Spectrum leader will address graduates

The leader of West Michigan's largest health care system will be the keynote speaker at December's commencement ceremony, scheduled for December 6, 10 a.m., at Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids.

Richard C. Breon, president and CEO of Spectrum Health, has more than three decades of experience in health care administration. He joined Spectrum Health in 2000, after serving as president and CEO for Mission Health System in Evansville, Indiana.

Spectrum Health has 140 service locations and more than 14,000 employees, including 1,500 affiliated medical staff members. The health care system also has a 500,000-member managed care plan, helicopter transport service, long-term and continuing care services, home care and hospice care services.

An active community member, Breon is a board member for the Alliance for Health and The Right Place. He is past chair of the Michigan Hospital Association and was appointed to Michigan's Certificate of Need Commission and the State of Michigan Hospital Advisory Commission.

Faculty and staff members who plan to participate in the processional should arrive by 9:30 a.m. for robing.

The Alumni Association will present two awards during the ceremony. Deborah L. Clanton will receive the Distinguished Alumna Award; Lois Tyson will receiving the Outstanding Educator Award.

Clanton serves as magistrate and director of probation services for the 62nd B District Court of Kentwood. She was appointed in 1992 as the first African American magistrate in the Grand Rapids area. She earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Grand Valley in 1976 and a master's degree in public administration from Western Michigan University in 1992.

Tyson, professor of English, has been a member of Grand Valley's faculty for more than 26 years. She also serves as faculty-development coordinator for the English department. An expert in critical theory and literary analysis, Tyson's text, Critical Theory Today: A User-Friendly Guide, is in its second edition.