Lynchburg College has conferred honorary degrees on Leighton B. Dodd, former mayor of Lynchburg; Walker P. Sydnor Jr., president of Scott Insurance; Catherine German West, businesswoman; and John Kraffert Henne, philanthropist, in recognition of service to their communities and to Lynchburg College.
Dodd, a 1956 graduate of Lynchburg College, was awarded the Doctor of Humane Letters Degree in recognition of "long and outstanding service to the Lynchburg community and his alma mater." Dodd served as Mayor of Lynchburg from 1972 to 1976 and as a member of City Council for six years.
His list of community service activities includes membership on the Boards of Directors of Central Virginia Community College, Lynchburg Chapter of the American Cancer Society, Step With Links, Inc., Central Virginia Speech and Hearing Center, Central Lynchburg, Inc., Presbyterian Home, Central Virginia Health Services Development Council, Inc., Metropolitan Lynchburg Chapter of American Red Cross, and United Way of Central Virginia.
Dodd was a member of the Lynchburg College Board of Trustees for 21 years, holding the positions of vice chair of the Board and chair of the Development Committee. He was also elected president of the LC Alumni Association, which awarded him its highest honor, the T. Gibson Hobbs Memorial Award, for service to church, community, and alma mater.
He retired from Crestar Bank in 1966 as senior vice president and commercial lending officer in charge of the Private Banking Group after thirty-four years of service.
Sydnor was awarded the Doctor of Humane Letters Degree to honor his "exceptional service" to the College. Elected to the LC Board of Trustees in 1991, Sydnor served as chairman from 2002 to 2005 and was a driving force behind the construction of Elliot & Rosel Schewel Hall (formerly Centennial Hall), a $12.5 million state-of-the-art building housing the Schools of Business and Economics and Communication and the Arts and the Sydnor Performance Hall, a gift from the Sydnor family. He has also served on the Advisory Board of the LC School of Business and Economics.
A native of Lynchburg, Sydnor is active in the community, having served on the Centra Health Board of Directors and on the local advisory board of Wachovia Bank, as a trustee of the Virginia Foundation of Independent Colleges, and as a director of the Lynchburg Regional Chamber of Commerce, the United Way of Central Virginia, and the Lynchburg Historical Foundation. He has also served as deacon of First Presbyterian Church.
Sydnor is a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College and holds the designation of Chartered Property Casualty Underwriter.
West received a Doctor of Humane Letters Degree in recognition of her "outstanding contributions to the business world and her dedication to her alma mater." A 1982 graduate of Lynchburg College, West is one of the youngest executives to be named to Fortune magazine’s list of the Fifty Most Powerful Women in Business. She has also been designated one of the Washington area’s 100 most powerful women by Washingtonian magazine. She was named to the LC Board of Trustees in 2005.
A native of Washington, D. C., West joined Capital One Financial in 2000 as senior vice president of U. S. Consumer Risk Operations and in 2004, was named president of U.S. Card, one of the company’s largest divisions. Under her leadership, the card segment became one of the most profitable sections in the company. She directed all product development, marketing, and consumer-service activities across the United States and served on the company’s Executive Committee. She left Capital One in 2006 to become executive vice president and chief operating officer of JC Penney Co. Inc.
Prior to joining Capital One, West spent nine years at First USA Bank in Wilmington, Delaware, where she became executive vice president of marketing services and operations. From 1985 to 1991, she served as vice president of Credit Card Operations for Chevy Chase Bank. She began her career at Peoples Express Airline in 1981.
Henne was awarded a Doctor of Education Degree in recognition of his "generous and loyal support of Lynchburg College athletic programs and his continuing dedication and commitment to the education and enrichment of young people."
A native of Titusville, Pa., Henne now divides his time between Titusville and Lynchburg. As benefactor to more than 60 organizations, Henne supports the Titusville Hospital; Sloan-Kettering Hospital; Penn State Erie, The Behrend College; Clarion University; Haverford College; and the Drake Well Museum, which honors the world’s first oil well drilled in Titusville in 1867.
A graduate of Loomis-Chafee Preparatory School, Henne earned a sociology degree from Haverford College in 1947 and a second degree from Edinburgh University. Subsequently, he taught seventh and eighth grade English and served as varsity golf coach in the Titusville Public School System. He created the John K. Henne Study Abroad Endowment at Penn State Erie, The Behrend College, to help support deserving students who wish to study abroad. The "Henne International Scholars" currently number more than 120.