GREENVILLE, PA – Dr. Carl Hoffman Jr. ’69, a doctor of osteopathic medicine, certified correctional health care provider and successful entrepreneur, will serve as keynote speaker at Thiel College’s commencement at 10 a.m. Saturday, May 3.

Another Thiel College alumnus, Joseph S. Werlinich ’53, will be awarded an honorary degree during the ceremony.

Hoffman is the president and corporate medical director of PrimeCare Medical Inc. and PrimeCare Medical of West Virginia Inc., the largest providers of health care to county jails and juvenile facilities in Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

While he began his career in medicine as an active family and general practitioner in Harrisburg in the mid-1970s, Hoffman also worked as medical director for the state correctional institution in Camp Hill, Pa. He saw opportunity when changes occurred in the correctional institution’s medical system and by 1986 had founded PrimeCare Medical Inc. PrimeCare manages health care services for  jails, prisons and juvenile detention centers throughout the northeastern United States, offering customized medical programs that include medical, mental health, dental, pharmacy, laboratory and nursing services. Today, PrimeCare provides contracted health services to 52 correctional and juvenile facilities in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Maryland and New Hampshire. Hoffman’s multi-million dollar business now has more than 750 employees.

Hoffman is active in numerous civic and professional organizations including the Pennsylvania State Bank, American Osteopathic Association, Pennsylvania Osteopathic Medical Association, Academy of Correctional Health Professionals, American Correctional Association and Beta Beta Beta National Biological Society. He is the past medical director and director of medical education at Community General Osteopathic Hospital in Harrisburg and is a lecturer for the Philadelphia and New York Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine.

A former member of the Thiel Alumni Board of Directors and Board of Associates, Hoffman is a current member of the Thiel College Board of Trustees.

Werlinich, professor of administrative and policy studies at the University of Pittsburgh and co-director of the Western Pennsylvania Principals Academy, has dedicated his life to the field of education. Armed with a bachelor’s degree from Thiel and a master’s degree from Pitt, he began his career as a high school teacher and coach in the Mercer Area School District and later as dean of students at Thiel before returning to the University of Pittsburgh. He has recently concluded his 43rd academic year at Pitt, making him the most senior member of the education faculty. During his tenure, he has taught more than 300 graduate students and doctoral candidates and received more than $42 million in federal grants and foundation funding.

Werlinich also is the founder and current co-director of the Western Pennsylvania Principals Academy, a group that provides principals with support and resources as well as learning and leadership opportunities. He also co-directs the National Principals Initiative, a program that helps build leadership skills among administrators, especially principals, of urban school districts through the United States. Werlinich is a well-known negotiator for schools in crisis situations for local school districts and the U.S. Department of Justice. Currently, he is focusing on improving student learning and achievement through leadership development and differentiated teacher supervision programs. Werlinich will receive an honorary doctor of humanities degree.

Thiel College, located in Greenville, Pa., is a liberal arts, sciences and professional studies college related to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.