Elizabeth McCormack
In Memoriam
In Memoriam
Elizabeth J. McCormack ’44, PhD (1922-2020)
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IN MEMORIAM
A VALIANT LEGACY:
Honoring Elizabeth J. McCormack at Manhattanville College In this special issue of Manhattanville Magazine we honor a pivotal figure in the history of the College – our sixth President and Trustee Emerita, Elizabeth J. McCormack ‘44, PhD, on the occasion of what would have been her one hundredth birthday, March 7, 2022. Elizabeth passed away peacefully on December 4, 2020, at the age of ninety-eight. In honor of this milestone, Manhattanville College will establish the Elizabeth J. McCormack Scholarships in Nursing and Health Sciences. These new scholarships will provide access and financial support to qualified nursing students from diverse backgrounds. They will be awarded on an annual basis and will help Manhattanville meet the growing national demand for highly trained healthcare professionals while also supporting students with a passion for nursing in achieving their dream. Elizabeth’s work and influence in the fields of education and philanthropy spanned more than fifty years. President McCormack led with compassion, put students’ needs above all else, and embodied the true spirit of higher education and lifelong learning, always with the deep-seated conviction that we all learn from every single person we meet. During her presidency she put resources behind another of her beliefs – that everyone deserves a high-quality education – and added scholarships for students of color. As a Board Member Emerita, Elizabeth was a staunch supporter of establishing our new programs in the health sciences. The Elizabeth J. McCormack Scholarships in Nursing and Health Sciences are made possible by the generosity of Elizabeth herself, as well as friends and alums. I offer a heartfelt posthumous “thank you” to Elizabeth and thanks to those among our alumnae and alumni who so generously gave to the College to help us effectively carry out our mission to educate ethical and socially responsible leaders in a global community. It was apparent to those who knew Elizabeth best that her affection for and commitment to Manhattanville College was unparalleled. These scholarships will honor Elizabeth’s legacy and continue her work of supporting our students in the successful completion of their degrees – achieving their goals and realizing their dreams. Sincerely,
Michael E. Geisler, PhD President 2
Elizabeth McCormack
“THE MORE VIEWPOINTS ON REALITY A STUDENT RECEIVES WHEN BEING EDUCATED, THE MORE TRUTH.”
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IN MEMORIAM
Elizabeth J. McCormack ’44, PhD, a graduate of Manhattanville College who served as its president from 1966–1974 and was a member of the College’s Board of Trustees, passed away December 4, 2020. She was 98. McCormack was a pivotal figure in Manhattanville’s history. She was president of Manhattanville during a period of tremendous social and cultural change for both the College and the country. During her tenure, she led the transformation of the College from an elite Catholic women’s institution to a nondenominational, coeducational center of higher education. Born Elizabeth Jane McCormack on March 7, 1922, in New York City to Natalie (née Duffy) and George Henry McCormack, her family moved to Larchmont, New York, in 1925. McCormack attended high school at Maplehurst, an all-girls boarding school in the Bronx.
McCormack welcomed the first coeducational class to Manhattanville in 1971.
After graduating from Maplehurst, McCormack applied to Manhattanville College—founded by the Society of the Sacred Heart religious order—where she studied English literature and philosophy. By the fall of her senior year, McCormack had reached a life-changing decision that was years in the making: after graduating in 1944, she would join the Society of the Sacred Heart. After teaching at Catholic schools and earning her master’s degree in religious education in 1957 from Providence College, McCormack was assigned in 1958 to work at Manhattanville College as assistant to its president, Mother Eleanor O’Byrne, RSCJ. The role also gave her the chance to pursue a doctorate at Fordham University. McCormack served as Manhattanville’s academic dean beginning in 1962. In 1966, she was awarded her PhD in philosophy and shortly after became the sixth president of the College.
