CUNY Law School is struggling to find a venue for this year’s graduation a year after a student speaker sparked national controversy for criticizing Israel during commencement.
CUNY Dean of Law Sudha Setty revealed in a faculty meeting last week that a plan to host commencement at Hunter College had unexpectedly fallen apart. Now, students are frustrated they can’t make plans to invite friends and family due to uncertainty about capacity at the graduation venue – if the school finds one. The law school had already announced that this year’s commencement will not feature student speakers. The ordeal is another example of how the Israel-Hamas war has rocked education institutions around the city.
“They [Hunter College] have a very complicated set of concerns about hosting our commencement. That’s the summary of it,” Setty said at the Jan. 24 meeting, which Gothamist obtained a recording of.
When asked if she could explain further, Setty replied, “I might be able to do it elsewhere … we are in a very public setting.” She added that she was “surprised” by Hunter’s decision.
A second audience member asked if the reason was related to controversy surrounding Israel’s bombardment and ground invasion of Gaza. “That has never been raised,” Setty replied.
Setty added that the school is looking into renting private event spaces that would be “two to three times the cost” of a CUNY building.
Graduation is set for May 23, and around 160 students are in this year’s class.
“Though there were some discussions, Hunter College and CUNY Law never finalized a plan to host this year’s commencement,” Hunter College spokesperson Vince DiMiceli said in an email. Hunter College is considered the crown jewel of the CUNY system.
DiMiceli declined to comment on why the deal fell through. But CUNY Law student Derek Smith had little doubt.
“It’s frustrating. I’m a first-generation student. I spent five years in the military so I could have free law…
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