At the Columbia College Chicago Commencement each year, we honor outstanding individuals in the arts, education, politics and public information, people who have engaged their talents in important human service and whose life work and example embody the college's ideal and spirit.
2020 & 2021
GENSLER DESIGN TEAM: for its work on Columbia's Student Center
MICHAEL K. GOI, '80: Cinematographer, writer, and director
DOMINIC A. PACYGA: Author and Columbia professor emeritus in History
2022
DANNY FENSTER '09: Journalist and editor of Frontier Myanmar
MODESTO TICO VALLE: LGBTQ+ community leader and CEO of Center on Halsted
2023
CHRIS JONES: Chicago Tribune theatre critic and editorial page editor
BOBBI WILSYN: Jazz vocalist & retired Columbia faculty member
2019
ELZIE L. HIGGINBOTTOM: President and CEO of East Lake Management & Development Corporation
CHERYL JOHNSON-ODIM: Senior academic administrator, scholar, human rights activist
TONY SARABIA, '92: Award-winning radio journalist, WBEZ-FM
2018
DAWOUD BEY: Photographer and Columbia professor
PAUL BROUCEK, '74: President of music at Warner Bros. Pictures
JENNIFER FARRINGTON, '93: President and CEO of Chicago Children's Museum
MARY A. MITCHELL, '91: Editorial board member and columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times
2017
DAVID CROMER: Award-winning Theatre Director
RICHARD P. KIPHART (in memoriam): Former Chair, Columbia College Chicago Board of Trustees
MARK KELLY: Commissioner, Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events
KERRY JAMES MARSHALL: Artist and Painter of African -American Culture
JUDY and DENNIS SHEPARD: Founders, Matthew Shepard Foundation
2016
PAUL GARNES '96 Television and Movie Producer
JANE LYNCH Actor, Singer, and Comedian
TRACY K. SMITH Pulitzer Prize-winning Poet
CARLOS TORTOLERO Founder and President, National Museum of Mexican Art
DIANE WARREN Grammy Award-winning Songwriter
2015
LEONARD C. AMATO '75 President, HBO Films
CHESTER M. GREGORY '95 Stage Actor and Singer
JOSEFINA LOPEZ '93 Playwright, Screenwriter, and Theatre Producer
ANNA D. SHAPIRO '90 Tony Award-winning Theatre Director
NAN R. WARSHAW, MA '93 Co-founder, Bloodshot Records
2014
JEANNE GANG Architect
JIM JACOBS Composer, Lyricist, and Playwright
TONY KARMAN Promoter of Contemporary Art
GORDON QUINN Documentary Filmmaker
DIANE RAVITCH Professor and Historian of Education
2013
WARRICK L. CARTER President, Columbia College Chicago
JANE HAMILTON Novelist
HERBIE HANCOCK Pianist, Composer, and Bandleader
LORENZO (RENNIE) HARRIS Dancer, Choreographer, Dance Company Director, and Teacher
MARTHA NUSSBAUM Philosopher
JOSEPH SHANAHAN Founder and Owner, Metro and Smart Bar
JESSICA STOCKHOLDER Artist
ROBERT TEITEL '90 and GEORGE TILLMAN JR. '91 Filmmakers
ALLEN M. TURNER Former Chair, Columbia College Chicago Board of Trustees
2012
PHILIP LORCA diCORCIA Photographer
LEE FLAHERTY Founder and CEO, Flair Communications Agency
STEVE JAMES Documentary Filmmaker
PHIL RAMONE Record Producer and Recording Engineer
