On June 26, 2025, Tania León was named one of the Carnegie Corporation of New York's 2025 Class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans. The distinction recognizes 20 naturalized American citizens whose contributions have enriched our society and helped to strengthen our democracy. The 2025 Class of Great Immigrants is comprised of naturalized citizens from 16 countries who are leaders across academia, the arts, business, journalism, medicine, philanthropy, and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).

They include:

• Tope Awotona (Nigeria) Founder and CEO of Calendly, a scheduling software company that employs more than 650 people and provides services to over 20 million users at 100,000 organizations.
  
• Moungi Bawendi (France) Winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for work that revolutionized the chemical production of quantum dots used in biomedical imaging and computer and television displays.
  
• Simon Johnson (England) Winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity and for developing theoretical tools to explain how institutions can change.
  
• Michele Kang (South Korea) Founder and CEO of Kynisca, the world’s first multi-team global organization focused on professionalizing women’s football and proving its commercial potential and cultural impact.
  
• Shahid Khan (Pakistan) President and CEO of Flex-N-Gate, an automobile components manufacturer with 76 plants worldwide and 27,000 employees.
  
• María Teresa Kumar (Colombia) President and CEO of Voto Latino, a national nonprofit organization that encourages civic engagement among younger generations of Latinx voters.
  
• Tania León (Cuba) A Pulitzer Prize–winning composer, conductor, and educator who has held positions with Carnegie Hall, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic, and is a founding member of the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
  

“For 20 years, our Great Immigrants public awareness initiative has been a reminder that many of the most influential figures in our country have been distinguished naturalized citizens, like our founder Andrew Carnegie, born in Scotland,” said Dame Louise Richardson, president of Carnegie, who is a naturalized American citizen born in Ireland. “The U.S. is a nation of immigrants and our ongoing support of nonpartisan organizations that help establish legal pathways for citizenship continues to enrich the very fabric of American life. We applaud this year’s 20th class and the hundreds of ‘Great Immigrants, Great Americans’ before them.”

The initiative aims to increase public awareness of the economic and societal benefits of immigration. It is a tribute to the legacy of Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish immigrant who, like the initiative's honorees, found success as an American and contributed enormously to his adopted country. During the past 20 years, the Carnegie database of Great Immigrants has grown into one of the largest online resources for examples of accomplished naturalized American citizens. Past honorees include Isabel Allende, Elizabeth Blackburn, Sergey Brin, Michael J. Fox, Min Jin Lee, Yo-Yo Ma, Rupert Murdoch, Martina Navratilova, and Pedro Pascal.

Naturalization and the legal integration of immigrants are part of the foundation’s overarching goal of reducing political polarization for a strong democracy. According to the American Immigration Council, a Carnegie grantee whose research is cited in the new comic book, there are 48 million immigrants in America, about half are naturalized U.S. citizens, and more than seven million are eligible to apply for citizenship. Among Fortune 500 companies, 230 were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants, and among business owners, one in four is an immigrant.

The 20 honorees in the class of 2025 will be recognized with a full-page public service announcement in The New York Times on the Fourth of July and through tributes on social media. Please join the celebration by sharing via Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X (Twitter) using the hashtag #GreatImmigrants.

To learn more about the foundation’s new comic book featuring Great Immigrants, visit carnegie.org/immigrantstories.

‍

On June 26, 2025, Tania León was named one of the Carnegie Corporation of New York's 2025 Class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans. The distinction recognizes 20 naturalized American citizens whose contributions have enriched our society and helped to strengthen our democracy. The 2025 Class of Great Immigrants is comprised of naturalized citizens from 16 countries who are leaders across academia, the arts, business, journalism, medicine, philanthropy, and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).

They include:

• Tope Awotona (Nigeria) Founder and CEO of Calendly, a scheduling software company that employs more than 650 people and provides services to over 20 million users at 100,000 organizations.
  
• Moungi Bawendi (France) Winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for work that revolutionized the chemical production of quantum dots used in biomedical imaging and computer and television displays.
  
• Simon Johnson (England) Winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity and for developing theoretical tools to explain how institutions can change.
  
• Michele Kang (South Korea) Founder and CEO of Kynisca, the world’s first multi-team global organization focused on professionalizing women’s football and proving its commercial potential and cultural impact.
  
• Shahid Khan (Pakistan) President and CEO of Flex-N-Gate, an automobile components manufacturer with 76 plants worldwide and 27,000 employees.
  
