On Monday, Aug. 29 President Ron Liebowitz sent an email to the Brandeis community calling for nominations for 2023 Brandeis honorary degree recipients. President Liebowtiz stated that the “joyous time” of Brandeis Commencement “provides the university with the opportunity to recognize … individuals who embody the Brandeis spirit through their leadership…” in numerous areas. 

Brandeis honorary degrees are considered the university’s “highest honor,” notes Liebowitz in the email. Which has been bestowed upon many notable individuals over the years including Leonard Bernstein, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, John F. Kennedy, His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, Thurgood Marshall, Barbra Streisand and more. Honorary degree recipients are accomplished individuals whom Brandeis wishes to identify with through the awarding of honorary degrees. 

The university first awarded an honorary degree on June 14, 1953, at its second annual Commencement. “The University honors individuals for distinctive achievement in the creative and performing arts, humanities, social sciences, sciences, public service, philanthropy, business, the learned professions, social justice, Jewish life, international understanding and human rights,” notes the Honorary Degree History website linked in the email by Liebowitz. Recent honorary degree recipients include Christine Mann Darden and David Harris P’05 in 2022, Herman Hemingway, Lynn Schusterman, Bryan Stevenson and Robert J Zimmer ’68 in 2021, as seen on the list of prior recipients. 

Liebowitz wraps up his email by inviting community members to submit nominations for 2023 recipients. The nomination form asks for information on the nominee such as any connection to Brandeis, their current position or affiliation and the nominator’s rationale for bestowing the degree. The deadline to submit the form is Wednesday Sept. 14.