Speakers and Honorees Include Astrophysicist Neil DeGrasse Tyson, Journalist Joy Reid and Hip-Hop Artist Fat Joe
Graduates Include a Student Who Began Her Degree in 1977 and a Man Who Motivated His Mom to Join Him in College
Nearly 50,000 graduates of The City University of New York will attend more than two dozen commencements across the five boroughs starting this week as colleges hold ceremonies for the class of 2024. The graduates reflect the diversity of New York City and join millions of alumni who have leveraged the benefits of a high-quality, affordable CUNY education to build stable careers and live prosperous, well-rounded lives.
The CUNY Class of 2024 will celebrate their achievements over the next month at iconic New York locations, including the Apollo and United Palace theaters in Manhattan; Louis Armstrong Stadium in Queens and Nassau County’s UBS Arena; and Brooklyn’s Barclays Center and the Amphitheater at Coney Island Boardwalk.
“Congratulations to the Class of 2024 and their loved ones who have supported their journey to this momentous occasion,” said CUNY Chancellor Félix V. Matos Rodríguez. “I know that all of New York will join in our celebration of these talented graduates, all of whom will help strengthen our city. To our graduates, know that you leave CUNY well-prepared for an ever-changing workforce and world.”
‘Don’t ever stop believing in you’
Among CUNY’s graduates is Pamela Rider, who took her first CUNY class in 1977 and will now earn a bachelor’s degree in journalism from York College. Rider, now 64 years old, joins approximately 250 members of the CUNY Class of 2024 who are aged 60 or older. Originally pursuing a major in criminal justice at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Rider determined after three years that she was not interested in that field and pivoted to a long career with the United States Postal Service to provide for her family.
“Don’t ever stop believing in you. If there’s something you really want, and you’re persistent, then nothing’s going to stop you,” said Rider.
For many of our graduates, this will not be the first CUNY degree they earn. This is the case for Yamila Martinez, who earned an associate degree in 2021 from Borough of Manhattan Community College and this month will earn her bachelor’s degree from Hunter College. At Hunter, the Argentine native interned for a state legislator while raising her child, whom she was pregnant with as a junior.
“As a first-generation, nontraditional college student who came here and became a mother, I was motivated to succeed because there was no other choice,” she said. “I appreciate that my professors were flexible after I had my child, and this allowed me to focus on working hard to make it to this point.”
Some CUNY graduates inspire their families to follow in their footsteps. For Jaegger Pendoley, who will earn his associate degree in dental hygiene from New York City College of Technology, he has already motivated his mother, Betty Mounteney, to follow his lead. She is currently a first-year student in the same program and will pin him at his ceremony in June. He will continue at City Tech, working toward a bachelor’s degree in health sciences administration.
“My son’s ability to overcome his own challenges is the driving force behind my desire to create a future free from the anxieties of paying rent and securing meals,” said Mounteney. “And I aspire to give back by providing free dental cleanings in underserved neighborhoods.”
Speakers and Honorees
Dignitaries will join the graduates at the commencement ceremonies as speakers or honorees. Among them:
- Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, the director of the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History and a well-renowned science communicator, who will deliver the commencement address at Bronx Community College
- Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Co-Founder GeorgeD. Yancopoulos, a lifelong New Yorker who is among the most cited scientists in the world, who will receive an honorary degree from the CUNY Graduate Center
- Former U.S. Vice President Albert Gore Jr. will receive an honorary degree from Macaulay Honors College
- Hip-hop artist Joseph Antonio“Fat Joe” Cartagenaand playwright J. E. Franklin, both groundbreaking creatives in their fields, will receive honorary degrees from Lehman College
- Television host Joy-Ann Reid, host of MSNBC’s “The ReidOut” and author of “Medgar and Myrlie: Medgar Evers and the Love Story that Awakened America,” is the commencement speaker for Medgar Evers College
- Dr. Eliseo J. Pérez-Stable, director of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities at the National Institutes of Health,will deliver the keynote address to the graduates of the CUNY School of Medicine
- Trailblazing health care activist Byllye Avery, founder of the Black Women’s Health Imperative, will receive an honorary degree and deliver the commencement address at the CUNY Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy
Queens College, which is marking its 100th commencement exercises, will also mark the 60th anniversary of the murder of civil rights activists James E. Chaney, alumnus Andrew Goodman and Michael H. Schwerner during the Freedom Summer project in 1964. Goodman was a Queens College student when he was murdered, while Schwerner’s brother, Stephen A. Schwerner, was working at Queens College as a counselor at the time of his death. Stephen Schwerner and siblings of the other two martyred activists, David Goodman andJulia Chaney-Moss, will receive presidential medals at Queens College’s commencement.
