Dear Friends,
On behalf of Roosevelt University and its Board of Trustees, it is my honor to recognize the centennial birthday of Mayor Harold Lee Washington, a distinguished Roosevelt alum.
Mayor Washington graduated with Roosevelt’s first four-year class in 1949. From his earliest days as a college student, he embodied our founders’ mission of social justice, inclusion and access. In his 1984 Commencement address, Washington told graduating students:
“My election as a class and student body officer helped to confirm my faith in representative democracy as a great crucible in which social progress is formed. I certainly never thought that one day I would be elected Mayor of Chicago by a multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multi-religious majority of the voters, or that my reform platform would include so many of the founding principles of Roosevelt.”
Mayor Washington’s legacy of hope and coalition-building remains resonant today. His administration emboldened countless Chicagoans working to make our city more equitable for all.
To commemorate this occasion, Roosevelt University will establish the Harold L. Washington Hall of Honor. The campus installation will recognize the lifetime achievements of Mayor Washington and other distinguished alumni. I am confident that Mayor Washington’s leadership will continue to inspire the next generation of socially conscious students.
Thank you to the Harold Washington Legacy Committee for partnering with Roosevelt to establish the Harold Washington Legacy Scholarship. The University is proud to collaborate with the Committee on this important initiative.
Finally, please join author Peter Nolan on Thursday, April 21 at 4:00 p.m. in the Murray-Green Library for a book discussion on Campaign!: The 1983 Election that Rocked Chicago. This event is one of many throughout Chicago honoring Washington’s centennial birthday.
With warm regards,
Ali R. Malekzadeh, Ph.D.
President of Roosevelt University