• María Teresa Kumar (Colombia) President and CEO of Voto Latino, a national nonprofit organization that encourages civic engagement among younger generations of Latinx voters.
  
• Tania León (Cuba) A Pulitzer Prize–winning composer, conductor, and educator who has held positions with Carnegie Hall, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic, and is a founding member of the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
  

“For 20 years, our Great Immigrants public awareness initiative has been a reminder that many of the most influential figures in our country have been distinguished naturalized citizens, like our founder Andrew Carnegie, born in Scotland,” said Dame Louise Richardson, president of Carnegie, who is a naturalized American citizen born in Ireland. “The U.S. is a nation of immigrants and our ongoing support of nonpartisan organizations that help establish legal pathways for citizenship continues to enrich the very fabric of American life. We applaud this year’s 20th class and the hundreds of ‘Great Immigrants, Great Americans’ before them.”

The initiative aims to increase public awareness of the economic and societal benefits of immigration. It is a tribute to the legacy of Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish immigrant who, like the initiative's honorees, found success as an American and contributed enormously to his adopted country. During the past 20 years, the Carnegie database of Great Immigrants has grown into one of the largest online resources for examples of accomplished naturalized American citizens. Past honorees include Isabel Allende, Elizabeth Blackburn, Sergey Brin, Michael J. Fox, Min Jin Lee, Yo-Yo Ma, Rupert Murdoch, Martina Navratilova, and Pedro Pascal.

Naturalization and the legal integration of immigrants are part of the foundation’s overarching goal of reducing political polarization for a strong democracy. According to the American Immigration Council, a Carnegie grantee whose research is cited in the new comic book, there are 48 million immigrants in America, about half are naturalized U.S. citizens, and more than seven million are eligible to apply for citizenship. Among Fortune 500 companies, 230 were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants, and among business owners, one in four is an immigrant.

The 20 honorees in the class of 2025 will be recognized with a full-page public service announcement in The New York Times on the Fourth of July and through tributes on social media. Please join the celebration by sharing via Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X (Twitter) using the hashtag #GreatImmigrants.

To learn more about the foundation’s new comic book featuring Great Immigrants, visit carnegie.org/immigrantstories.

‍

On June 26, 2025, Tania León was named one of the Carnegie Corporation of New York's 2025 Class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans. The distinction recognizes 20 naturalized American citizens whose contributions have enriched our society and helped to strengthen our democracy. The 2025 Class of Great Immigrants is comprised of naturalized citizens from 16 countries who are leaders across academia, the arts, business, journalism, medicine, philanthropy, and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).

They include:

• Tope Awotona (Nigeria) Founder and CEO of Calendly, a scheduling software company that employs more than 650 people and provides services to over 20 million users at 100,000 organizations.
  
• Moungi Bawendi (France) Winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for work that revolutionized the chemical production of quantum dots used in biomedical imaging and computer and television displays.
  
• Simon Johnson (England) Winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity and for developing theoretical tools to explain how institutions can change.
  
• Michele Kang (South Korea) Founder and CEO of Kynisca, the world’s first multi-team global organization focused on professionalizing women’s football and proving its commercial potential and cultural impact.
  
• Shahid Khan (Pakistan) President and CEO of Flex-N-Gate, an automobile components manufacturer with 76 plants worldwide and 27,000 employees.
  
• María Teresa Kumar (Colombia) President and CEO of Voto Latino, a national nonprofit organization that encourages civic engagement among younger generations of Latinx voters.
  
• Tania León (Cuba) A Pulitzer Prize–winning composer, conductor, and educator who has held positions with Carnegie Hall, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic, and is a founding member of the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
  

“For 20 years, our Great Immigrants public awareness initiative has been a reminder that many of the most influential figures in our country have been distinguished naturalized citizens, like our founder Andrew Carnegie, born in Scotland,” said Dame Louise Richardson, president of Carnegie, who is a naturalized American citizen born in Ireland. “The U.S. is a nation of immigrants and our ongoing support of nonpartisan organizations that help establish legal pathways for citizenship continues to enrich the very fabric of American life. We applaud this year’s 20th class and the hundreds of ‘Great Immigrants, Great Americans’ before them.”

The initiative aims to increase public awareness of the economic and societal benefits of immigration. It is a tribute to the legacy of Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish immigrant who, like the initiative's honorees, found success as an American and contributed enormously to his adopted country. During the past 20 years, the Carnegie database of Great Immigrants has grown into one of the largest online resources for examples of accomplished naturalized American citizens. Past honorees include Isabel Allende, Elizabeth Blackburn, Sergey Brin, Michael J. Fox, Min Jin Lee, Yo-Yo Ma, Rupert Murdoch, Martina Navratilova, and Pedro Pascal.

