“Fordham joins the people of New York City, and especially the congregants of the Abyssinian Baptist Church, in mourning the passing of the Reverend Dr. Butts,” said Tania Tetlow, president of Fordham. “For more than three decades he was not just the pastor of Abyssinian, but a spiritual and moral leader for New Yorkers and people around the world. Dr. Butts leaves behind a lasting legacy of education, civil rights, and community building. The Fordham community offers its profound condolences to Dr. Butts’ family, friends, and the congregation of the Abyssinian Baptist Church.”

Dr. Butts occupied a special place within the Fordham community. When the University returned to an in-person commencement ceremony this May after a three-year COVID hiatus, it was Dr. Butts who spoke to the assembled crowd of 16,000. In a rousing address, he told graduates that their Fordham education is transformative—a tool to help turn them into leaders of great character.

“One of the great things about character is that it teaches us to nurture our love for beauty. It teaches us to endure to the end, it teaches us to have courtesy for the other,” said Butts, who received an honorary doctorate of divinity at the ceremony. “I don’t mean just opening a door and tipping your hat—I mean recognizing that all men and women are brothers and sisters in this world.”

Fordham’s relationship with Dr. Butts began in the 1970s when he joined the University as an adjunct professor who taught a course in the history of the Black church in America. In the fall of 2021, he was appointed a distinguished visiting professor in support of the Graduate School of Education’s Center for Catholic School Leadership and Faith-Based Education.

Fordham alumna Marlene Taylor-Ponterotto, a medical provider in Harlem, recalled taking Dr. Butts’ class on Black church history in 1975 and reflected on his influence on her throughout her career.

“As a freshman it was one of my first courses, and it inspired me to fully understand the importance of spirituality and how it impacted the lives of African Americans. This message has stayed with me always as I grew to understand how significant his words were,” said Taylor-Ponterotto, who graduated from Fordham College at Rose Hill in 1979. “I am an HIV specialist and when I saw his involvement in the village of Harlem, where I practice now, ensuring that funds and more were in place for these patients, I was again reminded of his wisdom. He will always be one of those professors who taught me valuable lessons which I use each day in my practice.”

Last June, at Dr. Butts’ invitation, Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president emeritus of Fordham, preached at Abyssinian. In his sermon, Father McShane called Dr. Butts “a man for whom the biblical statement ‘Behold, he does all things well’ seems to be tailor-made.”

“He is the kind of preacher whom other preachers don’t only listen to. No. They study the transcripts of his sermons, all of which are nothing less than master classes in the art and craft of preaching,” Father McShane said. “Dr. Butts never tires of reminding us rightly that faith and education together form a modern-day cradle of civilization and the true source of both liberation and redemption.”

Butts delivered powerful sermons for more than 30 years at Abyssinian, focusing on the church’s core values of worship, evangelism, service, and education. He founded and chaired the nonprofit Abyssinian Development Corporation, a community-based organization responsible for over $1 billion in housing and commercial development in Harlem, and was instrumental in establishing the Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change—a public, state-of-the-art, intermediate and high school in Harlem.

A native New Yorker, Dr. Butts graduated from Morehouse College in 1972 and earned his Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry degrees from Union Theological Seminary and Drew University, respectively.

From 1999 to 2020, he served as president of the State University of New York (SUNY) at Old Westbury, one of the most racially and ethnically diverse schools in the SUNY system. His leadership led to the college’s largest enrollment ever, the addition of full-time faculty, and the expansion of student support services. The school earned new accreditations and created its first-ever graduate programs during his presidency. He also oversaw the college’s investment of approximately $200 million in capital projects. During his tenure, SUNY at Old Westbury received the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine for 2018, 2019, and 2020.

Dr. Butts’ unshakable belief that education and faith are intertwined was evident when he spoke to the Fordham community from the Terrace of Presidents at Commencement; in his address, he declared that the two are “the Tigris and Euphrates of our redemption, twin rivers at the source of our liberation.”

“Education ought to improve your character, education ought to help you increase your knowledge, and education ought to help you earn a living,” he said.

