2026 Hamilton College Honorary Degree

Presented to Maryam Banikarim

Your career, you once said, “hasn’t been a straight line; it’s been full of pivots, detours, and messy moments.”

One of your life’s first major adjustments came as a child when your family fled the Iranian Revolution in 1979. You eventually settled in the United States, received degrees from Barnard College and Columbia University, and began a professional career that included senior-level positions with Fortune, Nextdoor, Hyatt, Gannett, NBCUniversal, and Univision.

You subsequently shifted from being a highly successful C-suite executive known for driving growth and transformation of iconic global brands to a community builder focused on driving civic participation and engagement. Just since 2020, you have:

• Co-founded NYCNext to produce performing arts pop-up events throughout New York to help the city recover from the pandemic;
• Created the award-winning “WE <3 NYC” campaign to mobilize civic action and community engagement;
• Launched The Longest Table, “a free-to-all potluck to connect neighbors, build community and spread joy”; and
• Began hosting The Messy Parts podcast, “a space for honest conversations about the struggles, pivots, and hard-won victories that shape extraordinary careers.”

Your achievements have earned you recognition as one of Fast Company’s “Top 10 Disruptors,” the New York Post’s “50 Most Powerful Women in NYC,” and Advertising Age’s “Women to Watch.” In 2018, you received a Medal of Honor from the Ellis Island Honors Society, which recognizes inspiring Americans “whose selfless contributions strengthen our country and its people.”

People have called you “a force of nature,” a “font of positivity and leadership,” a “New York legend,” and a “purpose-driven change agent.” You see yourself as being a “relentlessly curious” person who lives by the motto “you only live once so run at it hard and make a difference.”

“Instead of seeing life’s challenges as obstacles,” you once said, “I see them as an obstacle course — a fascinating array of tests that I’m curious to see if I can pass.”

Your presence here today is evidence that you aced those tests, and we are delighted to present you with a Hamilton degree to mark your success.

Steven Tepper
President
May 24, 2026