H o n o r a ry D e g r e e s An honorary degree is awarded to a person deserving of honor by virtue of scholarly distinction, noteworthy public service or significant contributions to the state of Idaho. In the selection of candidates for honorary degrees, preference is given to those who are Idaho residents or University of Idaho graduates.
University of Idaho – Moscow - Honorary Doctorate Dennis Alvah Hanson grew up working in the family-owned engineering and manufacturing business, RAHCO, in Palouse, Washington and was mentored by many of the engineers who worked there. He graduated from Palouse High School in 1968 and attended Washington State University for three years. He was recently inducted into the 2021 class of the University of Idaho Academy of Engineers. Hanson helped RACHO grow into a world leader in the design and manufacture of specialized construction equipment. He traveled extensively to provide technical support for the operation of RAHCO equipment on construction projects in the U.S., South America, and the Middle East. Hanson was a member of the U.S. delegation to the U.S.S.R. for Design and Construction of Large Irrigation Canals to study the feasibility of reversing the flow of the Ob River in Siberia. This project was part of Dennis Hanson the Northern River Reversal program to divert northern flowing rivers to the southern agricultural areas across the country. The group traveled from Moscow to Pyatigorsk to Tashkent where they toured a site that had been excavated using detonations of three 15-kiloton nuclear devices. In 1977, he launched his own entrepreneurial career, managing Dye Seed Ranch Inc. in Pomeroy, Washington for the Dye family before purchasing it in 1983. He designed, built, and improved much of the machinery used for the processing of the raw grass seed and the packaging of the clean seed. In 2001, under the authority of the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act of 1980, Dye Seed entered into a cooperative research and development agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Dye Seed received three individual project letter agreements that supported collaboration with Initiatives for the Proliferation Prevention program of the DOE, the United States Industry Coalition, Inc. (USIC), and the cooperating new independent states of the Former Soviet Union (FSU). Dye Seed became a member of USIC, and Hanson traveled to the FSU several times. Dye Seed tested microbial bugs in Montana and hosted numerous scientific groups to visit the United States from the FSU. Dye Seed also provided Dennis Hanson with a reason to fly his own aircraft. He quickly earned his private pilot’s license and instrument rating during his first year at Dye Seed to facilitate his commute from Spokane to Pomeroy and went on to earn his Airplane Multiengine Land Airline Transport Pilot certificate with Commercial Privileges Airplane Single Engine Land, Airplane Single Engine Sea, RotorcraftHelicopter, and Instrument Helicopter ratings. He also holds a Mechanic certificate with Airframe and Powerplant ratings and a Certified Flight Instructor certificate. He has more than 15,000 flight hours and has had the opportunity to fly notable individuals such as Arnold Palmer, Tom Watson, Walter Cronkite, Shimon Peres, Benazir Bhutto, and Idaho Governor Butch Otter over the years.
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