Visiocentre, the first system of teaching connecting multiple lecture theatres with automatic piloting of the student/teacher relationship. Between 1999 and 2003, he worked for the National Employment Agency where he became Deputy CEO for Human Resources at the national level. From 2003 to 2006, he was Director in Charge of Orange Innovation, responsible for Management and Human Resources. In 2007, he joined Lille Catholic University. In 2009, he became Vice-President of the Science and Technology Sector. In 2012, he was elected as Vice-Chancellor of Lille Catholic University and Rector of the six Faculties.

Professor Gerald Pillay, Vice Chancellor and Rector of Liverpool Hope University said: “Liverpool Hope University is proud to honour David Suchet CBE, the Vice-Chancellor of Lille Catholic University Pierre Giorgini and Sister Dr. Maura O’Carroll SND.  All three are extremely accomplished people who have used their skills, knowledge and determination to make a positive impact on the world around them. They are good examples to our new graduates of people motivated to work for the common good.” 


Published on 16/05/2018