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KINGSTON, R.I (WBZ NewsRadio) — The University of Rhode Island Board of Trustees has voted unanimously to revoke honor degrees given to Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani.
This decision came after a request from the URI Faculty Senate Executive Committee for the school's honorary degree committee to review actions by the pair during their time working closely with Former President Donald Trump.
“As a civic institution, URI has the privilege and responsibility to sustain and preserve American democracy by inspiring and modeling good citizenship,” URI President Marc Parlange said in a statement. “Revoking these honorary degrees reinforces our values and allows us to lead with truth and integrity.”
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Giuliani was awarded the Doctor of Laws Honoris Causa because of his actions and leadership shown in the wake of the September 11th attacks. Flynn received an Honorary Doctorate of Human Letters from his alma mater in 2014. He graduated from URI in 1981.
The university said in a statement its honorary degree committee, which is comprised of URI faculty, staff, and students, conducted a review of the duo's actions during their time working with the Trump Administration and submitted a recommendation to the school's president to have the honorary degrees revoked.
In the statement, the university said the committee cited instances of Flynn pleading guilty to lying to the FBI and him calling for the establishment of "one religion in the U.S. during a rally in November 2021. They also cited Giuliani being suspended from practicing law in the nation's capital and the state of New York as a part of their decision to revoke the honorary degrees.
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