College Announces 2015 Honorary Degree Recipients

The Board of Trustees of Albertus Magnus College has voted unanimously to confer the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters upon the following distinguished individuals at the College's 92nd Commencement Exercises, Sunday, May 17:

Brother James Branigan, C.S.C. - Dedicated teacher and innovative administrator, Brother James Branigan, a member of the Congregation of Holy Cross, served for the past 20 years as president of Notre Dame High School in West Haven, Connecticut, a college preparatory school for young men. Brother James guided the school through extensive curriculum expansion and considerable construction, always faithful to its mission of educating each student to his highest potential.

Born and raised in Albany, New York, Brother James is one of seven children. He attended high school at Vincentian Institute, and recalls the great impact the Brothers of Holy Cross had on his life. They were his "support, teachers, counselors and track/cross-country coaches." His teachers were so important in his life that when the Brothers invited him to join the Congregation, his response was an immediate "Yes."

A graduate of Stonehill College in North Easton, Massachusetts, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in history, Brother James also earned a master's degree in religion/religious education from Fordham University and a second master's degree from St. John's University in secondary education/school counseling.

Throughout his years at Notre Dame, Brother James has been committed to making education a transformative experience for all students, no matter what their cultural or economic background. With Brother James's leadership, the school has partnered with The Shepherds, a program matching disadvantaged youth with mentors, generally Notre Dame alumni, who will provide financial support, advise them during their high school years, serve as role models and help prepare them for the college application process.

Brother James has received many national and community honors for his passion for and commitment to education. Among them are the Westie Care Award for lifetime commitment to education, National Catholic Education Association Catherine McNamee, C.S.J., Award for promoting a vision of Catholic education that welcomes and enhances service to students with diverse needs and The Shepherds Founders Award.

He currently serves on several boards, sharing his years of experience in education with the Hartford Archdiocesan Office for Social Justice Ministry; the Holy Cross High Schools, Moreau Province of the Congregation of Holy Cross; St. Edward's University, Austin, Texas; and St. Martin de Porres Academy, here in New Haven.

At the completion of the current school year, Brother James will leave Notre Dame High School to establish and direct the Holy Cross Schools Sponsorship Office in Austin, Texas.

The Honorable Toni Nathaniel Harp - Like thousands before her, Toni Harp came to New Haven to study at Yale University, and she stayed here, becoming the first woman mayor in the city's 375-year history. Born in San Francisco, she grew up in Salt Lake City, an African-American Baptist in a primarily white, predominantly Mormon community. The youngest of six children, this future mayor was inspired by her parents, inheriting their strong work ethic and their belief in the life-changing power of education. Her mother was a Teamster and worked for Greyhound Bus Lines; her father worked for the Santa Fe Railroad.

Toni Harp moved to Chicago to attend Roosevelt University, named for Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt and where the curriculum was based on the principles of peace and social justice. She earned her undergraduate degree in English, but never forgot the founding principles of her first alma mater. After graduation, she joined the American Society of Planning Officials in Chicago, and while there, forged a lifelong interest in urban planning and the ways in which cities work.

Completing this transcontinental journey from California to Connecticut, she arrived in New Haven to attend Yale University's School of Architecture, where she earned a master's degree in environmental design. For more than 20 years she was the director of homeless services at the Cornell Scott Hill Health Center in New Haven.

Her public service in elected office began as a member of New Haven's Board of Aldermen, now known as the Board of Alders. Following this local start, she served in the state Senate for 21 years, representing the 10th District. At the Capitol she earned a well-deserved reputation as "the conscience of the Senate." While in the state Senate, she focused on health care, criminal justice and education issues. She co-chaired the state's Achievement Gap Task Force to address disparity in educational access and performance that exists along ethnic, cultural and socioeconomic lines. In 2012, she also played a leading role in Connecticut's Gun Violence Prevention and Children's Safety Law. She also co-chaired the Mental Health Services Working Group, building into the new law provisions for mental health first-aid services and enhanced behavioral health screening opportunities.

