UNC Asheville to Award Honorary Degree to Jeff Heck, physician and former CEO of MAHEC

UNC Asheville will celebrate the accomplishments of more than 500 graduates during Commencement on May 7, 2022, and will award Eva Clayton, the first Black woman to represent the state of North Carolina in Congress and a champion for economic equality, with the Honorary Doctorate of Laws at the Class of 2022 Commencement Ceremony. Clayton will serve as the Commencement speaker and receive the UNC Asheville Chancellor’s Medallion, the University’s highest non-academic distinction, to recognize individuals who demonstrate distinguished national service and leadership.

UNC Asheville Chancellor Nancy J. Cable will preside over the outdoor Commencement events on the University Quad. More than 500 graduates and their families will be in attendance to celebrate their academic accomplishments and cap their untraditional University experience, following two years of academic progress through a pandemic.

An additional honorary degree will also be awarded to Dr. Jeff Heck, a physician and recently retired CEO of the Mountain Area Health Education Center (MAHEC) under whose tenure UNC Health Sciences at MAHEC was established. The UNC Asheville – UNC Gillings MPH Program is housed on the MAHEC campus. Dr. Heck will receive an Honorary Doctorate of Science for his exceptional contributions to the Asheville community.

For more information about UNC Asheville’s May 2022 Commencement, visit unca.edu/commencement.