Past Commencement Speakers and Honorary Degree Recipients
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Past Commencement Speakers
RECENT | |
2024 | James David Van Der Beek (CLA): Acclaimed actor, writer, and producer |
2023 | Rev. Dr. Daisy L. Machado: Historian, Author, and Renowned Minister to the Latinx Community |
2023 | Dr. Liana Piehler G’01: Drew Affiliate Professor of English and Arts & Letters Program Faculty Member |
2023 | Camille A. Brown: Tony Award Nominated Director and Choreographer |
2022 | Dr. Luis Jódar, Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Pfizer Vaccines |
2022 | Rev. Dr. Janet L. Wolf, Author and Member of the Executive/National Steering Committee of the Inside Out Prison Exchange Program |
2022 | Dr. Kimani Paul-Emile, Professor of Law, Associate Director, and Head of Domestic Programs and Initiatives at Fordham Law School’s Center on Race, Law & Justice, and faculty co-director of the Fordham Law School Stein Center for Law & Ethics |
2020/2021 | The Reverend Dr. Calvin O. Butts III T’82 |
2019 | Christine Todd Whitman, Former Governor of New Jersey |
2018 | John Leguizamo, Actor, Comedian and Activist |
2018 | Mallory Mortillaro C’13, G’15, Sesquicentennial Speaker |
2017 | The Rev. Dr. William Barber II T’03, Sesquicentennial Speaker |
2017 | Julia Wolfe, MacArthur Fellow, Pulitzer Prize–Winner in Music |
2016 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Basketball Legend, Activist, Author |
2015 | Rob Franek C’93, Senior Vice President/Publisher, The Princeton Review |
2014 | Vivian A. Bull, President, Drew University |
2013 | Frank Occhiogrosso, Professor of English |
2012 | The Honorable Barry T. Albin, Associate Justice, New Jersey Supreme Court |
2011 | Shirley Ann Jackson, President, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute |
2010 | Michael Lewis, Author |
2000s | |
2009 | Gerald Stern, Poet |
2008 | Cory Booker, Mayor of the City of Newark, New Jersey |
2007 | Richard Codey, President New Jersey Senate |
2006 | Candy Crowley, Senior Political Correspondent, CNN |
2005 | Thomas H. Kean, President of Drew University |
2004 | Shirley Tilghman, President of Princeton University |
2003 | James E. McGreevey, Governor of New Jersey |
2002 | Bill Cosby, Actor (degree rescinded) |
2001 | Richard Holbrooke, Former Ambassador to U.N. |
2000 | Bill Richardson, U.S. Secretary of Energy |
1990s | |
1999 | Christopher Reeve, Actor |
1998 | James Earl Jones, Actor |
1997 | Christine Todd Whitman, Governor of New Jersey |
1996 | First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton |
1995 | Andrew Shue, Do Something |
1995 | Wendy Kopp, Teach for America |
1994 | Mario Cuomo |
1993 | Olympia Dukakis, Actress |
1992 | David Halberstam, Author |
1991 | Thomas Pickering, U.N. Ambassador |
1990 | George Romney, Former Governor of Michigan |
1980s | |
1989 | Arno Penzias |
1988 | Rosalyn Yalow |
1987 | John Amos, Actor |
1986 | Richard Reeves, Journalist |
1985 | Bill Bradley, U.S. senator |
1984 | John Brademas, President of NYU |
1983 | Marie L. Garibaldi, New Jersey Supreme Court Justice |
1982 | Thomas H. Kean, Governor of New Jersey |
1981 | Dr. William O. Baker, Chairman (ret) Bell Laboratories |
1980 | Eudora Welty, Novelist, Pulitzer Prize Winner |
1970s | |
1979 | Alan Alda, Actor |
1978 | Jean Rey, Ministre d’Etat of Belgium |
1977 | Jennifer E. Beaver ’77, representing all of the schools |
1976 | Millicent Fenwick, Congresswoman, Fifth District of New Jersey |
1975 | Kenneth E. Grebenstein, SGA President, representing all schools |
1974 | Terry Sanford, President of Duke University |
1973 | William Pearson Tolley, Chancellor Emeritus, Syracuse University |
1972 | Otto Klineberg, Director of the International Center for Intergroup Relations |
1971 | James E. Cheek, President of Howard University |
1970 | William R. Keast, President of Wayne State Universitiy |
1960s | |
1969 | Louis T. Benezet, President of Claremont University Center |
1968 | Sharvy G. Umbeck, Chair of the American Council on Education |
1967 | Erwin D. Canham, Editor in Chief, Christian Science Monitor |
1966 | Harry D. Gideonse, President Brooklyn College, CUNY |
1965 | Harrison E. Salisbury, Assistant Managing Editor, New York Times |
1964 | Robert Fisher Oxnam, President of Drew University |
1963 | Robert Fisher Oxnam, President of Drew University |
1962 | Robert Fisher Oxnam, President of Drew University |
1961 | Robert Fisher Oxnam, President of Drew University |
1960 | Hugh L. Dryden, Deputy Administrator, NASA |
1950s | |
1959 | Fred G. Holloway, President of Drew University |
1958 | Charles C. Parlin |
1957 | C. Douglas Dillon, Deputy Under Secretary of State |
