P. Hunter Peckham is a decorated Case Western Reserve University emeritus faculty member. He’s known worldwide for his research that has restored hand and arm control in paralyzed individuals and is the recipient of some of the university’s most prestigious awards—Distinguished University Professor and the Frank and Dorothy Humel Hovorka Prize.
His list of accolades grew once again recently when he received an honorary doctor of science degree from his undergraduate alma mater, Clarkson University.
The degree was awarded for “his lifelong commitment to innovative rehabilitation research that has greatly benefited civilians and veterans with spinal cord injuries, for his significant contributions to national rehabilitation research policy, and for his exceptional leadership of the biomedical and rehabilitation engineering community.”
In honor of the award, Peckham addressed the students during commencement ceremonies, providing insights and advice that came from his own experiences. He detailed the plans he had to pursue a PhD in fluid dynamics after graduating from Clarkson—plans that quickly changed after meeting a team in Cleveland that believed they could restore movement via electrical stimulation.