UWG
News Item
Contact: University Communications & Marketing
Phone (678) 839-6464, FAX (678) 839-6645
ucm@westga.edu
Chick-fil-A President to speak at graduation
July 21, 2004
CARROLLTON, GA - The University of West Georgia will conduct the Summer Commencement Ceremony on Saturday, July 31, at 9 a.m. at Grisham Stadium. Dr. Beheruz N. Sethna, president, will preside.
Dan
Cathy, president and chief operating officer of Chick-fil-A, Inc., will
present the commencement address and will also be awarded an honorary
doctorate.
Cathy has distinguished himself through nationally recognized leadership in business and service to education and the community. His professional and personal successes serve as a contemporary model for entrepreneurship, international venture, financial integrity, human resource management and public service.
Cathy has spent his career at one of the nation’s largest family-owned quick-service restaurant chains, Chick-fil-A Inc., the Atlanta-based company founded by his father, S. Truett Cathy. He joined the company at age nine, when he sang songs for customers and did radio commercials for the chain’s original Dwarf House restaurant in Hapeville, Ga.
After earning his Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from Georgia Southern University, Cathy returned to Chick-fil-A, where he opened more than 50 new restaurants throughout the country while serving as director of operations. His responsibilities continued to grow with the company, and he steadily rose through the ranks of senior director of operations, vice president of operations and executive vice president, to his current position.
Cathy has led Chick-fil-A to increased market presence throughout the United States and into global venture operations. His business acumen has helped to maintain a strategically sound financial and marketing position for Chick-fil-A during the best and worst of economic times, always with a strong focus on customer and employee satisfaction.
Advancing the achievement of educational excellence, both for students and educational institutions, is a vital concern for Cathy. Currently, he serves as a member of the Berry College Board of Trustees and on the Board of Advisors for the Campbell School of Business at Berry. Other educational ties include membership on the Carter Center Board of Councilors, the Gordon College Foundation and the Junior Achievement of Georgia Board, as well as service as a volunteer at Tri-Cities High School in College Park, Ga.
Another primary commitment for Cathy is community service. He provides personal charitable and inspirational support to individuals and groups through his membership on the boards of the Eagle Ranch for young males and FamilyNet, which provides family and inspirational television programming to broadcast stations. He is a member of New Hope Baptist Church in Fayetteville, Ga., and of the Buckhead Rotary Club, which awarded him its Humanitarian Award in 2002.
Cathy’s passion is continuous improvement. He has completed Harvard Business School’s owner/management course, earned his pilot’s license and run the Los Angeles and Boston marathons. He shares his inspirational story of overcoming adversity in a recent book about a personal burn accident, The Burning Bush Experience (CFA Properties Inc., 2003). He is a member of the International Society of Business Fellows.
Assisting Sethna during the ceremonies will be Dr. Thomas J. Hynes, vice president for academic affairs; Dr. Jack Jenkins, graduate school dean; Dr. Faye McIntyre, interim dean of the Richards College of Business; Dr. Kent Layton, dean of the College of Education; Dr. Victoria Geisler, assistant dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; and Dr. Don Wagner, dean of the Honors College.
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