President Hansen, I am honored to present Dean Kamen.

The challenges facing humankind and the planet call for solutions that transcend conformity and small-mindedness. Today we recognize a big thinker and man of action whose inventions have improved people’s lives around the world.

Dean Kamen has an uncanny ability to understand at the most fundamental level the complex problems of our time and to develop solutions that harness the capacity of technology and engineering for the common good. His medical innovations have revolutionized the delivery of life-saving health care while granting freedom and quality of life to patients. He developed one of these — the portable infusion pump — while he was a college student. Some of his other notable inventions  include the first wearable insulin pump for diabetics, the HomeChoice dialysis machine, the Independence IBOT 4000 Mobility System and the Segway Human Transporter.

His innovations in water purification and micro-generators address the pressing global needs of pollution control and sustainable energy. They also change communities by improving health, stimulating entrepreneurship, and leveling the playing field between the haves and haves nots. These technologies are agents of democracy.

Mr. Kamen brings his prodigious capacity for problem-solving to his crusade to enhance science and technology engagement among young people. Looking to his own youthful beginnings as an inventor, Mr. Kamen launched FIRST, a national program that challenges middle and high school students to solve problems hands-on by developing functional robotics. National competitions bring visibility to this effort and underscore the excitement of scientific inquiry. Inspiring future generations of scientists and engineers may prove to be his greatest contribution to our world.

For his restless discontent with the status quo, for his willingness to tackle the most daunting problems, and for his ingenuity in service to humanity, I present Dean Kamen for the degree Doctor of Science.

President’s conferral:

Dean Kamen, your inventive thinking and creative energy have improved the quality of life for millions of people; your tireless commitment to the ingenuity of future generations holds infinite promise. Therefore by the authority vested in me by the Board of Trustees, I hereby confer upon you the Degree of Doctor of Science, with all the rights, privileges, and responsibilities which here and everywhere pertain to this degree.