On January 1, 2014, Mayor Harp, who has lived in New Haven for more than 40 years, became the city's 50th chief executive. She is the mother of three adult children: Djana and Jamil, who live in Georgia; and Matthew, who lives in New Haven.

Ellin M. Mulholland '51 - Following graduation from Albertus Magnus College in 1951 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in French, Ellin Mulholland spent a year at the University of Toulouse on a Fulbright Fellowship. When she returned to New York, she began classes at Fordham University School of Law. Her parents, both lawyers, were her inspirations and role models. Her mother was a member of the class of 1927 at Fordham University School of Law; her father graduated from New York School of Law, and later became a judge. Ellin Regis Cowie '91, her niece, graduated from Fordham Law in 1994, the third generation of Fordham Law women in the family.

At Fordham Law, Ellin Mulholland was one of two women to graduate in the class of 1955. As a practitioner, she was one of the first women litigators in the torts and products liability field in New York City, and one of the first two women named to the American Board of Trial Advocates. She served on the Board of Governors of the Association of Trial Lawyers of the City of New York, and as a judge for the National Trial Advocacy program for law students at the U.S. Eastern District Courthouse. She was a past vice president of the Guild of Catholic Lawyers and holds the highest rank of Lady Grand Cross in the Papal Order of The Knights and Ladies of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. After many years of extraordinary service, she retired as a senior partner in the New York City law firm of Herzfeld & Rubin, P.C., where she practiced in the area of construction litigation and product liability.

In 1985, the Albertus Magnus College Alumni Association presented Ellin Mulholland with its award for outstanding professional achievement. She is a loyal alumna and unwavering supporter of Albertus with her personal time, experience and generosity, serving on the College's Board of Trustees from 1985 to 2014; she is now Trustee emerita of the College.

The Fordham University School of Law in 1995 honored Ellin Mulholland with the Dean's Medal of Recognition, the highest award the school can bestow. The citation notes that she "exemplifies those qualities of integrity, service and excellence that have become a hallmark of the Law School."

A native New Yorker, she grew up in Jamaica Estates, Queens, where she graduated from The Mary Louis Academy. Now a resident of Hampton Bays, New York, she continues to be active in her parish, teaching a Confraternity of Christian Doctrine course.

Sister Mauryeen O'Brien, O.P. - For nearly 30 years, Sister Mauryeen O'Brien, a member of the Dominican Sisters of Peace, coordinated ministry to the bereaved, separated and divorced for the Family Life Office of the Archdiocese of Hartford. Her work focused on counseling, developing support groups, designing seminars and spiritual activities for those who have suffered the loss of loved ones. Her bereavement ministry was the first in the Archdiocese, offering compassion and caring, bringing peace to those who grieve and mourn.

Sister Mauryeen has written several books used by hundreds of parishes, Christian denominations, hospitals and counseling centers to help persons of all ages move beyond their pain and loss. Her books include "The New Day Journal: A Journey from Grief to Healing," "Praying through Grief," "Lift Up Your Hearts," "Gentle Keeping," and "Catholic and Mourning a Loss." Her articles have appeared in The Catholic Transcript, Family Seasons, Grief Magazine, Healing Ministry, Today's Parish, Care Notes and other publications.

She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education from St. Mary of the Springs College (now Ohio Dominican University) and a Master of Arts in English from the University of Notre Dame. For 18 years, she served as an administrator and teacher for elementary schools in Connecticut, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Illinois, and as Director of Apostolic Works for the Dominican Sisters in Columbus, Ohio. A Dominican Sister for 64 years, she is certified as a pastoral bereavement counselor, pastoral minister and family life counselor.

In 2000, Sister Mauryeen received the Mabel Garey Award, which recognizes outstanding commitment and service in the work of ministering to those who mourn, from the National Catholic Ministry to the Bereaved. She also has been honored by the National Association of Catholic Family Life Ministers for "serving as a voice and advocate for families and family ministry." In 2013, New Haven Living magazine cited her as one of nine "amazing women" in the city for her work as an author and her ministry to the divorced and bereaved. Sister Mauryeen has served on the Board of Trustees of Albertus Magnus College since 1996.