1956 | Fred G. Holloway, President of Drew University |
1955 | Fred G. Holloway, President of Drew University |
1954 | Fred G. Holloway, President of Drew University |
1953 | Fred G. Holloway, President of Drew University |
1952 | Fred G. Holloway, President of Drew University |
1951 | Arolo Ayres Brown, President Emeritus, Drew University |
1950 | The Rev. Donald B. Aldrich, Dean of the Chapel, Princeton University |
Past Honorary Degree Recipients
2024 | James David Van Der Beek (CLA), Harriett Jane Olson (THEO) |
2023 | Rev. Dr. Daisy L. Machado (DTS), Dr. Liana Piehler G’01 (CSGS), Camille A. Brown (CLA), Harold Gary (CLA) |
2022 | Dr. Luis Jódar, Rev. Dr. Janet L. Wolf, Dr. Kimani Paul-Emile |
2020/2021 | Yamiche Alcindor |
2019 | Dean T. Criares C’85 Karen Oliveto C’80, G’91,’02 |
2018 | Arnold L. Demain, Steven Gilbert |
2017 | William Barber II T’03, Julia Wolfe |
2016 | Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, William C. Campbell, Robert Ready |
2015 | Rob Franek C’93, Bob Conley |
2014 | In Hwan Kim, Hugh A. D’Andrade |
2013 | Hedy Brasch, Edward W. Poitras |
2012 | Barry T. Albin, Barbara Morris Caspersen, Edmund D. Pellegrino, Wilbert Mitchell |
2011 | Maxine Clarke Beach, Clarence B. Jones, Joan C. Verplanck, Shirley Ann Jackson |
2010 | John Shelby Spong, Judy Shepard, Arturo A. Valenzuela, Michael Lewis |
2009 | Gerald Stern, Arnold Demain, Nina Wells |
2008 | Cory Booker, David Grant, Mary Sue Sweeney Price, Joseph Blotner |
2007 | Richard J. Codey, Ernest S. Lyght, Eugene M. Lang, Jean B. Gazarian |
2006 | Kevin Murphy, Susan M. Morrison |
2005 | Bonnie Monte, Victor Parsonnet |
2004 | Shirley M. Tilghman, Clement Price, Roger H. Martin, Rodney Frelinghuysen |
2003 | James E. McGreevey, Vivian A. Bull, Sol Gittleman, Larry Shinn |
2002 | William H. Cosby Jr. (degree rescinded), Raymond A. Brown, Deborah T. Poritz, Warren J. Sinsheimer |
2001 | Richard Holbrooke, Pita John Ala’ilima, Heath B. McLendon, James H. Pain |
2000 | Bill Richardson, Barbara Bell Coleman, Michele K. Guhl |
1999 | Christopher Reeve, Helen C. Fenske, Lawrence Horner |
1998 | James Earl Jones, Herman A. Estrin, Melville D. Miller |
1997 | Christine Todd Whitman, Fred M. Kirby II, DeForest Soaries |
1996 | Hillary Rodham Clinton, Alfredo Martinez Moreno, Nancy Schaenen |
1995 | Andrew Shue, Wendy Kopp, Robert C. Woolley, Dorothy Young |
1994 | Mario Cuomo, Donald Payne, George Eberhardt |
1993 | Olympia Dukakis, Jeffrey Smith, Hae-Jong Kim, Ruth Churchill |
1992 | David Halberstam, Robert Luciano, Althea Gibson, Rand Castile |
1991 | Thomas R. Pickering, Sharpe James, Albert Baez, Kathleen Di Chiara |
1990 | George Romney, Raymond Chambers, Mary Smith, John Henry Kruse |
1989 | Thomas H. Denman, Grace Murray Hopper, Arno A. Penzias |
1988 | George DeStevens, George G. Reader, Leonard J. Soucy Jr., Rosalyn S. Yalow |
1987 | John Allen Amos Jr., Horton Foote, Jerome Hines |
1986 | Richard Reeves, Richard Walker |
1985 | Bill Bradley, Bruce Ritter, William James, George Kelsey |
1984 | John Brademas, Saul Cooperman, Barent Johnson |
1983 | Marie L. Garibaldi, Sam Jaffe, Bettye Ackerman, Lewis Thomas |
1982 | Thomas H. Kean, Albert W. Merck, Robert W. Edgar, William H. Gray III, Vartan Gregorian |
1981 | William O. Baker, Tai-Young Lee |
1980 | Eudora Welty |
1979 | Alan Alda |
1978 | Ruth Cameron Webb, Jean Rey |
1977 | Alexander L. Boraine, Maud Keister Jensen, Robert Fillen Smith, Manas Buthelezi |
1976 | Millicent Fenwick, John T. Cunningham |
1975 | John Lewis Pepin |
1974 | Allan H. Gilbert, Terry Sanford |
1972 | Owen Barfield, Otto Klineberg, Prince Albert Taylor Jr. |
1971 | James Edward Cheek, John Edward Horner, Luigi G. Ligutti, William Paul Stillman, Ignatius Yacob, III |
1970 | Frank Lusk Babbott, Peter Randolph Jennings |
2025 Honorary Degree Nominations & Speakers
The Honorary Degrees Subcommittee of the Board of Trustees will soon begin the process to select this year’s honorary degree recipients.
We will invite the Drew community to nominate candidates who you think would merit an honorary degree from Drew, especially those who are alums of our three schools.
The Subcommittee will consider nominations in the context of Drew’s mission of education, scholarship and service. Honorees will be selected based on their record of advancing their chosen field in significant ways and/or of having made distinguished contributions to society in areas such as business, public service and government, humanitarian work, law and the arts.
Noteworthy contributions to the mission of Drew will also be considered as an additional qualification.
All honorary degrees are awarded at Commencement ceremonies in May.
