Honorary Degrees and Speakers
New York University is pleased to recognize several distinguished individuals at this year's All-University Commencement Exercises.
Honorary Degree Recipients
Commencement for the Class of 2022
Taylor Swift (Credit: Beth Garrabrant)
Taylor Swift
Singer, songwriter, producer, and director Taylor Swift will receive a Doctor of Fine Arts, honoris causa, at the Commencement for the Class of 2022 and will deliver remarks on behalf of the honorary degree recipients.
Susan Hockfield
Susan Hockfield
Susan Hockfield, President Emerita and Professor of Neuroscience at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will receive a Doctor of Science, honoris causa.
Félix V. Matos Rodríquez
Félix V. Matos Rodríguez
Félix V. Matos Rodríguez, Chancellor of the City University of New York, will receive a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa.
Honorary Degree Recipients
Commencement for the Class of 2020 and the Class of 2021
Judith Heumann
Judith Heumann
Lifelong disability rights advocate Judith Heumann will receive a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa, at the Commencement for the Class of 2020 and Class of 2021, and will deliver remarks on behalf of the honorary degree recipients.
Lonnie G. Bunch III (Credit: Robert Stewart, Smithsonian Institution)
Lonnie G. Bunch III
Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution Lonnie G. Bunch III will receive a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa.
Jill Lepore (Credit: Stephanie Mitchell, Harvard University)
Jill Lepore
Harvard professor of history, author, and journalist Jill Lepore will receive a Doctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa.
Gallatin Medals and Rudin Awards
Additional honors will be presented at pre-Commencement events.
The Albert Gallatin Medal for Outstanding Contributions to Society will be presented to two recipients this year.
- Joel S. Ehrenkranz (LAW '61, '63)—NYU trustee; NYU School of Law life trustee; founding partner, Ehrenkranz Partners LP; and noted philanthropist—will receive the honor for his lifelong commitment to expanding opportunities for talented students of modest means and for his success in promoting a dynamic and inclusive arts community in New York and around the world.
- Evan R. Chesler (ARTS '70; LAW '75)—renowned litigator, educator, philanthropist, NYU trustee, NYU School of Law trustee, and Chair of the NYU Arts and Science Board—will be recognized for his extraordinary support for the NYU community as a generous patron, avid mentor, and inspired educator, as well his outstanding contributions to the legal profession.
The Lewis Rudin Award for Exemplary Service to New York City will be presented to Mitchell L. Moss, Henry Hart Rice Professor of Urban Policy & Planning and director of the Rudin Center for Transportation Policy & Management at the Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Administration at NYU.