And while Dr. Butts lamented that “earning and living on the top” has become more popular than “development of character,” he expressed hope that Fordham students will reverse the trend.

“We are tomorrow. You are tomorrow,” he said. He told the graduates that they were examples of those who put character first and that they “represent the hope for America.”

Despite the challenges faced in this country, he said, education is “the tool that will help you to press our nation forward: backward, never; forward, ever.”

The Abyssinian Baptist Church service will be livestreamed beginning at 10 a.m. here: https://abyssinian.org/worship/ and on YouTube.

Video of the service will also be archived for later viewing on the church’s livestream page.

That joy, along with a few heartfelt goodbyes, was on display on Saturday, May 21, as Fordham celebrated its first full University Commencement since 2019. Graduates from all nine of Fordham’s schools filled Edwards Parade, along with families, friends, alumni, and faculty.

Dr. Butts, longtime pastor of Harlem’s historic Abyssinian Baptist Church, told graduates that their Fordham education is transformative—a “tool” to help turn them into leaders of great character.

“And one of the great things about character is that it teaches us to nurture our love for beauty. It teaches us to endure to the end, it teaches us to have courtesy for the other,” said Butts, who received an honorary doctorate of divinity at the ceremony. “I don’t mean just opening a door and tipping your hat—I mean recognizing that all men and women are brothers and sisters in this world.”

Dr. Butts asked the students to think about what education should do.

“Education ought to improve your character, education ought to help you increase your knowledge, and education ought to help you earn a living,” he said. “What we’ve done in this great country is turn that upside down. We put earning and living on top and the development of character on the bottom. Is there any wonder why we’re having the struggles we’re having?”

But he told the graduates that they were examples of those who put character first, and that they “represent the hope for America. Dr. Butts said that despite the challenges faced by this country, their education was “the tool that will help you to press our nation forward—backward, never; forward, ever.”

“We must continue to make progress to make this country even greater than it is. … You don’t have to be sick to get better, and we are getting better every day because of the leadership of men like [Fordham president] Joe McShane, because of the leadership of men like [Fordham Board Chair] Bob Daleo, but mostly, because of the talent that is being turned out at a place like Fordham University,” he said.

“Education and faith are the Tigris and Euphrates of our redemption, twin rivers at the source of our liberation,” said Butts.

He left the graduates with an important message for them to use in the next chapters.

“We are tomorrow. You are tomorrow,” he said. “And this degree from one of the greatest universities in the world gives you what you need to fight against the forces that would try to push us back.”

Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, acknowledged that the graduating class has already faced some of those forces Butts referenced, during their time here at Fordham—including the pandemic “that turned your lives upside down, a national reckoning with the sin of racism, political polarization and disruption, the Russian invasion of Ukraine,” and more.

“Good Lord, after going through all of that, all you wanted today was a typical Fordham Commencement, and yet, I have gone off-script by telling you that I am going to speak to you about the burden of being a Fordham graduate,” said Father McShane, who was celebrating his final Commencement as University president. “Bear with me. One last time.”

“What exactly is this burden? Nothing less than this: transforming and redeeming the world,” he said.

While this might sound like too much, Father McShane told the graduates that they are ready and specially positioned to fulfill this challenge.

“You’re smart. You sparkle with talent. Those talents allow you to shine, to dazzle, to amaze, to do good—immense good,” he told them. “You have responded to all the challenges the world, and we, put before you to expand your reach, widen your horizons, and deepen your understanding of the human enterprise. You have strong moral compasses. You have shown a deep and abiding desire to live lives of integrity and service. Therefore, I believe that you are well-suited—perhaps even uniquely suited—to take on and transform the world.”

Achieving Their Dreams

For Geraldine Romy Riveros, the Commencement ceremony was a fulfillment of the life her parents dreamed of for her.

“I’m a first-gen (student)—my parents came to this country in their 30s,” said Romy Riveros, a Fordham College of Rose Hill graduate. “They left their countries because of terrorism and lack of education so they came here so I could have a better opportunity, so I feel like this is me achieving everything that they dreamed for, taking advantage of all the opportunities I was given.”

