Spring 2011 Issue - Lehman College

people coming together and hoping that the consequence of
their coming together is a better life, not just for one lot but for
everybody.”
He noted that he was delighted to be at Lehman as patron of the
St. George’s Society, which set up its scholarship system “to help
students from all over the world pursue their education … What
you learn here is going to be of huge significance, not just to you
but to your own countries when you go back there—if you do go
back there—and bring all the advantages that an educated man can
bring to his own community.”
“To remember Herbert H. Lehman’s legacy,” said Lehman President
Ricardo R. Fernández, “many speakers chosen to deliver this
lecture over the last forty-two years have either served in the public
sector or played an important role in international issues. Today
we are very pleased to add to that list the name of a preeminent
woman who combines both these fields: public service and an
international focus.”
First Lady of Dominican Republic Gives
Lehman Lecture
More than 300 people, as well as a throng of media, greeted the
First Lady of the Dominican Republic, Dr. Margarita Cedeño de
Fernández, as she gave this year’s Lehman Lecture in the Lovinger
Theatre and received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree. Pointing
to the fact that her husband, President Leonel Fernández Reyna,
had received the same honor in 2002, she noted that this “may
break some record” and added humorously, “It may look like I am
following in his footsteps”—a reference
to reports that she would
seek the presidency at the end
of his current term, when he is
ineligible to run again.
Emphasizing the importance of
education in this era of transformation
and technological
advances, she called it a powerful tool that is helping to create a
more democratic and peaceful society in her own country.
Above, right: Dr. Margarita Cedeño de Fernández
receives her honorary degree. With her are Provost
and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Mary
A. Papazian; Professor Fred Phelps (Psychology),
chair of the Honorary Degrees Committee; and Lehman
President Ricardo R. Fernández. Left: The First
Lady meets with Lehman students, Vice President of
Student Affairs Jose Magdaleno (second from right),
and staff. The students were headed for the Dominican
Republic over spring break to do community-service work
with a group called Cambiando Vidas (“Changing Lives”).
“When you believe that your future is shaped by the
actions of today,” she told students, “when you take
advantage of the opportunities presented to you
each day to make a difference and do it right; when
you, as Governor Lehman did, do not compromise
your conscience, never cease to inquire, to act, and
to reason, you will not only continue to honor his
memory, you will be honoring yourselves.”
Numerous dignitaries were in the audience,
including Dr. Roberto Saladin, Dominican Ambassador
to the United States; Ambassador Federico
Cuello, Permanent Representative of the Dominican
Republic to the United Nations; Rafael Evans,
Consul General of the Dominican Republic in New
York City; CUNY Trustee Dr. Hugo M. Morales; and
the presidents of the College of Staten Island and
CUNY’s new community college.
Dominican Republic residents Maria Castro
(B.A., ‘03), her husband, Henry Mensen, and
their three-year-old daughter meet with the
First Lady and Dr. Sorosh Roshan, president
of IHAN (International Health Awareness
Network) and a Board member of the Lehman
College Foundation. Mensen Academy,
the educational center the Lehman alumna
founded in the Dominican Republic, now
serves pre-k through third grade and offers a literacy program for adults, as well as
a variety of other classes, workshops, and lectures.The school aims to educate and
nurture people about self-sustainability, she says, adding that “in fact, as we and our
food crops grow, our farm and school have already become a model for responsible
and self-sustainable eco-agro-tourism. It’s a place that creates both employment for
the local community and educational opportunities for anyone interested in studying
self-sustainability, alternative energy, permaculture, literacy, yoga, and the arts.”
Learn more at www.mensenacademy.com.
Lehman Today/Spring 2011 9