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Elizabeth McCormack
McCormack entered her presidency in the midst of enormous cultural upheaval. She felt strongly that the College must change to reflect, and even embrace, the societal shifts that were unfolding across the nation. “The Catholic college of today,” she said in her inaugural address, “will be judged by the role its graduates play in helping solve [hard questions].” McCormack led with fierce compassion for her students. In 1969, when eighteen Black students barricaded themselves in Brownson Hall demanding actions to support racial justice, McCormack immediately barred outside law enforcement from getting involved. Instead, she personally engaged Elizabeth McCormack and honorary Doctor of Humane Letters recipient Chief Justice Earl Warren, May 1973. with the protesters—climbing through a window day after day to sit down and talk with them. After the students ended their occupation, McCormack worked to address their demands. Her legacy also includes changing the name of the College by dropping “of the Sacred Heart” and introducing “the new curriculum” focused on independent study. In 1973, The New York Times wrote the new system had “turned Manhattanville into one of the most educationally radical colleges in the country.” In 1974, at the age of 51, she announced her resignation from the Society of the Sacred Heart and left her post as president of Manhattanville. In December of 1976 she married Jerome “Jerry” Aron. McCormack, a highly influential philanthropist, began advising the Rockefeller family on its philanthropic causes in the 1970s, a relationship that would last decades. She served on numerous boards, including the John D. and President McCormack and students, 1974. Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Atlantic Philanthropies, the Population Council, The Julliard School, and the Trust for Mutual Understanding, among others. To make a donation to Manhattanville College or to the Elizabeth J. McCormack Scholarships in Nursing and Health Sciences, please visit: Alumni.mville.edu/ElizabethMcCormack.
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IN MEMORIAM
McCormack
AT MANHATTANVILLE
Elizabeth McCormack with her predecessor, Mother Eleanor O’Byrne, RSCJ, president of Manhattanville 1945-1966. By the time she graduated, “McCorm” was already known as a woman on the move.
“Betty” McCormack’s 1944 yearbook photo. 6
Official portrait of President McCormack, 1966.
Elizabeth McCormack
Elizabeth McCormack and Adele Fiske, RSCJ, professor of classics and director of East Asian Center, on the balcony of Reid Hall, ca. 1966.
Elizabeth McCormack receiving an honorary degree from Princeton University in 1974.
President McCormack on her way to address students on the quad.
Elizabeth McCormack and Louis Lefkowitz, New York State Attorney General, at Manhattanville 1970.
President McCormack addressing students on the quad during the Brownson Takeover in 1969. 7
IN MEMORIAM
Reaching Others by
Reaching Out
Commencement 1972 with Elie Wiesel Elizabeth McCormack’s lifelong service to others is welldocumented but the impact she had on her students is difficult to quantify. Even ticking off a list of her career achievements, while impressive, feels akin to putting a kaleidoscope up to the light only to peer at individual shapes—the overall beauty is missed. A bigger picture, perhaps, can be seen in an insightful speech that McCormack delivered to the Class of 1972 in which she revealed her belief in the power of one human being engaging with another. That May, McCormack drew upon the moving address by that year’s keynote speaker and recipient of an honorary doctorate, Elie Wiesel, author of Night and future recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. A survivor of Auschwitz, Wiesel offered no comforting bromides to the hundreds gathered on the quad. Instead, he reminded the audience of the absurd reality of human beings choosing to denigrate their own humanity as they claim to advance mankind. It had become increasingly clear, he said, that “men trust machines, but not each other,” and that lies were being peddled as the truth. “People are no longer human beings, but instruments manipulated by prophets of doom or violence.” And yet, Wiesel said, “man must invent a meaning upon events that perhaps have none.” 8
That meaning could only be found through a connection to others. “I am absolutely convinced that man has to create friendship in a world where there is no place for friendship,” he said. McCormack echoed Wiesel’s convictions, which she cited as a great influence on her own thinking. In her closing remarks, she asked the Class of 1972 to recognize their accomplishments as being the result of human interactions. “Each one of you has helped more than a single human being,” she told the graduates. “I can think of a dozen of you, each one of whom has made life better for me, and I am confident that there is not a member of this senior class who has not achieved this ideal for someone.” This was not only a message of personal gratitude but a window into what animated McCormack’s own actions as a teacher, mentor, and philanthropist. She found meaning (or “invented a meaning,” as Wiesel had said) by engaging with others— something that the graduating Class of 1972 had also done during their time at Manhattanville. “We have been together since 1968,” she told the graduates. “We met, we remained together, and we changed one another. That process is called education.”
Elizabeth McCormack
IN HONOR OF ELIZABETH’S ONE HUNDREDTH BIRTHDAY, MANHATTANVILLE WILL ESTABLISH THE ELIZABETH J. MCCORMACK SCHOLARSHIPS IN NURSING AND HEALTH SCIENCES.
In recognition of Elizabeth’s passion for education and her commitment to improving healthcare, scholarships have been established in her name and will be awarded to future nursing students. The Elizabeth J. McCormack Scholarships in Nursing and Health Sciences were made possible in part through a bequest Elizabeth so generously left to Manhattanville. “I offer a heartfelt posthumous ‘thank you’ to Elizabeth,” said President Geisler. 9