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Eboo Patel to keynote Denison commencement
Interfaith America founder will also receive honorary degree at May 16 ceremony.
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Malvika Choudhary - Sat, 04, Apr 2026
- 14:36 EDT
- 19
Eboo Patel / denison.edu
Denison University has named interfaith leader and author Eboo Patel as the keynote speaker for its 185th Commencement ceremony on May 16, when he will also receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree.
Patel, founder and president of Chicago-based Interfaith America, was selected for his work advancing pluralism and interfaith cooperation.
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The nonprofit, previously known as Interfaith Youth Core, works with universities, governments, businesses and civic organizations to promote cooperation across religious and cultural differences.
“From my perspective, Eboo Patel is one of the prominent civic voices in the United States,” Denison president Adam Weinberg said in a statement. “I have long admired his work, especially as it relates to creating leaders who have the skills and habits to effectively create healthy communities, businesses and civic organizations.”
Denison said Patel has been a leading advocate for building bridges across difference and for strengthening communities, institutions and civic life through dialogue and cooperation.
The university also cited Patel’s support for education and the liberal arts, as well as his emphasis on the role of academic institutions in sustaining democratic society.
Patel is the author of five books, including We Need to Build: Field Notes for Diverse Democracy and Sacred Ground: Pluralism, Prejudice, and the Promise of America.
An American Ismaili of Gujarati Indian heritage, Patel served on former President Barack Obama’s Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a doctorate in the sociology of religion from the University of Oxford, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar.
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