An Israeli university granted ASU President Michael Crow an honorary degree. Here's why
Arizona State University President Michael Crow received an honorary doctoral degree for his work in higher education during a trip to Ben-Gurion University in southern Israel this week.
Officials with the Israeli university said the degree was a recognition of Crow’s leadership at ASU over the last two decades, particularly for his approach to higher education accessibility, often called the “New American University” model. The two universities have been in a partnership for the last 15 years.
“As new kinds of egalitarian universities like Ben-Gurion and ASU emerge, it’s nice to get recognition that the model is important,” Crow said of the honor, which was bestowed on Tuesday.
Next month, Ben-Gurion University President Daniel Chamovitz will continue discussions stemming from the ASU partnership in a webinar: “What is a Fifth-Wave University and How Will It Lead Israel Forward?”
“Today, we recognize Dr. Crow not only for his visionary leadership at ASU but also for his substantial influence on our strategies for advancing education and community development in the Negev,” Chamovitz said in a statement.
In his statements at the ceremony, Crow condemned the October 7th attacks in which close to 1,200 people were killed in Israel, according to counts from Israeli officials.
"It is hard to imagine here, almost eight months after the attack, that 'the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice' in the words of Martin Luther King," Crow said. "This is a difficult and long process."
The visit from Crow comes weeks after a protest led by ASU students and pro-Palestinian advocates ended in the arrests of more than 70 people on campus. The group was one of more than a hundred similar demonstrations across the country calling on their respective universities to cut ties with Israel amid the seventh month of war in Gaza that has killed more than 30,000 Palestinians. The protesters also called on Crow to resign his position and demanded an official statement from ASU condemning the violence in Gaza.
Following the arrests, Crow said ASU had an opportunity to impact a national discourse but did not specifically address the demands.
“We can and should learn from perspectives different from our own,” he said in a statement shared before his visit to Israel. “And we should embrace the opportunity we have to do this in a safe environment here at the university, free from hostility and fear."
Earlier this month, video widely circulated online showed a woman wearing a hijab being cornered on a sidewalk at ASU’s campus by former ASU instructor Jonathan Yudelman. The man is seen yelling at the woman and referring to her using expletives as she tries to leave an ongoing pro-Israel demonstration on a bike. Yudelman was placed on leave with Crow later saying he was banned from ASU.
“He is no longer permitted to be on campus and will never teach here again,” Crow said in a statement.
Helen Rummel covers higher education for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at hrummel@azcentral.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter:@helenrummel.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: ASU President Michael Crow given honorary degree by Israeli university
