The legacy and impact of Dr. Calvin O. Butts, III, as president of the State University of New York at Old Westbury was celebrated during a remembrance ceremony held on campus in February.
Dr. Butts, who passed away in October 2022, was the longest-serving president in the institution’s history at the time of his retirement in August 2020. Along with his nearly 21-year career at SUNY Old Westbury, he served until his death as pastor at the renowned Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York City, an institution he served for some 50 years.
Held on the lower level of The Calvin O. Butts, III Library in the College’s Campus Center, the event welcomed an audience of approximately 250, which included members of the Butts family, current and retired faculty, staff and administrators, alumni, and leaders from the Long Island community.
A lifelong, iconic New Yorker, Dr. Butts, through his actions and leadership, had a pervasive impact on such wide-ranging community development initiatives as education, homelessness, senior citizen and youth empowerment, cultural awareness and ecumenical outreach.
Through the retelling of memories, stories, and his historic achievements for the institution, Dr. Butts was remembered and praised for the success and growth he spearheaded as College President. The event also included a performance of “He Wants it All” by the group Trcy, which sang at many commencement ceremonies over the last seven years of Dr. Butts’ tenure at the College.
“Just as Dr. Butts did in his ‘other’ lives, through sheer force of will he lifted SUNY Old Westbury higher than ever,” said Hon. William Hohauser, who worked alongside Dr. Butts and is currently the longest-serving member of the SUNY Old Westbury College Council. “Not only did Dr. Butts champion the social justice goal, but he attracted tremendous additions to the faculty, he engineered the drive towards establishing graduate programs, obtained real funding for the new academic building, and expanded on-campus housing. Through all these initiatives, he made SUNY Old Westbury relevant – not an easy task in this area.”
Samuel Fields, a 2004 Media and Communications graduate, spoke about the role model Dr. Butts’ served as and the commitment to students he exhibited.
“He gave a lot of opportunities to people that they would not get anywhere else, including me” said Fields who described his arrival as a struggling transfer student. “No matter what happened, Dr. Butts was always fair, always talking about equality. He was never too big on himself, but always involved with the students, you could always speak to him.”
Other speakers during the evening included current SUNY Old Westbury President Timothy Sams; current Faculty Senate Chair Jennie D’Ambroise; Professor Emeritus Wayne Edwards; and Empire State Development Chair Kevin Law, who worked closely with Dr. Butts during Law’s tenure as president of the Long Island Association.
The evening closed with remarks from President Emeritus Butts' son, Calvin O. Butts, IV.
"This is where God wanted him to be to be able to do the work He wanted him to do," said Butts. "At the core of everything he said was about building the character of the students -- if you leave here with good character, you can get a job. He wanted to make sure students were trained of mind and centered of the heart, prepared to step out into a world where, frankly, no one knows what will happen tomorrow."
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