Speaker and Honorees
Commencement Speaker
John Barr, PhD
A member of St. Ambrose’s faculty since 1992, Professor Barr has advised thousands of high school and college students about health care careers in his 28 years as an educator. He was instrumental in founding the St. Ambrose Physical Therapy program, which he directed until 2002. Professor Barr, a physical therapist, is a past president of both the Iowa Physical Therapy Association (IPTA) and its foundation, and was recently re-elected president of the Section on Geriatrics, a 5000-member clinical interest group of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA). He has authored textbook chapters on the use of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS), instrumentation, and pain management for the elderly. He is a recipient of IPTA’s Olive Farr Distinguished Service Award, and the ATPA Lucy Blair Service Award. He received his doctorate in exercise science from the University of Iowa, where he was a Geriatric Education Center fellow.
Honorary Degree Recipients
Rev. R. Walker Nickless 
Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters
The Sioux City, Iowa, bishop is being honored in recognition of his dedication to the Catholic Church and its people, including 35 years of service as pastor, vicar, monsignor and bishop; and for his support of Catholic education, marriages and families, and vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life. Until his appointment to Sioux City, he had spent his entire priesthood serving the Archdiocese of Denver. His 2006 ordination as leader of the Diocese of Sioux City was one of the first appointments made by Pope Benedict XVI. He earned his bachelor’s degree from St. Thomas Theological Seminary, Denver, and his master’s degree from Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1973.
Rev. Richard Pates
Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters
The bishop of the Diocese of Des Moines, Iowa, will receive his degree in recognition of his dedication to the Catholic Church and its people including 40 years of service as pastor, administrator, vicar, monsignor, auxiliary bishop and bishop. He served several pastoral and administrative roles in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minn., including secretary to Archbishop Leo Byrne. For six years, he assisted the Apostolic Nuncio, the Vatican’s representation in the United States. In 2008, he was ordained bishop of the Diocese of Des Moines. He earned a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and Latin from St. Paul Seminary, St. Paul, Minn., and completed seminary formation at Gregorian University, Rome, where he earned a licentiate in sacred theology in dogmatics. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1968.