Taft Stettinius & Hollister LLP is pleased to announce that James M. Anderson was awarded an honorary doctorate during the University of Cincinnati’s commencement ceremony on Dec. 8. UC President Neville Pinto named Anderson an Honorary Doctor of Science at the ceremony.

Taft Cincinnati partner-in-charge James M. Zimmerman commented, “We are delighted that the University of Cincinnati is honoring Jim in such a meaningful way. This recognition is a testament to his outstanding professional achievements, extraordinary community contributions and unique personal graciousness. Jim is a model of leadership, commitment and generosity for present and future generations.”

Anderson serves as a senior strategic and external affairs advisor for Taft. Previously, he served as the president and CEO of Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center from 1996 until his retirement in 2009. He was instrumental in shaping the extraordinary growth at Cincinnati Children’s, which ranks No. 3 among the nation’s best pediatric hospitals. Anderson’s appointment as president and CEO at Cincinnati Children’s followed 20 years of service to the Cincinnati Children’s Board of Trustees, including four years as chairman. Since his retirement, the James M. Anderson Center for Health Systems Excellence has been named in his honor. 

Before joining Cincinnati Children’s, Anderson was a partner in Taft’s general corporate department and president of U.S. operations at Xomox Corp., a publicly traded manufacturer of specialty process controls. He holds or has held other director- and officer-level positions with numerous corporations, including Meridian Bioscience Inc., Gateway Investment Trust and the UNIFI Companies.