If Pete Davidson is Staten Island’s wild card, Colin Jost is its valedictorian—and now he’s got the honorary doctorate to prove it.
Last Thursday, the College of Staten Island paid tribute to one of its hometown comedy heroes with a special hooding ceremony and Q&A in the campus’ Recital Hall. Jost, best known as co-anchor of Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update” (and co-owner with Davidson of a real-life Staten Island Ferry), was awarded the Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters for his contributions to comedy, television, and community service.
The event came just over a week after the school’s May 28 commencement, which Jost couldn’t attend due to scheduling conflicts. But he sent in a video message to graduates and made it up to the college community in person last week.
CSI President Dr. Timothy G. Lynch conferred the honorary degree, calling Jost “a proud Staten Island native” and praising his “creativity, resilience, and commitment to uplifting young voices through education and writing.”
And in a true Staten Island family moment, Jost’s parents were in attendance—his father Dan, a retired Staten Island Tech teacher, and his mother Dr. Kerry Kelly, the FDNY’s first female Chief Medical Officer.
The ceremony also included a Q&A session moderated by CSI Provost Michael Steiper, where Jost took questions about his journey from the Staten Island Advance newsroom to SNL.
Asked how it felt to be an honorary doctor, Jost joked, “I’ve been doing so many surgeries, it’s crazy. Elective, unelective… It hasn’t sunk in yet, because no one’s accepted that they need to call me doctor, but I think it’s coming.”
Colin Jost joined Saturday Night Live as a writer in 2005 and quickly rose the ranks, becoming co-head writer in 2012. In 2014, he stepped in front of the camera as co-anchor of the show’s long-running “Weekend Update” segment, initially alongside Cecily Strong and later with Michael Che, forming one of the show’s most enduring comedy duos.
