Sullivan served during the Bush administration, overseeing the agency responsible for the nation’s major health, welfare, food safety, drug safety, medical research and income security programs.

Since then, Sullivan has returned to his position as president of the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, a school he helped found. He received his bachelor’s degree from Morehouse College in 1954 before earning his medical degree. He became founding dean and director of the Morehouse College Medical Education Program in 1975 and became first dean and president of the Morehouse School of Medicine when the program became independent in 1981.

This year, there are 5,633 candidates for degrees at UK, including 3,613 for bachelor’s degrees, 1,395 for master’s degrees, 370 for professional degrees and 255 for doctoral degrees. There are 196 students graduating summa cum laude, 332 magna cum laude and 426 cum laude.

Honorary degrees will be given to Sullivan, Carol Martin "Bill" Gatton and Robert J. Shepherd. Gatton is the 1954 UK alumnus for whom the College of Business and Economics is named, and Shepherd is a UK professor emeritus and member of the U.S. National Academy of Science.

Kristy Lynn Burkhead, an agricultural education major from Lancaster, will speak on behalf of the Class of ’99. Three Sullivan Awards will be given to a male graduate, female graduate and non-student who have shown a spirit of helping other. The William B. Sturgill Award will be presented to an outstanding member of the graduate faculty. The Albert D. and Elizabeth Kirwan Memorial Prize for original and creative research will be given to a full-time faculty member.