June 2006

Science alumni receive honorary doctorates from Purdue

Tan Sun “Mark” Chen

Mark Chen has distinguished himself with his leadership in science and his vision in promoting self-actualization and liberty for people everywhere.

He is currently the secretary general for the Office of the President of the Taiwan and chairman of the International Cooperation and Development Fund for his homeland. He lives in Taipei, Taiwan, and actively pursues international cooperation, humanitarian assistance, and the promotion of democratic and human rights.

Born in Tainan, Taiwan, Chen came to Purdue and earned his doctorate in earth and atmospheric science in 1972 after receiving a master’s degree from the University of Oklahoma in 1966 and a bachelor’s degree from National Taiwan University in 1957.

Chen started his government work in the United States, serving from 1973 through 1992 in the U.S. Department of Commerce. He was elected chairman of the Taiwanese Association of America, chairman of the World Federation of Taiwanese Association, chairman of the Formosan Association for Public Affairs, and was chosen Outstanding Asian Community Leader in the United States in 1990.

In 1992, he returned to Taiwan and became a member of the Legislative Yuan (congress). A year later, he was elected Tainan County Magistrate and re-elected to the same position in 1997.
As a leader and visionary in promoting science as a key component of regional and national development, Chen played a major role in 1995 in the establishment of the Southern Taiwan Science Park, which grew rapidly and has played a pivotal role in high-tech industrial development in the Asia-Pacific region.

In 2001, he was again elected as a member of the fifth Legislative Yuan and two years later, when the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy was established, he was named its vice chairman. He was then appointed foreign minister in April 2004 and secretary general in January 2006.

Chen has been a good friend and supporter of the state of Indiana, hosting an economic development delegation led by Gov. Mitch Daniels last summer.

H. Richard Lawson

Richard Lawson has distinguished himself as a true visionary and leader in creating and developing information technology products that have had a profound impact on global business enterprise.

He is currently the chairman of Lawson Software, a company he co-founded with his brother, Bill Lawson, and John Cerullo in 1975. He lives in Dallas, Texas.

Originally from Wichita, Kan., Lawson came to Purdue and earned his master's degree in computer science in 1968 after receiving a bachelor’s degree in mathematics two years earlier from Oklahoma Christian College (now University).

Lawson used knowledge he had gained at three levels (theory, principle, and application) during his graduate school days at Purdue to help build one of the nation’s leading software companies. In 30 years, Lawson Software flourished into a $335 million company providing business software to large and mid-sized organizations in health care, retail, professional services, financial services, and the public sector. By 2005 it had expanded to have offices on six continents, employing more than 1,300 people worldwide.

Using cutting-edge knowledge of computer science coupled with strong business acumen, Lawson built a software company that has approximately 3,000 clients, including five of the top 10 retailers based in the United States, eight of the top 20 apparel retailers, and seven of the top 25 grocery chains.

He has been recognized frequently for his success, including being named by Ernst and Young as the Entrepreneur of the Year in 2002 and by Purdue as a Computer Science Distinguished Alumnus the same year.

Lawson has been extremely generous toward his alma maters. He and his wife Patricia donated $4.7 million to Purdue in 2003 for construction of the new computer science building that is due to open next fall. A year later, he and Patricia made a substantial donation of cash and stock to Oklahoma Christian, where he serves on the Board of Trustees. He is on the Dean’s Leadership Council for the College of Science at Purdue.

Floyd D. Loop

Dr. Floyd Loop has distinguished himself with his extraordinary accomplishments, vision, and leadership in the field of cardiac medicine and health care.

He practiced cardiothoracic surgery for 30 years and headed the department of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery at the Cleveland Clinic for 14 of those years before becoming chief executive officer and chairman of the board of governors of the clinic’s foundation. He retired as CEO in 2004 but remains employed by the foundation as a consultant while still living in Cleveland.

Dr. Loop was raised in Lafayette, Ind., earning a bachelor of science degree from Purdue in 1958 and his medical degree from George Washington University in 1962.

He spent most of the 1960s in the Washington, D.C., area as a surgery intern and general surgeon at George Washington University and Andrews Air Force Base before joining the Cleveland Clinic in 1968 to obtain his residency in thoracic and cardiovascular surgery. By 1974 Dr. Loop was appointed chairman of that department at age 38.

During the next 25 years, he operated on thousands of patients, wrote hundreds of original scientific articles and book chapters, and trained scores of young cardiac surgeons who were drawn from around the world to continue their education at the Cleveland Clinic largely due to his reputation.
Dr. Loop was chosen president of the American Association of Thoracic Surgery and chairman of the Residency Review Committee for Thoracic Surgery while serving in several capacities at the National Institutes of Health and receiving honorary memberships in a number of clinical societies overseas.

After establishing himself as an internationally recognized cardiac surgeon, he moved into the position of CEO of the Cleveland Clinic Foundation in 1989. Under his leadership, the clinic enjoyed unprecedented growth in size and reputation and is now Cleveland’s largest employer with more than 30,000 employees, including 1,500 physicians.

He has served on the editorial boards of 15 medical journals and was recognized as one of the best doctors in America by the U.S. News and World Report and as a Distinguished Alumnus of Purdue’s College of Science in 2005.

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