(Posted May 12, 2008)

HUNTINGDON, Pa. -- Eileen Sill, a native of Altoona, Pa. and retired executive with RDS Insurance Agency Inc. in Yardley, Pa., will receive an honorary doctor of humane letters degree from Juniata College, Saturday, May 11 at 10 a.m. during Juniata's 130th commencement ceremony.

"Eileen Sill has been a great addition to our board of trustees and she has always been an avid supporter of Juniata's programs," says Thomas R. Kepple, president of Juniata. "She and her husband Bob have helped expand the college's curriculum into entrepreneurial programs and have always been visionary donors to the college."

"She and her husband Bob have helped expand the college's curriculum into entrepreneurial programs and have always been visionary donors to the college."

Thomas R. Kepple, Juniata president

The commencement address will be given by Michael Klag, dean of the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, in Baltimore, Md.

Eileen Sill, a 1957 Juniata graduate, and her husband, Bob Sill, who graduated from Juniata in 1959, have been active supporters of Juniata's educational mission for decades. Eileen Sill was appointed to the college's board of trustees in 1999 and continues to serve on the board.

The Sills have been significant donors to Juniata. Their gift of $500,000 helped establish the college's Juniata College Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership and the Bob and Eileen Sill Business Incubator. The incubator, established in 2004, has helped launch more than a dozen local and student businesses. The Sills also contributed $500,000 to the construction of the William J. von Liebig Center for Science. The college's boardroom is named in honor of the couple.

Eileen Sill started her career after Juniata as an educator, working at Huntingdon Area High School and Mount Union Junior High School early in her career. She taught English at Pennsbury Senior High School in Pennsbury, Pa. from 1963 to 1983. In 1983 she became secretary-treasurer of the Sill's State Farm insurance agency in Yardley, Pa.

Eileen has remained an active volunteer at the college, participating in the college's alumni council and the Philadelphia Area Alumni Association. She has been named to the Planning Committee for the Sports Center Campaign and the Campaign for the Sciences. She also is a past member of the Trustees Development Council. She also served as a member of Juniata's presidential search committee in 1986.

The Sills have four children; Cindy Sill Allen, a 1980 Juniata graduate; Joy Sill Hopkins, a 1981 Juniata graduate, Robert D. Sill Jr.; and Karen Sill Wilkinson, a 1985 Juniata graduate.



Contact April Feagley at feaglea@juniata.edu or (814) 641-3131 for more information.