Roy Long Honorary Degree, August 12, 2017

We have the opportunity to do something that is very special in the life of our university. In conferring upon an individual who has achieved so much in his life and we can aspire to, for all of us as a hero, an honorary doctorate. Regent Whitehouse, will you please escort the candidate Roy Long, accompanied by his daughter, Cherlyn Wilson, to the podium. And I'll ask Dr. Donde Plowman, Executive Vice Chancellor and Chief Academic Officer, to introduce our honorary doctorate candidate.

Chancellor Green, it is my honor to present Mr. Roy Long for the honorary degree: Doctor of Education. Mr. Roy Long is a member of the generation of young people who came of age during World War Two, often called the greatest generation. Mr. Long was born in Blair, Nebraska and graduated from high school in 1940. He discovered his love of teaching and coaching early in his life. He came to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln to pursue a degree in education and play football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. He played quarterback on the Husker Football Team, was a member of Gamma Delta fraternity, and the Reserve Officers Training Corps. But as with a lot of young men his age, Mr. Long's education was interrupted by World War Two. He served honorably in General George S. Patton's Third Army with the 71st Infantry Division as first Lieutenant in Europe. He was part of the liberation of Gunskirchen Lager, a concentration camp in Austria. Serving as a guard for the American judges during the Nuremberg War Trials, he was in the court room to hear testimony from Nazi war criminals Hermann Göring and Rudolf Hess.

After the war, Mr. Long returned to the university and finished his education and his football career. He graduated in 1947 with a Bachelor's Science degree. Just as he began teaching and his coaching career, Mr. Long was again called to service in the Korean War. When he returned, he set upon completing his Master's degree in 1953 and moved his family to Omaha and worked until his retirement in the Omaha Public Schools. Mr. Long continues to educate young people about the atrocities of the Holocaust. His mission is to help Nebraska's youth learn about the enormity of the Holocaust and to envision their role as citizens in this world who share responsiblity for confronting crimes against humanity. It is my honor to present a most deserving candidate, Mr. Roy Long, for the honorary degree Doctor of Education.

In recognition of his outstanding service to humankind during his service to the United States of America in World War Two and the Korean War. In honor of his outstanding contributions in education, mentoring and inspiring generations of young people. And in gratitude of his loyalty and service to his alma mater, the University of Nebraska confers upon Roy J. Long, the honorary degree, Doctor of Education.