WARREN SPECTOR Video Game Designer
MAVIS STAPLES Grammy Award-winning Singer
2011
BRUCE MAU Designer
RYAN SCHREIBER Founder and Editor-in-Chief, Pitchfork
REGINA TAYLOR Actress and Playwright
2010
ROBERT KLEIN Actor and Comedian
ALEX KOTLOWITZ Author and Journalist
PETER MAGUBANE Photographer
2009
LEE ELIOT BERK Former President, Berklee College of Music
RAY BRADBURY Science Fiction Writer
TRISHA BROWN Dancer and Choreographer
CARLA DELFOS Executive Director, European League of Institutes of the Arts
ALISON KNOWLES Artist
THOMAS MISNER Audio Education Entrepreneur
KUNIHIKO UKIFUNE Advocate for Vocational Education
2008
PHILIP BAILEY, RALPH JOHNSON, MAURICE WHITE, VERDINE WHITE Band Members, Earth, Wind & Fire
GRACIELA ITURBIDE Photographer
DAN RATHER Broadcast Journalist
2007
JOE ADAMS Business Manager and Music Producer
ARMYAN BERNSTEIN Film Producer, Screenwriter, and Director
DIONNE WARWICK Grammy Award-winning Singer
2006
BUDDY GUY Blues Musician
LINDA JOHNSON RICE President and CEO, Johnson Publishing Company
BERNARD SAHLINS Founder, The Second City
2005
MARK HEISTER Fashion Designer
ALAN KAY Computer Scientist
BILL VIOLA Video Artist
2004
BILL T. JONES MacArthur Fellowship-winning Choreographer and Dancer
MARY ELLEN MARK Photographer and Humanist
FRANK RICH Columnist and Drama Critic, New York Times
2003
HENRY FOGEL President, Chicago Symphony Orchestra
TONY KUSHNER Playwright
RUSSELL SIMMONS Music Producer, Entrepreneur, and Hip-Hop Pioneer
LOIS WEISBERG Commissioner, Department of Cultural Affairs, City of Chicago
JOHN EDGAR WIDEMAN Writer
2002
ALAN ARKIN Screen Actor and Director
LEWIS MANILOW Founder, Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago
GRACE PALEY Writer and Political Activist
JAWOLE WILLA JO ZOLLAR Choreographer and Founder, Urban Bush Women
2001
MIKHAIL BARYSHNIKOV Dancer and Choreographer
DANNY K. DAVIS United States Representative, 7th Congressional District, Illinois
RENEE FERGUSON Emmy Award-winning Investigative Reporter
ALTON B. HARRIS Chair, Columbia College Chicago Board of Trustees
JESSE L. JACKSON JR. United States Representative, 2nd Congressional District, Illinois
LISEL MUELLER Pulitzer Prize-winning Poet
HAROLD RAMIS Film Director and Screenwriter
JOHN SZARKOWSKI Curator and Photographer
2000
ORAL LEE BROWN Philanthropist and Child Education Advocate
SIDNEY L. PORT Philanthropist and Businessman
ROBERT v. REMINI Historian
ROBERT SHAVE Founder and CEO, New Line Cinema
1999
SHERMAN JOSEPH ALEXIE JR. Novelist, Poet, and Filmmaker
ARTHUR C. NIELSEN JR. Former President and Chairman, A.G. Nielsen Company
SARA PARETSKY Mystery Writer
WILLIAM E. STRICKLAND JR. President and CEO, Manchester Bidwell Corporation
1998
JOHN H. BRYAN Chairman and CEO, Sara Lee Corporation
DAVID HENRY HWANG Tony Award-winning Playwright and Screenwriter
MOMMA HAWK Educator and Children's Advocate
WILLIAM WARFIELD Singer and Actor
1997
JAMES W. COMPTON President and CEO, Chicago Urban League
MARGARET CORBETT DALEY First Lady of the City of Chicago
FRED EYCHANER Media Innovator and Philanthropist
