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 Alumni
Malinda Pennoyer Chouinard, co-founder of Patagonia sportswear, and Roy
Christopher, the eight-time Emmy winner and designer of 17 Academy
Awards telecasts, will receive honorary doctorates at California State
University, Fresno’s Commencement on May 19.
The honors are conferred by the Board of Trustees of the California
State University and Fresno State.
Chouinard will receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters.
She earned a bachelor’s degree in art in 1969 and a secondary teaching
credential in 1970. She was an officer of the Associated Women Students
while attending Fresno State, where one of her biggest challenges was
overcoming dyslexia.
She married Yvon Chouinard in 1970 and they later founded Patagonia
Inc., which revolutionized clothing for mountain climbing by making
garments with synthetic pile fabric that insulates without absorbing
moisture. Now, Patagonia makes these fabrics from 100 percent recycled
materials.
Malinda Chouinard also promoted architectural conservation by restoring
historic buildings rather than constructing new ones as Patagonia
outlets and instituted on-site child care in 1984. Several of
Patagonia’s family-friendly programs earned the company recognition,
including the designation by Working Mother magazine as one of the "100
Best Companies for Working Mothers."
Patagonia's environmental efforts range from trying to prevent damage to
the rock walls of Yosemite National Park to minimizing the environmental
impact of manufacturing its products. Patagonia has donated more than
$22 million to environmental organizations and helped establish One
Percent for the Planet, an alliance of 148 companies follow Patagonia’s
lead.
 Christopher
will receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Fine Arts. One of the most
respected and honored production designers in the entertainment
industry, Christopher earned his bachelor’s degree in theatre arts from
Fresno State in 1957 and his master’s in 1961. While a student at Fresno
State, Christopher also met his wife, Dorothy.
His work has been nominated for Emmy Awards 35 times. He received a Los
Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award and two Garland awards for his
creative theater-design work. In 2003, he received the Art Directors
Guild Lifetime Achievement Award.
Christopher’s plans, renderings, slides, sketches and working drawings
for Academy Awards shows now reside in the Margaret Herrick Library of
the Center for Motion Picture Study in Beverly Hills.
Christopher’s commitment to the Theatre Arts Department at Fresno State
includes a scholarship endowment and numerous guest-lecturer
appearances. He also hosted six Fresno State set-design students for a
behind-the-scenes personal tour of the Oscars sets in 2006. |
