Jimmy Fallon, Barack Obama, Dolly Parton and Oprah Winfrey Earn Honorary Degrees

‘Tis the graduation season and the list of folks earning honorary degrees is as usual quite lengthy. While the news has focused on Jimmy Fallon and President Obama, there are a number of other prominent folks taking home honorary sheepskins.

Jimmy Fallon

“Late Night With Jimmy Fallon” host and popular comedian Jimmy Fallon finally earned his communications degree from the College of St. Rose. Fallon took advantage of the life experience, portfolio option to accumulate his final 15 credits from the school.

 
In a move that had to have made his parents want to disown him at the time, Fallon left the school in the middle of his senior year to pursue his comedy career. Seventeen years after he began at St. Rose as a computer science major, he finally secured an authentic bachelor’s degree in communications.

“Finally, I convinced them that I’ve done enough communicating to get my communications degree,” Fallon is quoted as saying after providing the school a portfolio of his work. In a sign of the times, the school also awarded Fallon an honorary doctorate in humane letters.

In addition to his awards, Fallon was giving the opportunity to speak where he share the stage with John Zogby. As for his overblown ego, Fallon had this to say after receiving the degrees:

“I’m going to be totally insufferable.”

Barack Obama

In what has become a storm of controversy, President Obama will receive an honorary doctorate and deliver the commencement address at Notre Dame. The Harvard trained lawyer is certainly worthy of any honorary degrees (despite what Arizona State University has to say) but his views on abortion are raising the ire of students and supporters of the school.

One person set to be recognized by the school has declined to attend and thus refused her award due to her strong beliefs on the issue. Ironically, she too has Harvard connections.

The podium will represent an interesting option for the president who certainly has demonstrated his oratory powers over the past few years. However, his speech will be given great scrutiny, no doubt.

Dolly Parton

Famed country western singer and personality, Dolly Parton was recently awarded an honorary doctorate of humane and musical letters from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. In a true sign that she might have lacked an understanding of the setting, Parton chose to talk about her much-discussed assets that Johnny Carson was clearly enamored with.

Now known as Dr. Dolly, she had this to say to her audience:

“So when people say something about ‘Double-D,’ they will be thinking of something entirely different.”

Oprah Winfrey

And last week, a most-deserved Oprah Winfrey was presented an honorary doctor of humane letters degree from Duke University. The woman who has done so much for others across the world offered a more college-commencement like 25-minute address.

“One of the best ways to enhance your own life is to enhance somebody else’s,” noted the talk show host. “Stand proudly in your own shoes while you help others stand in theirs.”

But Winfrey also took the time to acknowledge that her godson William Bumpus was a member of the graduating class.

“Will never wants people to know he knows me,” Winfrey offered. “I’m like his crazy aunt that they let out at commencements.”

The list of other honorees includes Pulitzer Prize winning author/historian David McCullough, inventor, author and entrepreneur Ray Kurzweil and sportscaster Bill Raftery.