At Commencement on May 20, 2026, Columbia University conferred honorary degrees upon two distinguished alumni of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, celebrating lives of extraordinary intellectual achievement and public impact. Gathered on the steps of Low Memorial Library, the Columbia community witnessed Acting President Claire Shipman bestow a Doctor of Letters upon Columbia Professor Emerita Harriet Zuckerman (GSAS ’65) and a Doctor of Laws upon Dr. Michael L. Lomax (GSAS ’72).
Awarded annually to individuals whose scholarly, artistic, and civic contributions embody the highest ideals of the University, honorary degrees represent Columbia’s most prestigious distinction. Through these honors, the University recognizes not only exceptional accomplishment, but also enduring contributions to knowledge, leadership, and the public good.
Dr. Michael L. Lomax earned a Master of Arts in English Literature from Columbia in 1972 before going on to receive a PhD in American and African American Literature from Emory University, where he later served as a trustee and was honored with the Emory Medal in 2004. For more than two decades , Dro Lomaz served as president and CEO of the UNCF (United Negro College Fund), guiding the nation’s largest and most effective minority education organization in its mission to expand educational opportunity and support historically Black colleges and universities. His distinguished career in education and public leadership has also included service on the board of Teach for America. Lomax was the founding director of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington DC. You can read more about Dr. Lomax here.
Professor Emerita Harriet Zuckerman earned her PhD in Sociology from Columbia University in 1965 and went on to teach at the University for twenty-seven years, including four years as department chair. A trailblazer within the institution, she was the first woman appointed to an assistant professorship at Columbia, and later the first to attain the rank of full professor. Widely recognized as a pioneer in the sociology of science and higher education, Zuckerman later served as the Senior Vice President of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, where she directed major grant portfolios for universities, scholarship, and research initiatives. Her distinguished record of academic and public service has also include positions on the board of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation and the Advisory Committee of Columbia University Press. Read more about Professor Emerita Zuckerman here.
For a full list of this year’s honorary degree recipients, and more information about the awardees, visit Columbia News.
