Cazenovia College selects speaker for final commencement in May

CAZENOVIA, N.Y. — Cazenovia College announced it has selected John Robert Greene as the keynote speaker for its 198th and final commencement on May 13.

Cazenovia College announced in December that it plans to close prior to the start of the fall 2023 semester due to financial problems.

Greene served as the Paul J. Schupf professor of history and humanities at Cazenovia College prior to his retirement back in January. Greene was known as “the national face of Cazenovia College,” exemplifying its ideals, goals, and mission, the school contended in a release.

Greene marked his 42nd year of teaching at Cazenovia College in 2022. He began at the school as a part-time instructor in September 1979 while also serving as manager of the campus radio station. He became a full-time faculty member in 1984, was tenured in 1987, and was named a distinguished faculty member in 1993.

Cazenovia awarded Greene the school’s first endowed chair, the Paul J. Schupf Chair in History and Humanities, in 2000 and a distinguished service award in 2021. Upon his retirement in January, Cazenovia awarded Greene the title of professor emeritus, the school said.

Known nationally as a leading scholar of the American presidency, Greene has edited or written 20 books. They include works on Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush.