Suri Duitch was formally installed as the eighth president of Kingsborough Community College during a May 7 ceremony on the school’s waterfront campus in Manhattan Beach.
Led by CUNY Chancellor Félix Matos Rodríguez, the event drew elected officials, alumni, community partners and leaders from across the City University of New York system.
Duitch, a two-time CUNY graduate, earned a master’s degree in social work from Hunter College and a doctorate in urban education from the CUNY Graduate Center. Much of her career has been tied to CUNY, where she worked in academic affairs, helped launch the university’s School of Professional Studies and created the CUNY Service Corps, a paid experiential learning program connecting students with nonprofit organizations across New York City.
“For more than 60 years, this incredible institution has been a gateway to opportunity and now, Kingsborough has a president whose life, values and vision embody that mission and align with the university’s purpose as a pathway of upward mobility,” Félix Matos Rodríguez said. “And so, we are incredibly proud of you for seeing the big picture so clearly and for making every decision meaningful for both students and the entire community.”
In 2016, Duitch left New York to become dean of the School of Professional Advancement at Tulane University. She returned to CUNY in January 2024 as interim president of Kingsborough and was officially appointed president last year following a national search.
During the ceremony, Duitch focused on the uncertainty many students face amid economic instability, political division and debates surrounding immigration, diversity and the rapid growth of artificial intelligence. She emphasized the importance of balancing academic rigor with empathy for students navigating those challenges.
"It can be hard to know what to say to our students about their prospects for the future when there is so much uncertainty and even hostility surrounding us and especially surrounding many of them,” she said. "This education in the fundamentals bolsters our value, not only as workers, but our depth as human beings, and as participants in civil society. Accessible education made America great and will continue to do so.”
The ceremony also included introductions from Kingsborough students and community leaders, including representatives from the Carroll and Milton Petrie Foundation and the Open Door Arts-in-Education Project.
