Honorary Degree Recipients

Rachel Cusk

Rachel Cusk is a Canadian-British novelist and essayist known for her innovative and introspective writing on identity, relationships, and artistic practice. Born in Saskatoon, Canada, and raised in the United States and the United Kingdom, she studied English at New College, Oxford. She first gained recognition with Saving Agnes (1993), which won the Whitbread First Novel Award, and went on to publish a series of novels exploring social roles and domestic life.

Cusk is also the author of the memoirs A Life’s Work and Aftermath, both noted for their candid treatment of motherhood and divorce. Her later fiction, particularly the Outline trilogy, has been widely acclaimed for its spare, dialogic structure and rethinking of narrative voice. Her recent novels include Second Place, which received France's Prix Femina étranger, and Parade (2024), awarded the Goldsmiths Prize.

A Guggenheim Fellow and recipient of the Malaparte Prize, Cusk has also been named a Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. She lives in Paris.

Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates is an award-winning American author and journalist whose work explores race, history, and culture through a blend of personal narrative and historical analysis. Born in Baltimore, Maryland, he was raised in a family shaped by literary and political engagement, which informed his early interest in writing. He contributed to publications including The Washington Post, The Village Voice, and Time, and gained national prominence at The Atlantic, where essays such as “The Case for Reparations” sparked wide debate.

He is the author of several acclaimed books, including the memoir The Beautiful Struggle (2008) and Between the World and Me (2015), which won the National Book Award for Nonfiction. His later works include We Were Eight Years in Power (2017), the novel The Water Dancer (2019), and the essay collection The Message (2024). In addition to his prose writing, he wrote celebrated runs of Marvel’s Black Panther (2016–2021) and Captain America (2018–2021).