Edmund Daniel Pellegrino (born June 22, 1920)[1] was the 11th president of The Catholic University of America and the second layman to hold the position.
He was the Chairman of the President's Council on Bioethics under former U.S. President George W. Bush, and was the founder of the Center for Clinical Bioethics at Georgetown University.
A graduate of St. John's University and New York University, Dr. Pellegrino is the author of more than 575 published articles and chapters in medical science, philosophy and ethics. He served residencies in medicine at Bellevue, Goldwater Memorial and Homer Folks Tuberculosis Hospitals, following which he was a research fellow in renal physiology and medicine at New York University. He has been a department chairman and dean, as well as President of the Catholic University of America. Dr. Pellegrino is a master of the American College of Physicians, a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Hastings Center fellow, and the recipient of more than 40 honorary degrees. The author of 11 books, Dr. Pellegrino's research interests include the history and philosophy of medicine, professional ethics, the patient-physician relationship and biomedical ethics in a culturally pluralistic society. Pellegrino is a senior fellow of The Center for Bioethics & Human Dignity.
Dr. Pellegrino has appeared on episode 11 of "Da Ali G Show" on HBO, when Ali G conducts a panel on medical ethics with several renowned experts, including Dr. Pellegrino, pressing his guests on issues of cloning (why not clone Carmen Electra?), euthanasia (vs. "youth in Asia") and plastic surgery. Pellegrino's comment, "It's a matter of taste," [2] has become one of the most paraphrased lines from the episode.
| Preceded by Clarence C. Walton, Ph.D. |
President of CUA 1978–1982 |
Succeeded by Rev. William J. Byron, S.J. |