08-20-2008
Dr. Edward G. (Ned) Boehm, President of Keystone College, to Receive 2008 Interdependence Award

Scranton, PA - When Interdependence Day is formally launched on September 11 at the Federal Court House, Scranton, Dr. Edward G. Boehm, Jr. will accept the 2008 Interdependence Award. The award is given to honor a person in the community who by his/her actions exemplifies the spirit of interdependence. Past winners of this prestigious award are Governor William W. Scranton, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas I. Vanaskie, and Sr. Margaret Gannon IHM.

According to Sondra Myers, Co-Founder of international Interdependence Day, “Ned Boehm has been a passionate supporter of Interdependence Day since its inception; under his leadership Keystone has integrated the culture of interdependence into its very core. We’re proud to have him with us all the way and honored that he has agreed to accept the Interdependence Award.” Interdependence Day was launched in Philadelphia on September 12, 2003. The date was deliberately chosen as a post 9/11 symbol of regeneration, as a time to reflect on the tragedy of the incidents of terror, not only in the United States, but all over the world, and to ask ourselves "What next?" It seemed critically important to acknowledge the inevitability and significance of interdependence in our time, and set out to build constructively anAdd 1/ Interdependence Day Upon learning of his selection as recipient of the I-Day Award, Dr. Boehm responded: “We are extremely honored to receive the 2008 Interdependence Award. Ever since its inception in 2003, the Keystone College community has embraced the philosophy of Interdependence Day. Our planned campus-wide activities allow our students to reflect on the world they will inherit and cannot retreat from, but must embrace with the vigor and enthusiasm reflected in our own democracy.” Interdependence Day in the Greater Scranton Area has been celebrated for the past several years. All of the events are planned by an Interdependence Day (I Day) Planning Committee. This year the I Day Planning Committee has chosen the theme “Interdependence – Choosing s a Future of Promise “as the theme for 2008 events. Since the spring of 2008, the Greater Scranton Interdependence Day Planning Committee has met regularly at the Scranton Cultural Center to plan, direct and implement the events to celebrate I Day. The I Day Planning Committee includes volunteer members from the cultural community, the secondary and higher education community, local civic groups, religious groups, local libraries, county government and other interested individuals. Chair Persons are Kate Holod and Rosemary Broderick. Keynote speaker will be Shashi Tharoor, noted author of fiction and non fiction works, and former Undersecretary-General of the United Nations for Public Information. DR. EDWARD G. BOEHM, JR.

Edward (Ned) Boehm is President of Keystone College in La Plume, Pennsylvania. He came to Keystone from Marshall University in Huntington, West Virginia, where he served as Senior Vice President of Institutional Advancement. Prior to Marshall, Dr. Boehm held positions at Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, Texas, and American University, Washington, D.C.

Dr. Boehm is a graduate of Frostburg State University in Frostburg, Maryland. His advanced degrees are from American University. Dr. Boehm, a very active member of the Scranton area community, was named 2004 Leader of the Year by Leadership Lackawanna, a recipient of the Rotary Service Award for Professional Excellence in 2005, and spotlighted by the Kiwanis Club of Scranton for their Community Roast in 2008. He serves as a commissioner for the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, and participates as a member of the Board of Governors for the Scranton Area Foundation, Board of Directors for the Pennsylvania Association of Colleges and Universities, and the Colonial States Athletic Conference President’s Council. Dr. Boehm is a member of The Pennsylvania Society, the United Nations Association of Northeastern Pennsylvania, the Scranton Lackawanna Industrial Building Company (SLIBCO), and serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the Frostburg State University Foundation.

Dr. Boehm and his wife Regina served as co-chairs for the United Way of Lackawanna County 2003-2004 Campaign Fund Drive and served on the United Way of Lackawanna County Board of Directors. He served as President of PANO (1997-1998), as a board member of the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce (1997-2000), the Northeast Regional Cancer Institute Advisory Board (1996-1999), the Tyler Memorial Hospital (1996-2001), The Arc of Lackawanna County (2005-2006), Countryside Conservancy Advisory Board (2005-2006), Pennsylvania Campus Compact Board of Directors (2003-2008) and the Waverly Community House (1997-2000), is a former member of the Healthy Northeast Pennsylvania Initiative Tobacco Task Force, and a graduate of the Executive Series of both Leadership Lackawanna and Leadership Wilkes-Barre, and the Educational Leadership Program at Yale University.

Dr. Boehm's leadership style and accomplishments have been profiled in the University of Michigan's CASE study entitled Keystone College: Renaissance and Transformation as a part of the Kellogg Foundation's forum on higher education transformation. The study cited his energy, enthusiasm, and leadership in gaining wide support for his vision for Keystone College. His leadership style was also cited in the book Power Thinking: How the Way You Think Can Change the Way You Lead, Jossey Bass, 2004, as an example of the strategies leaders can use to strengthen their organizations.

Ned and Regina have two sons and one grandson. Evan graduated from Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, with a degree in environmental science. Andrew, who graduated from the University of Virginia with a degree in mechanical engineering, and his wife, Attorney Sarah Beckett, are the proud parents of Grant Edward Boehm.


Photo:
Dr. Edward G. (Ned) Boehm
President of Keystone College