Naturalization and the legal integration of immigrants are part of the foundation’s overarching goal of reducing political polarization for a strong democracy. According to the American Immigration Council, a Carnegie grantee whose research is cited in the new comic book, there are 48 million immigrants in America, about half are naturalized U.S. citizens, and more than seven million are eligible to apply for citizenship. Among Fortune 500 companies, 230 were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants, and among business owners, one in four is an immigrant.

The 20 honorees in the class of 2025 will be recognized with a full-page public service announcement in The New York Times on the Fourth of July and through tributes on social media. Please join the celebration by sharing via Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X (Twitter) using the hashtag #GreatImmigrants.

To learn more about the foundation’s new comic book featuring Great Immigrants, visit carnegie.org/immigrantstories.

‍

On June 26, 2025, Tania León was named one of the Carnegie Corporation of New York's 2025 Class of Great Immigrants, Great Americans. The distinction recognizes 20 naturalized American citizens whose contributions have enriched our society and helped to strengthen our democracy. The 2025 Class of Great Immigrants is comprised of naturalized citizens from 16 countries who are leaders across academia, the arts, business, journalism, medicine, philanthropy, and STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math).

They include:

• Tope Awotona (Nigeria) Founder and CEO of Calendly, a scheduling software company that employs more than 650 people and provides services to over 20 million users at 100,000 organizations.
  
• Moungi Bawendi (France) Winner of the 2023 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for work that revolutionized the chemical production of quantum dots used in biomedical imaging and computer and television displays.
  
• Simon Johnson (England) Winner of the 2024 Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences for studies of how institutions are formed and affect prosperity and for developing theoretical tools to explain how institutions can change.
  
• Michele Kang (South Korea) Founder and CEO of Kynisca, the world’s first multi-team global organization focused on professionalizing women’s football and proving its commercial potential and cultural impact.
  
• Shahid Khan (Pakistan) President and CEO of Flex-N-Gate, an automobile components manufacturer with 76 plants worldwide and 27,000 employees.
  
• María Teresa Kumar (Colombia) President and CEO of Voto Latino, a national nonprofit organization that encourages civic engagement among younger generations of Latinx voters.
  
• Tania León (Cuba) A Pulitzer Prize–winning composer, conductor, and educator who has held positions with Carnegie Hall, the London Philharmonic Orchestra, and the New York Philharmonic, and is a founding member of the Dance Theatre of Harlem.
  

“For 20 years, our Great Immigrants public awareness initiative has been a reminder that many of the most influential figures in our country have been distinguished naturalized citizens, like our founder Andrew Carnegie, born in Scotland,” said Dame Louise Richardson, president of Carnegie, who is a naturalized American citizen born in Ireland. “The U.S. is a nation of immigrants and our ongoing support of nonpartisan organizations that help establish legal pathways for citizenship continues to enrich the very fabric of American life. We applaud this year’s 20th class and the hundreds of ‘Great Immigrants, Great Americans’ before them.”

The initiative aims to increase public awareness of the economic and societal benefits of immigration. It is a tribute to the legacy of Andrew Carnegie, a Scottish immigrant who, like the initiative's honorees, found success as an American and contributed enormously to his adopted country. During the past 20 years, the Carnegie database of Great Immigrants has grown into one of the largest online resources for examples of accomplished naturalized American citizens. Past honorees include Isabel Allende, Elizabeth Blackburn, Sergey Brin, Michael J. Fox, Min Jin Lee, Yo-Yo Ma, Rupert Murdoch, Martina Navratilova, and Pedro Pascal.

Naturalization and the legal integration of immigrants are part of the foundation’s overarching goal of reducing political polarization for a strong democracy. According to the American Immigration Council, a Carnegie grantee whose research is cited in the new comic book, there are 48 million immigrants in America, about half are naturalized U.S. citizens, and more than seven million are eligible to apply for citizenship. Among Fortune 500 companies, 230 were founded by immigrants or children of immigrants, and among business owners, one in four is an immigrant.

The 20 honorees in the class of 2025 will be recognized with a full-page public service announcement in The New York Times on the Fourth of July and through tributes on social media. Please join the celebration by sharing via Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and X (Twitter) using the hashtag #GreatImmigrants.

To learn more about the foundation’s new comic book featuring Great Immigrants, visit carnegie.org/immigrantstories.

‍