Director of Opportunity Programs Aaron Ray received the Arthur O. Eve Human Relations Award from the Higher Education Opportunity Program Professional Organization (HEOPPO) on Oct. 3 at the 2025 HEOPPO Let’s Make It Happen Conference in Westchester County.
The Arthur O. Eve Human Relations Award is given to an individual who “champions the issues of inclusion, access, and success while making post-secondary opportunities available to historically underrepresented students through their efforts at their institution and through their advocacy at the state level.”
Recently, Ray’s efforts to champion access and inclusion could be felt on and off the Hill. At Hamilton, he led the grant proposal process to launch the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (CSTEP) at Hamilton and will serve as the program’s inaugural director. He also was among the inaugural recipients of funding from President Steven Tepper’s “What If” Initiative to develop a coordinated effort that will equitably support all access and success programs on campus, as well as unaffiliated first-gen and/or Pell-eligible students.
As president of HEOPPO, Ray was integral in establishing a partnership between the organization and Kaplan to provide free graduate and professional test prep for students at 10 HEOP campuses across New York State, including Hamilton. He was the closing keynote speaker at the 2025 New York State Association for College Admission Counseling’s Coming Together Conference, and was the DREAM Charter High School commencement speaker for the Class of 2025.
Posted October 17, 2025
