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2007 Honorary Degree recipient: Robert E. Tranquada
'51
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Let me begin by thanking Pomona College and the Board of
Trustees for this wonderful honor. It is deeply appreciated,
coming from this institution that I so deeply respect.
There are some curious facts surrounding this honor. Exactly
60 years after the founding of Pomona College, I arrived as
a student. And then, exactly 60 years later, I got my
degree. That must be some kind of record. Do you suppose
that it is a pure coincidence that 60 is 1.2765957 times 47?
The Gospel of Mark attributes to Jesus a comment that “A
prophet is not without honor, except in his own country,
among his own family and his own house.” Having been honored
here among my own family, my assumption is that I am no
prophet. I should have foreseen that. But then, I have known
perfectly well that we are, of course, a not-for-prophet
institution.
Whatever I have achieved is clearly the product of all that
has been given to me by my family, my school and my friends
and colleagues. I was extremely fortunate to have two
wonderful parents, both graduates of Pomona College. The
most important lesson they taught me was that whatever I was
doing – playing in a football game, taking an algebra test,
going to an important interview – that I should always
remember which family I come from. But they didn’t stop
there, they provided role models I could not ignore. I was
incredibly fortunate to have that guidance and that model –
for I have always strived to remember which family I come
from and to try to live up to that goal.
I have been equally as fortunate in the support and
companionship, on which I have thrived, provided by my wife
Janet of nearly 56 years. I owe Pomona another undying debt
of gratitude for having admitted her to the class of ’51.
So, as you can see, I have been couched in the arms of
Pomona College one way or another for a long time. It would
be impossible to return more than a fraction of that I have
received from her, but that effort has been a continuing
joy. Once again, my heartfelt thanks for this wonderful
honor. I will wear it with nothing but gratitude.
About Dr. Robert E. Tranquada, M.D. '51:
Tranquada is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the
National Academy of Sciences and a fellow of the American
Association for the Advancement of Science. He also serves
on the board of directors of the Huntington Medical Research
Institutes and Mount San Antonio Gardens. He served as
chairman of the Board of Overseers of the Claremont
University Consortium (The Claremont Colleges) from 2000-06.
He is chairman emeritus of the Board of Trustees of Pomona
College and emeritus trustee of the Keck Graduate Institute
of Applied Life Sciences. Tranquada graduated from Pomona
College summa cum laude and received his M.D. degree from
Stanford University School of Medicine in 1955. He went on
to establish and direct the Watts Health Center from 1965-69
(now the Watts Health Foundation). He was a member of the
Christopher Commission (The Independent Commission on the
Los Angeles Police Department) in 1991, and chaired the Los
Angeles County Task Force on Health Care Access from
1992-1993. Tranquada is the author of more than 60 published
scientific and educational papers and book chapters. He
received an honorary Sc.D. from the Worcester Polytechnic
Institute in 1988.
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