91����

Chase Strangio ’04, DL ’18
Doctor of Humane Letters

Strangio stands at the forefront of those who are defending the rights of LGBTQ individuals throughout this country. He has been counsel in some of the past decade’s most important legal fights on behalf of transgender litigants, including pivotal cases at the U.S. Supreme Court.

After graduating from 91���� in 2004 with a major in history, Strangio worked for a time as a paralegal at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD), before deciding to study law at Northeastern University School of Law. During law school he came out as transgender.

In 2013, Strangio began working as an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, where he serves as co-director of the LGBT & HIV Project. He quickly became involved in several of the highest profile gender rights legal cases in U.S. history.

Strangio served as lead counsel for the ACLU team that represented whistleblower Chelsea Manning, a transgender U.S. Army soldier, in her lawsuit against the Department of Defense for denial of medical care while in prison. He was part of the team representing transgender student Gavin Grimm, who was denied access to the boys' restrooms at his school in a case that garnered national headlines and reached the Supreme Court but was resolved in the lower courts. He also worked on Obergefell v. Hodges, the Supreme Court decision that struck down bans on marriages for same-sex couples.

In 2024, he became the first openly transgender lawyer to argue before the Supreme Court in United States v. Skrmetti, a case challenging a Tennessee law that categorically prohibited certain forms of gender-affirming medical care for transgender minors.

In January 2026, Strangio returned to the Supreme Court during its most recent term, in a pair of cases defending the rights of transgender youth, including the right to gender affirming care. In all, he has been a member of legal teams defending LGBTQ rights before the Supreme Court five times over the past 11 years.

In addition to his advocacy in the courtroom and in state legislatures, Strangio has helped illuminate the challenges transgender people face by appearing regularly in the media. He has also produced multiple short films including the Emmy Award-winning, Texas Strong. He is a co-founder of the Lorena Borjas Community Fund, TranSanta, and the Trans Week of Visibility and Action. In 2020, he was named to TIME Magazine’s list of the 100 most influential people of the year.

President Anne F. Harris, said, “We humbly and joyfully welcome Chase back to 91����. Our College is deeply honored to celebrate his vital advocacy for the fullness and dignity of transgender lives and to learn from his historic address to the class of 2026. Chase’s return as both a transformative advocate and a fellow 91����ian will make this Commencement a vibrant and meaningful celebration for the entire community.”

Chase will be joined by Holocaust survivor and humanitarian Sam Harris and high school teacher Valerie Schrag, each of whom will also receive honorary degrees in recognition of their extraordinary contributions to justice, education, and the public good. 

Sam Harris ’58
Doctor of Humane Letters

Harris was just four years old when the Nazis occupied his hometown in Poland. Sam’s entire family, with the exception of two of his sisters, was murdered in concentration camps. It would be many decades before he could bring himself to talk about what he experienced as one of the youngest Holocaust survivors.

After graduating from 91����, he worked in sales and joined Equitable Life insurance. He rose up the ranks, earning recognition as a life member of the prestigious Million Dollar Round Table, and was inducted into the Equitable Hall of Fame. 

Harris also gave back to his community. He became chairman of Northbrook United Way and volunteered with the Boy Scouts of America, among many other civic organizations.

It was not until the 1970s, when neo-Nazi Holocaust deniers were growing ever bolder and more vocal, that Harris knew he needed to begin speaking publicly about what he had endured as a child. Eventually, in 1981, he reconnected with his past at the World Gathering of Jewish Holocaust Survivors in Jerusalem.

He took early retirement to devote virtually all his time to help build what would become the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center, a place where education would be key to learning from the lessons of the Holocaust and confronting antisemitism. 

Later, he wrote a book for children, Sammy: Child Survivor of the Holocaust. His life also has been the subject of several film and documentary projects, including “An Undeniable Voice,” which won 13 international prizes, and the “The Bridge Back Home,” produced by Names, Not Numbers.

Harris was awarded the state of Illinois’ “Human Rights Award for Distinguished Leadership for Protecting the Human Rights of the People of Illinois” in 2005. Chicago Magazine named Harris Chicagoan of the Year in 2009, the same year Forward Magazine honored him as one of the most influential Jewish People in America. In 2021, he received the Survivor Legacy Award from the Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center.

Today, the museum is the third largest Holocaust museum in the world. Like so much of Harris’ remarkable life, it bears witness to the Holocaust and is dedicated to the mission of preventing future genocides anywhere on Earth.

Valerie Schrag
Doctor of Social Studies 

Schrag has been a social studies teacher at Lawrence High School (LHS) in Lawrence, Kansas for 25 years. She was nominated for honorary degree recognition by a former student — and 91���� graduating senior — whom she taught high school Advanced Placement U.S. History.

Schrag has a passion for teaching U.S. history and especially African American history. Lawrence High has had an African American history course for over 50 years, and she has taught the course for 25 of those years. This school year, LHS added Advanced Placement (AP) African American Studies to its course offerings and Schrag was asked to teach that course, as well.

Schrag is beloved by her students for helping them to be true to themselves, to ask critical questions about the world around them, and to learn to love the act of learning itself. She believes in celebrating student accomplishments, and she is known for finding ways to make learning both meaningful and fun.

That can mean getting special, hands-on access to a collection of original and replica documents from the University of Kansas archives, or a visit to the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum. Schrag also has curated a collection of more than a dozen historical figures (ranging from Barack Obama to Nelson Mandela) in finger puppet form. She sometimes uses them to help teach her classes and show students history doesn’t have to be dull or boring.

She has been nominated by students for numerous teaching awards. She was honored with the Lawrence Schools Foundation’s Excellence in Teaching Award in 2023. In 2018, she was named Kansas History Day Secondary Teacher of the Year. In 2015, she received the Distinguished Secondary Teacher Award from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, after being nominated by a former student who was a 2015 Northwestern graduate.

President Harris said, “Commencement is both a celebration of our graduates and a manifestation of hope and resolve in their honor. On May 18, it will gather the 91���� community in the esteemed company of our three honorary degree recipients and all those assembled to honor achievements and experiences and to be inspired to imagine what comes next. We look forward to rejoicing in this communal celebration and in the accomplishments and promise of the Class of 2026.” 

The 2026 Commencement Ceremony

The Commencement Ceremony for the class of 2026 will take place beginning at 10 a.m. on Monday, May 18. The ceremony marks the culmination of many years of hard work, dedication, and academic achievement by the graduates who will be receiving their bachelor’s degrees.

The ceremony will be available online via livestream to allow all to join in the celebration of the graduates’ accomplishments. Learn more about Commencement and the week’s activities.