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    • Ethel Kennedy remembered by Manhattanville University alma mater
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    Ethel Kennedy remembered by Manhattanville University alma mater

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    PURCHASE – The death of Ethel Kennedy, widow of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and longtime philanthropist and human rights advocate, reverberated through the Manhattanville University community.

    Kennedy, who died Oct. 10 at age 96, was a 1949 alumna of what was then known as Manhattanville College of the Sacred Heart. Manhattanville, then a Catholic women’s school (until 1969), was located on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The campus was moved to Purchase in 1952.

    Obituary: Ethel Kennedy, widow of Robert F. Kennedy, dies at age 96

    “Ethel Kennedy embodied unwavering courage, compassion and commitment to social responsibility,” Manhattanville University President Frank D. Sánchez said in a statement. “It is a source of pride that Manhattanville, and the incredibly strong women who founded it, played a role in shaping the values ​​she upheld throughout her life.”

    Vibrant student, passionate about social justice

    Ethel Skakel, the girl from Connecticut, was known as a lively student with a heart of gold and a larger-than-life personality, university officials recalled.

    The feisty English major was a classmate of Jean Kennedy. Ethel met Jean’s brother, Robert F. Kennedy, on a ski trip. Ethel and Bobby Kennedy shared a passion for politics and a commitment to service and social justice. They married in 1950.

    The couple had 11 children during their 18 years of marriage; the youngest was born in 1968, just after RFK’s assassination.

    Awards for commitment to human rights

    Ethel Kennedy founded what is now Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, a nonprofit organization that advocates and educates on important human rights issues. The organization is led by their daughter, Kerry Kennedy, a lawyer and activist.

    Manhattanville awarded Ethel Kennedy an honorary doctorate in humane letters in 2020. That year, the Ethel Kennedy Award for Human Rights Leadership was also established for the doctoral program at the School of Education in Manhattanville.

    In 2014, President Obama presented Ethel Kennedy with the Medal of Freedom, the United States’ highest civilian honor, in recognition of her life’s work.

    Backed by a strong faith

    The Kennedy family noted their matriarch’s lifelong commitment to social justice and human rights in a statement on the RFK Human Rights website. They also honored Ethel Kennedy as a devout Catholic and a daily communicant.

    “We are comforted knowing that she has been reunited with the love of her life, our father, Robert F. Kennedy; her children David and Michael; her daughter-in-law Mary; her grandchildren Maeve and Saoirse; and her great-grandchildren Gideon and Josie.”

    She is survived by nine of her children, 34 grandchildren, 24 great-grandchildren and numerous nieces and nephews.

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