IRWIN POLISHOOK SCHOLARSHIP
CUNY Graduate Center
ABOUT IRWIN POLISHOOK
Dr. Irwin H. Polishook (1935–2019) was a CUNY historian, professor, and a founding leader of the Professional Staff Congress (PSC/CUNY). He taught colonial American history at Hunter College and later at Lehman College, and served on the doctoral faculty of the CUNY Graduate Center.Polishook became PSC president in 1976 and led the union for 24 years, succeeding Belle Zeller. During his presidency, he helped negotiate the union’s early contracts and led the PSC through the New York City fiscal crisis of the 1970s and the major challenges facing CUNY in the 1990s. He was a strong advocate for preserving CUNY as a unified public university and for protecting access to public higher education.
His leadership extended beyond CUNY. He was a prominent voice for higher education within the American Federation of Teachers and held leadership positions with New York State United Teachers, the New York City Municipal Labor Committee, and the American Association of University Professors. He retired as PSC president in 2000.
In 2000, the Trustees of the Belle Zeller Scholarship Trust Fund named the scholarship for CUNY doctoral students in his honor, recognizing his contributions to CUNY, unionism in higher education, and the academic community.