Romy Riveros took advantage of as many opportunities as she could at Fordham, becoming a double major in international political economy and Spanish language and literature and double minor in humanitarian studies and women, gender, and sexuality studies, and currently has a job working at Amazon as a marketing specialist.

Jonathan J.M. Haynes, a graduate of the Gabelli School of Business who majored in finance, is moving to San Francisco to work at JPMorgan Chase & Co after graduation. His initial goals when he entered Fordham changed slightly.

“I came here to play football, played for a month, stopped after that, and then stayed for the business school,” he said.

Haynes said he’s grateful for his mother and family for his college experience.

“Everyone in my family has made this happen,” he said. “We always say it takes a village, and it rings true. It takes a village to make this happen.”

For Leslie Abreu, a 2022 graduate of Fordham College at Rose Hill who is in the five-year accelerated master’s teaching program at the Graduate School of Education, her childhood growing up in the Dominican Republic inspired her to pursue a career in education.

“I always went to the teachers in the morning session with the little kids, and I would just help them out,” she said. “I feel like I’ve carried that over here. It felt natural to me to be an educator.”

Abreu said she’s pursuing a certification in bilingual education for grades one through six.

Putting Their Education into Action

Ernesto Cordero, pastor in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, received his doctor of ministry degree from the Graduate School of Religion and Religious Education.

“It’s really helped me in the practice of my ministry. It helps me in the manner of my service to my people,” he said.

Caroline Sullivan, who got her master’s in education, did her student teaching during the pandemic in a preschool class at the Dwight School in Manhattan.

“​​It’s definitely been tough teaching in the pandemic, but I honestly think it’s given me the tools to be flexible and teach in any type of environment,” she said.

Sullivan said she was grateful to her professors at Fordham, particularly her adviser Marilyn Bisberg, for helping her navigate these uncertain times.

“She’s been so helpful and has taught me so much about education,” she said.

A Return to Some Normalcy

Fordham College at Lincoln Center graduates Maggie Franzeb, Sarah Hickey, and Francesca Seeman reminisced about how they became friends as they waited to walk across the stage. Franzeb, a native of Rumson, New Jersey, and Hickey, who is from Bay Shore, New York, met during the pandemic, when they both were taking on online class called the Philosophy of Kant.

“We were all on Zoom, and we were in another class the following semester,” said Hickey.

“I said we have to meet up, and we finally met up in person. It was so fun. I love telling the story, because everyone’s like, ‘that’s great, you made friends through Zoom University.’”

For Fordham College at Rose Hill graduates Steven Ruggiero and Alexander Di Fiore, their favorite memories of Fordham were this last year, which resembled a semblance of normalcy after two pandemic-filled school years.

“We’re roommates, and I think just getting to be with your friends and come back to being with your friends after time apart was really special because for awhile we didn’t know if we were going to come back at all,” Ruggiero said. “Everything was so uncertain, but getting to come back to some sense of normalcy was just so special that we got this time.”

Bittersweet Goodbyes

Including the students who received their diplomas today, Father McShane has bestowed approximately 75,000 diplomas during his 19-year tenure as University president, according to Board Chair Bob Daleo.

Daleo announced that the board had unanimously voted to elect Father McShane president emeritus “in recognition of his transformational leadership and exceptional stewardship of our beloved University.”

“I hope you will join me now, rise, give him applause as we send him off with deep gratitude and wish him Godspeed as he begins his next great chapter,” Daleo said, to a round of thunderous applause and a standing ovation from the thousands in attendance.

The ceremony was also the last for Donna Rapaccioli, Ph.D., as dean of the Gabelli School of Business. For more than 15 years, Rapaccioli has served as a dean of business education at Fordham, helping to expand both the undergraduate and graduate programs—including the addition of a doctoral program. Rapaccioli has served as the dean of the unified undergraduate and graduate Gabelli Schools since 2015.

