Honorary Doctorate Degree Nomination

We invite you to nominate candidates to be considered for an honorary doctorate degree at a future commencement ceremony.

Honorary doctorate degrees are conferred by the City University of New York (CUNY) to individuals who have achieved national or international distinction. Nominees should have a record of accomplishment in the arts, business, humanities, sciences, or social sciences, and have made significant contributions to higher education in the United States or in a professional field closely related to academia.

Nominees may have also made significant contributions over a sustained period of time to the development of major programs at Brooklyn College or within CUNY, have a record of long and distinguished service to Brooklyn College or CUNY, or have made significant contributions to advancing the University's purpose and mission.

Nominees do not have to be natives of Brooklyn or New York, or graduates of Brooklyn College or CUNY. New York City and New York State elected officials are ineligible for consideration during their terms of office.

Past noteworthy recipients include award-winning author and MacArthur "Genius" Fellow Edwidge Danticat, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, and Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Dr. Anthony S. Fauci.

The deadline for submission is Friday, November 18.

Instructions for Submitting Your Nomination

To submit your nomination:

Assemble your nomination packet, as outlined in the "Nomination Packet Items" section below, into a single Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF document.
Complete the online nomination form.
Use the upload button to upload your nomination packet file.
Use the submit button to submit your nomination.

Nomination Packet Items

Please assemble the following items listed below. Your packet should be thorough and well-presented and demonstrate your support for the nominee.

Letter of Support

Submit a letter (one page or more) written by you (the nominator) that clearly articulates why the nominee is of exceptional merit and deserving of distinction. Requests to Google or Wiki the nominee in lieu of providing a detailed cover letter is not sufficient material for the Faculty Council Committee to make a determination on the nominee's merits.

Candidate's CV or Résumé

A strong CV or résumé should highlight the nominee's major accomplishments.

Candidate's Awards/Honors

A list of nationally or internationally renowned awards, honors, or prizes that the nominee has received (e.g., Academy, Emmy or Grammy awards; MacArthur, Nobel, or Pulitzer prizes), the year each was received, and the reason they received the award.

Examples of Candidate's Work

Include any news or journal articles, press, links to radio or television interviews, etc., that highlight and lend credence to the nominee's accomplishments. You may also wish to submit physical supplementary materials such as books, magazines, CDs, Blu-rays, or DVDs. If so, please indicate in your electronic submission that you will be sending hard copy supplementary material. Copies may be mailed to:

The Faculty Council Committee on Honorary Degrees
c/o The Office of the President
Brooklyn College
2900 Bedford Avenue
2129 Boylan Hall
Brooklyn, NY 11210