Neumann University will present honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees to Bill and Natalie McLaughlin on Dec. 20 during a winter graduation ceremony that will welcome approximately 200 students into its alumni ranks.

Pending the results of final exams, the university will award four associate degrees, 128 bachelor’s degrees, 50 master’s degrees, and 18 doctoral degrees at a 6 PM ceremony, officiated by Dr. Chris Domes and Board Chair Anthony Latini in the Mirenda Center.

“Longtime friends of Neumann, the McLaughlins have exhibited unwavering support of education at all levels, contributed tirelessly to business and civic engagement in regional and international arenas, and shown steadfast loyalty to the mission of the Sisters of St. Francis of Philadelphia,” according to a university press release.

Bill McLaughlin is president of McLaughlin & Morgan, Inc. which assists Irish and American firms entering transatlantic markets.  In 1999 he founded the Irish American Business Chamber & Network and advises the organization now as chairman emeritus.

He started the Main Line Girls Basketball Association in 1992, and more than 15,000 girls have participated.

He is active in business, education, and civic organizations and serves on the boards of the Global Interdependence Center and SMART States.

He was formerly on the boards of Neumann University, the President’s Advisory Council of LaSalle University, The Catholic Philopatrian Literary Institute, and the Merion Community Association. He is also an ambassador of The Union League of Philadelphia.  

Bill McLaughlin was raised with his four sisters in Sharon Hill.  He was greatly influenced by his grandmother, who emigrated from Ireland in 1889 at age 19 and lived with his family until she died in 1959.  

A graduate of Monsignor Bonner High School and LaSalle University, McLaughlin was the first in his family to attend college.

Natalie Morgan McLaughlin worked with parents of neurologically impaired children at St. Christopher’s Hospital in North Philadelphia for 12 years before raising their children and volunteering in their schools. 

She and Bill founded their former marketing communications business, and she has assisted Bill with the Irish American Chamber, the Main Line Girls Basketball Association, and other non-profits. She also manages their investment properties.   

A native of Kankakee County, Illinois, Natalie McLaughlin studied at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago, Illinois. She moved to Philadelphia after college and started her career.

The couple established the Bill & Natalie McLaughlin Scholarship Fund, which has been awarded six times to four students.  A scholarship was also established in their honor by The Society of the Friendly Sons & Daughters of St. Patrick, which has helped additional students.

Bill and Natalie McLaughlin have been married for 42 years and live in Edgmont Township, Delaware County. They have three grown children and eight grandchildren, ages one to 10.