University of Southern Maine

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“The Young and the Restless” Actress Victoria Rowell to Speak at University of Southern Maine (USM) Commencement; Bob Ludwig of Gateway Mastering to Receive Honorary Doctorate

May 10, 2006

Victoria Rowell, who grew up in foster care in Portland and went on to dance professionally and act in TV and films, will be the speaker at the University of Southern Maine’s 126th commencement ceremony at 9 a.m. on Saturday, May 13, in the Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland.

Rowell will receive an honorary doctorate of humane letters for her commitment to social justice with respect to foster children and youth.  She founded the Rowell Foster Children’s Positive Plan (RFCPP), a program that introduces foster children to the fine arts, athletics, and summer camps early in life, and also offers job placement aid for youths who become emancipated from foster care.

Born in Maine, Rowell was enrolled in classical ballet classes by her mother Agatha Armstead when she was eight years old. She received scholarships at the Cambridge School of Ballet, the School of American Ballet, and the American Ballet Theater. She danced professionally before moving to modeling and then acting. She has received seven NAACP Image Awards and was nominated for an Emmy Award for her long-running role on the daytime drama, “The Young and the Restless.” Other acting credits include roles on “The Cosby Show,” eight years on “Diagnosis Murder,” and a number of movies including “Eve’s Bayou.”

Bob Ludwig, of Gateway Mastering and DVD, Portland, one of the foremost audio mastering engineers in the music recording industry, will also receive an honorary doctorate of humane letters for contributions to his field.

Trained in classical trumpet and music literature at the Eastman School of Music, where he earned a master’s degree, he has become a technical wizard at judging sound and balance. His recordings are nominated for Grammys virtually every year. In 2005, Gateway mastered 28 recordings that received Grammy nominations; 10 were winners. Last year he was named co-chair of the Producers and Engineers Wing of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the organization that awards the Grammys. He has won an unprecedented 12 annual Technology, Excellence and Creativity Awards presented by the Mix Foundation for Excellence in Audio.

He has worked with the likes of Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Bette Midler, Tony Bennet, Aretha Franklin, Luciano Pavarotti and Philip Glass. He is the recipient of the first Les Paul Award, which honors those who set the highest standards of excellence in the creative application of recording technology.

Ludwig has been active in the pre-planning phase of a new performance and teaching facility for USM’s School of Music and has donated professional-level digital audio recorders to USM’s Corthell Concert Hall. In addition to working on recording projects with School of Music faculty, Ludwig has funded two Gateway Mastering Studio Scholarships for USM music students.

There are over 1,700 graduates in the Class of 2006, of which 1,200 are expected to participate in the ceremony.  USM serves some 11,000 students with campuses in Portland, Lewiston, and Gorham, Maine.

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