Follow-Up to Commencement 2025

Dear Friends,

The 147th Commencement exercises of Smith College have come to a close and will linger for many years in our memories.

I want to congratulate our graduates and sincerely thank the hundreds of people in our community who worked so hard to create such wonderful events over multiple days, including a Commencement ceremony that felt almost magical. 

I must share with you, however, that it has come to our attention that one of our honorary degree recipients—musician Evelyn M. Harris—borrowed much of her speech to graduates and their families from the commencement speeches of others without the attribution typical of and central to the ideals of academic integrity. 

In conversations about this after the event, Ms. Harris was forthcoming about her choices while also acknowledging that she sought to infuse the words of others with her own emotional valence. With appreciation for the requirement of academic integrity so central to the values of Smith, Ms. Harris has chosen to relinquish her honorary degree. 

It is with gratitude and respect for the long and generative contributions Evelyn Harris has made to music and culture, both nationally and internationally, that I have respectfully accepted her decision.

Given this outcome, a new version of the highlights of the Commencement ceremony will be forthcoming on our website.

I appreciate those who brought the dissonance of this moment to our attention and am very grateful for the graciousness of Evelyn Harris’s decision.

Sincerely,
Sarah Willie-LeBreton
President