ANN ARBOR—The co-founder of Google, an engineer committed to sustainability, a university president, a world-renowned psychologist, a business person devoted to higher education, and an alumna with a life of service and philanthropy are among the honorary degree recipients at the University of Michigan spring commencement.

UM-Dearborn will honor a nationally recognized advocate for children and underserved populations and an alumnus dedicated to making education accessible. UM-Flint will present an honorary degree to a former speaker of the state House.

Google co-founder and 1995 U-M graduate Larry Page will be the main speaker during spring commencement May 2 in Ann Arbor. The U-M Board of Regents voted in January to approve an honorary Doctor of Engineering Degree for Page. The board approved eight more honorary degrees at its meeting Thursday.

“Larry Page, in the universe of the World Wide Web, your inventions allow us to discover immediately the most relevant information existing among billions of items,” the honorary degree citation says. “Moreover, you have expanded our world of knowledge and engaged all generations by inviting us ‘to Google,’ expanding our vocabulary and lives with a new action-verb full of creative brilliance.”

Page, a native of East Lansing and son of one of U-M’s earliest computer science graduates, developed the PageRank algorithm with his partner Sergey Brin in the late 1990s. In 2004, they launched Google Books, an ambitious plan to boost access to the world’s libraries, including U-M’s massive library collection.

In addition to Page, these are the honorary degree nominees:

Ann Arbor ceremony May 2 at Michigan Stadium

Donald Graham, Doctor of Engineering. Graham has enjoyed a career of thriving transformation, beginning in engineering and expanding into the realm of global investment, while remaining deeply committed to supporting higher education and environmental sustainability, including the establishment of the Graham Environmental Sustainability Institute.

Freeman Hrabowski, Doctor of Laws. Hrabowski is an internationally recognized leader in science, engineering, and mathematics education, a scholar who has placed a special emphasis on minority participation and excellence in these fields, while rising to the position of President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County.

Michael Posner, Doctor of Science, who will give the commencement address at the University Graduate Exercises May 1. Posner is a world-renowned psychologist, often credited with originating the field of cognitive neuroscience, which uses brain imaging techniques in the study of cognitive processes. Currently, he is professor emeritus in the Department of Psychology at the University of Oregon and adjunct professor at the Sackler Institute of the Weill Medical College at Cornell University.

Richard Rogel, Doctor of Laws. Rogel has transformed countless lives through his lifelong commitment to increasing access to educational opportunities and health care. He came to U-M as a student in the business school, where he graduated as valedictorian in 1970. In his early career, he was a management consultant, an associate in corporate finance, and then owner and administrator of a multi-specialty medical center. In 2000, he agreed to serve initially as co-chair, and then as chair of the National Campaign Leadership Cabinet for The Michigan Difference, the campaign that eventually raised $3.2 billion and will forever benefit future generations of U-M students, faculty, and staff.

Joan Hyman Tisch, Doctor of Laws. Tisch has led a life of inspired service and outstanding philanthropy, providing time, energy and resources to educational, civic and cultural organizations around the country, particularly to universities and to the city of New York. She arrived at U-M more thansix decades ago, leaving the university with her bachelor’s degree in English and with her husband and future partner in philanthropy, Preston Robert Tisch, whom she met on the steps of Hatcher Library.

UM-Dearborn ceremony May 3 at the fieldhouse

Ismael Ahmed, Doctor of Laws. Ahmed is a nationally recognized advocate for children and for poor and underserved populations, as well as an expert in immigration and social reform. He serves as director of the Michigan Department of Human Services, appointed by Governor Jennifer Granholm in 2007. He leads the state’s second largest agency, with oversight of programs in medical and food assistance for low-income families.

Arthur Kochoff, Doctor of Laws. Kochoff has devoted much of his time and energy to assuring that UM-Dearborn will be accessible to all students who want to enroll. From his earliest days on the Ford Motor Co. assembly line to his years spent studying for multiple degrees at UM-Dearborn, Kochoff has demonstrated a love for education and a dedication to supporting higher education.

UM-Flint ceremony May 3 at the Perani Arena and Event Center

Bobby Crim, Doctor of Laws. Crim has contributed significantly to the history of the state of Michigan through his service in elected office and as speaker of the Michigan House of Representatives. Additionally, for the past three decades, he has promoted the health of the state by encouraging physical fitness and by establishing a road race that has become legendary and which bears his name.