16-05-2025
New College picked wrong guy for commencement speaker. Here are 5 better options.
I've written before that New College of Florida and its president, Richard Corcoran, have done some pretty smart things since the college's dramatic, controversial transformation to a conservative-oriented school in January 2023.
So why are New College and Corcoran continuing to do one thing that's just pretty dumb?
Why are they continuing to allow New College's name to be associated with figures who are generating some horrible optics for the school right now?
I mean, who can forget the fiasco of New College recently inviting Russell Brand – the controversial British comedian and actor – to be a speaker while Brand had a cloud of sexual assault allegations hovering over him?
You know, the invitation New College only postponed after Brand was formally charged with multiple counts of rape and sexual assault – mere days before his April appearance?
Why did it take current events to stir New College to act when common sense should have done so?
And who can ignore the ongoing mess regarding New College's hiring of former official Frederick Piccolo Jr., who has been arrested several times on charges of indecent exposure?
What kind of vetting system enabled Piccolo to even work at New College?
All of which raises yet another head-scratching question:
What in the world possessed New College to pick prominent lawyer Alan Dershowitz, who represented the late billionaire Jeffrey Epstein – a convicted sex offender who was facing numerous charges for sex-trafficking minors when he died in his jail cell in 2019 – to deliver the school's May 23 commencement address?
Seriously, who's running the Office of Self-Awareness at New College these days?
And if New College doesn't have that office, shouldn't it use what it was paying Piccolo to create it?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know.
It's true that Dershowitz is – as New College declared in announcing him as the commencement speaker – 'one of the nation's most influential legal scholars and defenders of civil liberties.'
It's true that Dershowitz is – as New College also proclaimed – 'a constitutional lawyer, Harvard Law professor emeritus and best-selling author' who has 'played a pivotal role in some of the most significant legal debates of our time.'
It's true that our Constitution protects the right of every individual, regardless of how reviled they are, to have legal representation.
And, yes, it's true that many other lawyers besides Dershowitz represented Epstein over the years.
But does New College really need a commencement speaker right now whose name can be mentioned, fairly or not, in the same sentence with 'Jeffrey Epstein'?
Who is Jeffrey Epstein, the billionaire charged with sex trafficking girls as young as 14?
What's next?
An honorary fellowship for Harvey Weinstein, the disgraced movie mogul whose sordid actions launched the second wave of the #MeToo movement – and who Dershowitz also helped to represent at one point?
Nah, not the best look at the moment.
I know what you're thinking: 'OK, smart guy, so who should have been the commencement speaker?'
Glad you asked! Here is my 'Top 5 People New College Should Have Picked as Commencement Speaker Instead of Alan Dershowitz' list:
No, the governor is not the most dynamic speaker.
And you'd have worry about DeSantis yelling at the New College graduates, like he did those high school kids who dared to wear masks – amid a raging COVID pandemic – while standing next to him.
But, really, isn't DeSantis the daddy of the 'new' New College?
Isn't his name all over this birth certificate?
The school should have given "Big Daddy D" a chance to proudly gaze upon his offspring while giving the commencement speech.
Rufo could provide students with an inspiring tale about successfully pursuing your passion in life. After all, Rufo's passion appears to be obsessively, well, obsessing about race and gender – and boy, oh, boy, has he turned it into his own personal, successful industry.
Besides, it would be hilarious to see the TikTok mashups of every time Rufo uttered the word "woke" during his commencement speech. He'd end up sounding like a bawking chicken in those videos.
Yes, some elements of Meyer's coaching career are as oily as a mechanic's hands in a lube change shop.
And Meyer tried to ruin my NFL team – the Jacksonville Jaguars – during his brief time as head coach.
But the guy does own championship rings and he does live in Sarasota – and he would have been a fitting commencement speaker given New College's 'all in' approach to sports these days.
Ono, who just bolted the presidency at the University of Michigan – and is the sole candidate for the UF job – could provide students with a cautionary tale on sacrificing your dignity to get a gig.
Ono's abrupt reversal on the issue of diversity, equity and inclusion – which he once supported but now opposes in groveling fashion – is downright pathetic.
And for what? Just for the privilege of doing that silly 'Gator Chomp'?
Ugh.
Opinion: 12 reasons why I hate college football. Yes, the Gator Chomp is one of them.
Hey, Corcoran will be at the May 23 ceremony anyway – and he'll already be wearing suitable commencement regalia, right? Why not him?
Yes, I know: I'm totally guilty of presenting compelling evidence after the fact.
But one thing's for sure:
In the court of good judgment, New College deserves a "thumbs down" verdict for picking Alan Dershowitz as its commencement speaker.
Opinion Editor Roger Brown can be reached at He's on X (formerly Twitter) at RBrown_HTOpin.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: New College errs with Dershowitz as graduation speaker | Opinion
