Frederick Douglass Medal

Harriet A. Washington ’76: A fellow at the New York Academy of Medicine, an award-winning author, and a sought-after lecturer. Her influential research and outreach as a medical ethicist honor Frederick Douglass’s legacy and have shifted the global narrative about race and medical research.

E. Patrick Johnson: Dean of communications at Northwestern University; award-winning author and essayist whose works have driven significant scholarship and community engagement in fields of Black studies.

Paul Burgett ‘68E, ‘76E (PhD): A musician, scholar, teacher, and University leader for over half a century and one of the Rochester community’s most prominent and beloved figures.

Kenneth B. Morris, Jr.: Co-founder and president of Frederick Douglass Family Initiatives (FDFI) and great-great-grandson of Frederick Douglass.

Constance Mitchell: Social, civic, political, and industrial activist; first woman and first African-American to serve on the Monroe County Legislature.

Frederick Jefferson: University Ombud and Professor Emeritus at the Warner School; pioneer and champion of diversity and inclusivity at the University.

Yolanda Moses: Scholar on the origins of social inequality; former president of the City College of New York.

Garth Fagan: Tony Award-winning choreographer.

Deborah Gray White: Board of Governors Professor of History at Rutgers University; pioneering scholar in the field of African-American women’s history.

David Kearns ’52: Retired CEO of Xerox Corp. and former deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Education under President George H.W. Bush.

Walter Cooper ’57 (PhD): Retired research scientist at Eastman Kodak Co.; one of the founding members of the Rochester chapter of the National Urban League and Action for a Better Community; New York State regent emeritus.

Lani Guinier: Professor of law at Harvard University

Gerald Torres: Professor of law at the University of Texas at Austin