The university says it's commencement speaker's mission is especially relevant to its diverse student body.
NEWARK -- A national leader in bridging cultural divisions will be the commencement speaker this spring at Rutgers University's Newark campus.
Eboo Patel, chief executive officer of the Interfaith Youth Core, will deliver the keynote address at the May 17 ceremony and receive an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree, according to Rutgers.
Patel tries to find collaboration rather than conflict in discussions about religion, and Interfaith Youth Core develops models for interfaith support on college campuses. President Barack Obama picked Patel to lead the White House Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge.
Such work makes Patel an ideal candidate to speak at a diverse campus like Rutgers-Newark, Chancellor Nancy Cantor said.
"His message and mode of promoting change through intergroup dialogue are deeply meaningful," Cantor said.
Patel was approved as the speaker at Friday's university Board of Governors meeting in Camden.
Rutgers-Newark will also award an Honorary Doctor of Science degree to Arthur James Hicks, program director of the National Science Foundation's Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation (LSAMP).
The program is aimed at increasing the number of minority students who graduate with degrees in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
Both Patel and Hicks were nominated by members of Rutgers-Newark community and selected from a pool of candidates evaluated by an committee of faculty, staff, and students.
Adam Clark may be reached at adam_clark@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on twitter at @realAdamClark. Find NJ.com on Facebook.