Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY – Attorney Norman E. Kent '71, '75 has established an endowed scholarship named for his friend Allard K. Lowenstein, the late Long Island congressman and champion of civil rights in the 60s and 70s.

The scholarship will be awarded to a qualified upperclassman selected on the basis of financial need, academic achievement and an undergraduate record that demonstrates a history and commitment to advancing the cause of equality and civil rights for all Americans, said Mr. Kent, a nationally known criminal defense attorney who lives in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.

According to the Allard K. Lowenstein International Human Rights Law Clinic at Yale University, established by Yale students after his death, Mr. Lowenstein “was a relentless opponent of injustice in the United States and throughout the world.  His passionate leadership played a crucial role in the civil rights, anti-apartheid, anti-war, and human rights movements of the 1960s and 1970s.” 

He led opposition to apartheid in South Africa, organized white college students to spend the summers of 1963 and 1964 in Mississippi helping African Americans fighting for the right to vote, and protested against the Vietnam War. A Democrat, he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1968 from Long Beach and served from 1969-71, when he was named chairman of Americans for Democratic Action. In 1970, after National Guardsmen killed four students at Kent State University in Ohio, Rep. Lowenstein met with antiwar demonstrators at Hofstra and urged them to work within the political system and vote from office any elected official who voted for war. Mr. Lowenstein was killed in 1980.

Norman E. Kent has been based in south Florida for 30 years. He is publisher of www.nationalgaynews.com, has been a commentator on NBC, CNN and Court TV, and was host of The Norm Kent Show on WFTL 1400AM.. In 2002, the Sun-Sentinel named Mr. Kent one of Broward County’s 25 most influential citizens. In addition to being a community activist, Mr. Kent has been a successful businessman, author and educator. Mr. Kent graduated from Hofstra University in 1971 with a B.A. in sociology and from Hofstra University School of Law in 1975.

Endowed scholarships are created through generous gifts received from Hofstra alumni and friends, and from friends and families of Hofstra graduates, faculty and staff.

Hofstra University is a dynamic private institution offering more than 140 undergraduate and 155 graduate programs in liberal arts and sciences, business, communication, education and allied human services, and honors studies, as well as a School of Law. With a student-faculty ratio of 14-to-1, our professors teach small classes averaging 23 students that emphasize interaction, critical thinking and analysis. Hofstra offers a faculty whose highest priority is teaching excellence, cutting edge technology, extensive library resources, internships and special educational programs that appeal to their interests and abilities.  The Hofstra community is driven, dynamic and energetic, helping students find and focus their strengths to prepare them for a successful future.