1996
ISABEL ALLENDE Writer
RICHARD HUNT Sculptor
IRV KUPCINET Chicago Sun-Times Gossip Columnist and Television Talk Show Host
JOHN W. ROGERS JR. Founder, Chairman, and CEO, Ariel Capital Management
PAUL SIMON United States Senator, Illinois
1995
EUGENE C. D'ANGELO JR. Television News Innovator
SANDRA P. GUTHMAN President and CEO, Polk Bros. Foundation
JOHN H. JOHNSON Founder, Chairman, and CEO, Johnson Publishing Company
ANN LANDERS Syndicated Advice Columnist
VICTOR SKREBNESKI Photographer
BEN VEREEN Stage and Film Actor, Dancer, and Singer
1994
MYRLIE EVERS-WILLIAMS Civil Rights Activist
JOHN HOPE FRANKLIN Presidential Medal of Freedom-winning Historian
HAGE G. GEINGOB Prime Minister, Republic of Namibia
JOHN T. RICHARDSON Former President, DePaul University
RITA SIMO Founder and Executive Director, The People's Music School
1993
JANE ALEXANDROFF Former First Lady of Columbia College Chicago
ETTA MOTEN BARNETT Singer, Actress, and Chicago Civic Leader
RIGOBERTA MENCHU Nobel Peace Laureate, 1992
CAROL MOSELEY BRAUN United States Senator, Illinois
CINDY PRITZKER President, Board of Directors, Chicago Public Library
COKIE ROBERTS Senior News Analyst, National Public Radio
1992
HENRY AARON Hall-of-Fame Baseball Player
MATHILDE KRIM Medical Researcher and Founding Chair, American Foundation for AIDS Research
HEDRICK L. SMITH Journalist
1991
WILLARD L. BOYD President, Field Museum of Chicago
JOHNATHAN RODGERS President, Television Stations Division, CBS
HELEN VALDEZ President, Mexican Fine Arts Center Museum
DOUGLAS TURNER WARD Founding Artistic Director, The Negro Ensemble Company
1990
LEON DESPRES Former Alderman, City of Chicago
FAITH HUBLEY Academy Award-winning Animated Filmmaker
YOUSUF KARSH Photographer
CLARENCE PAGE Syndicated Columnist
HASKELL WEXLER Academy Award-winning Cinematographer
1989
LEON LEDERMAN Nobel Laureate in Physics, 1988
BERNARD LOWN Cardiologist and Nobel Peace Laureate, 1985
STERLING STUCKEY Historian
BERNICE WEISSBOURD Founder and President, Family Focus
1988
JOHN BIRKS "DIZZY" GILLESPIE Jazz Trumpeter
ARDIS KRAINIK General Director, Lyric Opera of Chicago
MIKE ROYKO Newspaper Columnist
KENNETH G. RYDER President, Northeastern University
WILLIAM JULIUS WILSON Sociologist
1987
JACK BRICKHOUSE Sportscaster
MARGARET BURROUGHS Founder, DuSable Museum
PASTORA SAN JUAN CAFFERTY Professor, University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration
LAWRENCE K. GROSSMAN President, NBC News
IRVING B. HARRIS Businessman and Philanthropist
JAMES HIGHTOWER Commissioner, Texas Department of Agriculture
1986
RUTH ADAMS Editor, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
WILLIAM D. FORD United States Representative, 15th Congressional District, Michigan
FRED FRIENDLY Broadcast Journalist and Educator
LINUS PAULING Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, 1954, and Peace, 1962
RANDALL ROBINSON Executive Director, TransAfrica
1985
JAMES HOGE Publisher, New York Daily News
RAY NORDSTRAND President, WFMT, Inc.
