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Wynton Marsalis, Mary Sue Coleman, others recommended for honorary U-M degrees at spring commencement

FILE - In this Jan. 30, 2014 file photo, Musician Wynton Marsalis speaks during a lecture performance at Harvard University's Sanders Theatre in Cambridge, Mass. The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation has launched a $1 million emergency fund to support freelance New York City-area jazz musicians during the coronavirus pandemic. The fund will give one-time grants of $1,000 to jazz musicians that live in the New York City region and work regularly in the five boroughs of New York City. Marsalis, the Grammy-winning jazz icon is president of The Louis Armstrong Educational Foundation. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File) (Elise Amendola, Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

ANN ARBOR – Four individuals have been recommended to receive honorary degrees at University of Michigan’s 2023 Spring Commencement.

Leaders in the fields of education, music, philanthropy and art, they include:

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  • Wynton Marsalis, artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center
  • Mary Sue Coleman, U-M president emerita and former president of the Association of American Universities, Doctor of Humane Letters
  • Phil Hagerman, entrepreneur, philanthropist, pharmacist and founder of the Diplomat Specialty Pharmacy, Doctor of Laws
  • Dominique Morisseau, playwright and actress, Doctor of Fine Arts

Marsalis will be the main speaker at the commencement ceremony at Michigan Stadium on April 29. He is up for consideration to receive an honorary Doctor of Music degree.

Meanwhile, on April 28, Coleman will be speaking at the Rackham Graduate Exercises.

The Board of Regents will vote on approving the degrees at its March 23 meeting. If approved, Marsalis, Coleman and Morisseau will receive their degrees during the commencement ceremony in Ann Arbor while Hagerman will receive his degree on April 29 at the ceremony at UM-Flint’s School of Management commencement.

For more information about commencement at U-M, visit the commencement website.


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