CUNY Chancellor Matos Rodríguez will award an honorary degree to a longtime supporter of the University’s mission. Graham Holdings Company Chair Emeritus Donald E. Graham has been a staunch supporter of CUNY’s undocumented student population through his efforts as co-founder of TheDream.US, a program which, since 2013, has committed over $56 million to 1,917 scholars who have attended CUNY colleges. Graham has also joined the Chancellor in advocating for a permanent path to citizenshipfor student dreamers.
Mel’s Law
John Jay College of Criminal Justice is awarding a posthumous diploma to Melquain Jatelle Anderson, who was pursuing a bachelor’s degree in sociology at the college when he was tragically murdered in 2017 at age 27. Following strong advocacy from his mother, Michelle Barnes-Anderson, Gov. Kathy Hochul last year signed “Mel’s Law,” ensuring that CUNY and SUNY students whose death occurs prior to graduation can receive a posthumous degree in recognition of their higher education journey. Barnes-Anderson established a foundation in her son’s honor to provide support to the families of victims of gun violence, and the organization provides a scholarship and emergency fund to John Jay College students.
Below is a list of the University’s main 2024 commencement ceremonies:
Thursday, May 23
- College of Staten IslandCollege of Staten Island, Great Lawn, 9:30 a.m.
- CUNY School of Medicine
The City College of New York, Great Hall, 11 a.m. - CUNY School of Professional Studies
Louis Armstrong Stadium, 11 a.m. - CUNY School of LawApollo Theatre, 11 a.m.
- Macaulay Honors CollegeUnited Palace Theater, 3 p.m.
Friday, May 24
- Brooklyn College
Barclays Center, 9 a.m.
Tuesday, May 28
- Baruch CollegeBarclays Center, 9 a.m.
- John Jay College of Criminal JusticeBarclays Center, 3:30 p.m.
Wednesday, May 29
- Hostos Community College (first of two ceremonies)
Hostos Community College, Main Theater, 1 p.m. - CUNY School of Labor and Urban StudiesNew York Public Library, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, 4 p.m.
Thursday, May 30
- Queens CollegeQueens College, Quad, 9 a.m.
- York CollegeUBS Arena, 10 a.m.
- Lehman College
Lehman College, 10 a.m. - Hostos Community College (second of two ceremonies)
Hostos Community College, Main Theater, 11 a.m.
Friday, May 31
- Bronx Community CollegeBronx Community College, Ohio Field, 9:30 a.m.
- Queensborough Community CollegeQueensborough Community College, Athletic Field, 10 a.m.
- The City College of New YorkThe City College of New York, South Campus, 10 a.m.
- Medgar Evers CollegeFord Amphitheater at Coney Island, 10 a.m.
Tuesday, June 4
- Apollo Theater, 2 p.m.
- Hunter CollegeBarclays Center, 3 p.m.
Wednesday, June 5
- Borough of Manhattan Community CollegeBarclays Center, 8 a.m.
- CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies
CUNY Graduate Center, 10:30 a.m. - New York City College of TechnologyBarclays Center, 4 p.m.
Friday, June 7
- CUNY Graduate CenterLincoln Center, Geffen Hall, 1 p.m.
Tuesday, June 18
- Kingsborough Community CollegeKingsborough Community College, 11 a.m.
- Guttman Community CollegeBryant Park Lawn, 3 p.m.
Friday, June 21
- LaGuardia Community College
Queens College, Quad, 9 a.m.
One CUNY school, the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, will hold its commencement in December 2024 at The Times Center, following the school’s typical academic program length of three semesters.
The City University ofNew Yorkis the nation’s largest urban public university, a transformative engine of social mobility that is a critical component of the lifeblood of New York City. Founded in 1847 as the nation’s first free public institution of higher education, CUNY today has seven community colleges, 11 senior colleges and seven graduate or professional institutions spread across New York City’s five boroughs, serving more than 225,000 undergraduate and graduate students and awarding 50,000 degrees each year. CUNY’s mix of quality and affordability propels almost six times as many low-income students into the middle class and beyond as all the Ivy League colleges combined. More than 80 percent of the University’s graduates stay in New York, contributing to all aspects of the city’s economic, civic and cultural life and diversifying the city’s workforce in every sector. CUNY’s graduates and faculty have received many prestigious honors, including 13 Nobel Prizes and 26 MacArthur “Genius” Grants. The University’s historic mission continues to this day: provide a first-rate public education to all students, regardless of means or background. To learn more about CUNY, visit https://www.cuny.edu.
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