CONOR CRUISE O'BRIEN Diplomat and Author
EILEEN SOUTHERN Musicologist
1984
PAMELA HARRIMAN Democratic Party Activist
JOHN LEWIS Composer, Pianist, and Founder of the Modern Jazz Quartet
VICTOR NAVASKY Editor, The Nation
WILLIAM APPLEMAN WILLIAMS Historian
1983
MARJORIE CRAIG BENTON United States Representative to UNICEF
CHRISTOPHER JENCKS Sociologist
MARCEL OPHOLS Documentary Filmmaker
HAROLD WASHINGTON Mayor, City of Chicago
1982
HELEN CALDICOTT Anti-Nuclear Activist
SHERRY LANSING President, 20th Century Fox
LUIS VALDEZ Playwright and Artistic Director, El Teatro Campesino
JAMES VAN DER ZEE Photographer
GARRY WILLS Historian
1981
MICHAEL CACOYANNIS Filmmaker
HARRY EDWARDS Sociologist
MARILYN FRENCH Writer and Feminist Activist
FRANKLIN A. LONG Chemist
GEORGE McGOVERN Former United States Senator and Presidential Candidate
1980
HERMON D. SMITH Chairman, Field Foundation of Illinois
HARRY WEESE Architect
LOIS WILLE Pulitzer Prize-winning Journalist
RONALD WILLIAMS President, Northeastern Illinois University
1979
MAYA ANGELOU Poet and Memoirist
JOHN FISCHETTI Pulitzer Prize-winning Editorial Cartoonist
CARLOS FUENTES Novelist
TOM WICKER Journalist
JESSIE WOODS Director, Urban Gateways
1978
CARLOS CHAVEZ Composer and Conductor
ROBERT COLES Child Psychiatrist, Professor, and Author
EDGAR Y. "YIP" HARBURG Lyricist
ABBY MANN Emmy and Academy Award-winning Screenwriter
ADDIE WYATT Labor and Civil Rights Leader
1977
ORIANA FALLACI Journalist
MARIA MARTINEZ Potter
GORDON PARKS SR. Photographer, Filmmaker, and Author
DANIEL SCHORR Broadcast Journalist
ELIOT WIGGINTON Oral Historian and Folklorist
1976
ED BULLINS Playwright
JOHN HAMMOND Record Producer
JONATHAN KOZOL Educator and Social Critic
KATHARINE KUH Museum Curator and Gallery Owner
ROMAN VISHNIAC Photographer and Biologist
1975
GEORGE W. BONHAM Editor-In-Chief, Change
SEYMOUR M. HERSH Pulitzer Prize-winning Reporter
ARTHUR MITCHELL Director, Dance Theatre of Harlem
ADA "BRICKTOP" SMITH Cabaret Artist and Club Owner
ALEC WILDER Composer
1974
IVAN ALBRIGHT Artist
JAMES T. FARRELL Writer
ALBERT E. JENNER JR. Attorney
RUTH PAGE Dancer and Choreographer
CHARLEMAE ROLLINS Librarian, Chicago Public Library
1973
BOB FOSSE Stage and Film Choreographer
JAMES B. HOLDERMAN Executive Director, Illinois Board of Higher Education
MYLES F. HORTON Director, Highlander Folk School
ROSA PARKS Civil Rights Activist
HARRISON E. SALISBURY Associate Editor, New York Times
1972
CHESTER "HOWLIN' WOLF" BURNETT Blues Musician
PAULINE KAEL Film Critic
NEWTON N. MINOW Attorney and Former Chairman, Federal Communications Commission
BILL RUSSELL Former NBA All-Star
NEIL SHEEHAN Reporter, New York Times
QUENTIN D. YOUNG National Chairman, Medical Committee for Human Rights
1971
KAY BOYLE Writer
CHARLES G. HURST JR. President, Malcolm X Coilege
JOSEPH PAPP Director, New York Public Theatre and Shakespeare Festival
WILLIAM PROXMIRE United States Senator, Wisconsin
AARON SISKIND Photographer and Teacher
1970
WILLIAM M. BIRENBAUM President, Staten Island College
R. BUCKMINSTER FULLER Architect
FANNIE LOU HAMER Civil Rights Activist
FRANK REYNOLDS Broadcast Journalist
1969
ANN IDA GANNON President, Mundelein College
DAVID HALBERSTAM Pulitzer Prize-winning Reporter
CHARLES WILBERT WHITE Artist
1968
EDWARD KENNEDY "DUKE" ELLINGTON Composer and Bandleader
RALPH NADER Consumer Advocate
LOUIS J. "STUDS" TERKEL Radio Journalist and Oral Historian
1967
NORMAN CORWIN Radio Journalist, Radio Dramatist, and Screenwriter
DWIGHT W. FOLLETT Chairman and President, Follett Corporation
LANGSTON HUGHES (honored in memoriam) Poet
KENNETH F. MONTGOMERY Attorney
1966
JOHN BRADEMAS United States Representative, 3rd Congressional District, Indiana
FREDERICK DOUGLASS O'NEAL President, Actors' Equity
EUGENE RABINOWITCH Editor, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
1965
PAUL HAMILTON ENGLE Poet and Teacher
CURTIS D. MacDOUGALL Journalist and Teacher
1964
GWENDOLYN BROOKS Pulitzer Prize-winning Poet
