| | From President Michelle J. Anderson |
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| Dear Brooklyn College Community, I am pleased to announce three extraordinary individuals who will be honored at the 2026 Brooklyn College Commencement Ceremony. At a time when democratic values are under strain and the rule of law requires vigilance and courage, we are proud to recognize leaders whose work protects the rights of many of our students, their families, and our broader community. |
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| | We are pleased to confer an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters upon Melissa Murray, widely known to the Brooklyn College community as the 2025–26 Hess Scholar. A nationally renowned public intellectual and legal scholar at New York University School of Law, Murray has helped shape contemporary debates on constitutional law, democracy, and reproductive rights, while advancing the public’s understanding of the law’s potential to build a more just and inclusive society. |
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| | Also to be conferred with an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters is Patrick Gaspard, a distinguished senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and former president and CEO, who also held senior roles in President Barack Obama’s administration, including U.S. ambassador to South Africa and director of the White House Office of Political Affairs. He most recently served as president of the Open Society Foundations, leading global initiatives on civil rights, public health, and democracy, building on a career that began as a union organizer and national political leader. |
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| | I will also award the Presidential Medal of Honor to Cecillia D. Wang, the National Legal Director at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), whose work has profoundly shaped the defense of immigrants’ rights in the United States. Over more than two decades at the ACLU, Wang has defended civil rights and civil liberties around the United States, including landmark cases challenging racial discrimination and unlawful policing and detention policies. On April 1 of this year, she argued before the United States Supreme Court to uphold birthright citizenship under the Fourteenth Amendment. |
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| The presence of these distinguished civil rights leaders will ensure that this year’s Commencement Ceremony is special. I am looking forward to it. With warm regards,
 Michelle J. Anderson
President |
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