Successful pediatric doctor and alumnus to be Thiel College Commencement speaker

Posted April 05, 2022 Print

GREENVILLE, Pa.-- Mansfield Pediatrics founder Robert Burns, M.D. ’74 will address Thiel College graduates and receive an honorary doctorate during the College’s 148th Commencement Exercises at the William A. Passavant Memorial Center at 11 a.m. Sunday, May 8.

Read more about the 148th Commencement.

Burns graduated summa cum laude from the College with a degree in chemistry. He was an active student and participated as a member of the American Chemical Society Student Affiliates, the Tri-Beta biology honor society, and was co-captain of the swim team and sports editor for the school newspaper, The Thielensian. After his graduation in 1974, Burns earned his medical degree from The Ohio State University School of Medicine in 1978 where he earned special honors in genetics, pharmacology, and pediatrics during his clinical rotations. He completed his residency in pediatric medicine at the University of Nebraska Medical Center before returning to Ohio and entering into private practice. In 1981, he founded Mansfield Pediatrics, which has grown to the largest pediatric practice in north-central Ohio.

Since his time as a Thiel student, Burns has been active within his profession, but also in efforts in his community and for his alma mater. He was first appointed to the Thiel College Board of Trustees in 1991 and served as the chair of the Governance and Trusteeship Committee and as a member of the Advancement Committee. He served on the board from 1991-2000, from 2002-2011, and from 2012-2021. In the past, he served as a board member of the Good Shepherd Lutheran Home, chairman of pediatrics at Mansfield General Hospital and board member of the Center for Individual and Family Services, among others. Burns is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics and is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Kathryn Held, M.D. ’75 will also be honored at Commencement this year. She graduated from Thiel with a degree in chemistry and went on to earn her Ph.D. in biology from the University of Texas in Austin.

Held has served on numerous federal agency review panels, including the National Institutes of Health, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), and the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command, as well as other organizations including the Radiological Society of North America. Dr. Held is an Associate Radiation Biologist in the Department of Radiation Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Associate Professor of Radiation Oncology (Radiation Biology) at Harvard Medical School (HMS). She was elected to Council in 2006 and served on the Board of Directors from 2008 to 2014. She was Scientific Vice President and Co-Chair of Program Area Committee 1 on Basic Criteria, Epidemiology, Radiobiology, and Risk from 2011 to 2016.

Commencement Exercises will include the awarding of degrees to graduates and recognition of retiring faculty members. Baccalaureate service will be held at 7 p.m. Saturday, May 7 in the David Johnson Memorial Chapel on campus.