In addition to Butts, Fordham conferred honorary doctorates on seven other notable figures: Wilton Cardinal Gregory, Archbishop of Washington; Bill Baccaglini, former CEO of the New York Foundling; Kim Bepler, philanthropist and trustee fellow; Rosamond Blanchet, R.S.H.M., MC ’62, area leader and former general superior of the Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary; Mandell Crawley, GABELLI ’09, managing director and chief human resources officer at Morgan Stanley; Patrick J. Foye, FCRH ’78, LAW ’81, former chairman and CEO of the Metropolitan Transit Authority; and Laura Taylor Swain, chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Additional reporting from Patrick Verel, Adam Kaufman, and Sierra McCleary-Harris

Video by Tom Stoelker, Taylor Ha, and Lisa-Anna Maust

“The Reverend Dr. Butts is a giant of the civil rights movement, and a New York institution,” said Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham. “He is a powerful preacher and educator who has used his voice in the service of the city’s marginalized and dispossessed: in this he is our lodestar and our conscience. It is with great pleasure and humility that I formally welcome him into the Fordham family.”

A globally recognized leader in civil rights, education, and community development, Dr. Butts has served many organizations and causes in New York City, the U.S., and the world. His powerful sermons are attended by Harlemites and out-of-towners each week at Abyssinian, where for more than 30 years he has focused on the church’s core values of worship, evangelism, service, and education. He helped found and now chairs the nonprofit Abyssinian Development Corporation, a community-based organization responsible for over $1 billion in housing and commercial development in Harlem. He was also instrumental in establishing the Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change—a public, state-of-the-art, intermediate and high school in Harlem, and he is the visionary behind the Thurgood Marshall Academy Lower School.

From 1999 to 2020, Dr. Butts served as president of the State University of New York (SUNY) at Old Westbury, one of the most racially and ethnically diverse schools in the SUNY system. His leadership reinvigorated the Long Island campus, leading to the college’s largest enrollment ever, the addition of full-time faculty, and the expansion of student support services. The school also earned new accreditations and created its first-ever graduate programs during his presidency. And he oversaw the college’s investment of approximately $200 million in capital projects. During his tenure, SUNY at Old Westbury received the Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine for 2018, 2019, and 2020. After his retirement, Dr. Butts was named president emeritus of the college for his years of distinguished service as its longest-serving president. Former SUNY Chancellor Kristina M. Johnson has called Dr. Butts “an inspirational leader” and “a strong advocate for access to an affordable, high-quality education.”

As an adjunct professor at Fordham, Dr. Butts taught a course in Black church history. This semester he joined Fordham’s Graduate School of Education as a distinguished visiting professor in support of the Center for Catholic School Leadership and Faith-Based Education. Fordham education professor Margaret Terry Orr, Ph.D., praised the reverend’s “enormous range of experience as a social justice, religious, and educational leader,” which she said would enrich the school’s programs, faculty, and student experiences.

Dr. Butts has frequently been praised for his forceful leadership in times of crisis. During the pandemic, he publicly urged Black Americans to get the COVID-19 vaccine, even getting photographed receiving the shot himself at Abyssinian. “To those who may be a bit skeptical about receiving the vaccine,” he said, “good religion goes best with some common sense.” When a white gunman killed nine Black churchgoers in Charleston, South Carolina, in 2015, The New York Times quoted his sermon on forgiveness. “They were Christians; they had to shake off hate,” Dr. Butts said of the Charleston parishioners. “Because, you see, hatred kills the hater faster than it does the hated.”

Dr. Butts grew up in New York City, graduated from Morehouse College in 1972, and earned his Master of Divinity and Doctor of Ministry degrees from Union Theological Seminary and Drew University, respectively. He serves as a member of the leadership board of New Visions for Public Schools; is chairman emeritus of the board of the National Black Leadership Commission on Health; and served as president of Africare NYC, an independent organization dedicated to the improvement of the quality of life in rural Africa. He is co-chair of Choose Healthy Life, a collaboration of Black clergy to address racial health disparities and protect Black communities against COVID-19.

On the subject of faith in action, Dr. Butts has said it’s the responsibility of a leader to inspire faith that produces good works.

“That’s what God has called you to do, to convince people of the love of God and to show them that their faith, if it does not produce works, is dead,” he once told a Duke Divinity School publication. “And what are those works?” he said. “Well, what’s the need? And the need—it could be housing, it could be education— that’s the real responsibility of a leader.”