Commencement 2025

Robert Mankoff - A celebrated cartoonist, author and editor; Ali Meders-Knight - an indomitable environmental steward and educator; and Judith Greenberg Seinfeld -  a visionary philanthropist and innovative businessperson will receive honorary degrees during Syracuse University’s 2025 Commencement exercises on Sunday, May 11, at the JMA Wireless Dome.

• Jonathan Collard de Beaufort, a biochemistry major in the College of Arts and Sciences and member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program
• Charlotte Ebel, a public relations major in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, a women and gender studies and German language, literature and culture major in the College of Arts and Sciences, and member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program
• Abigail Greenfield, a history major in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, a political philosophy major in the College of Arts and Sciences, and member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program
• Yuming Jiang, a mathematics and physics major in the College of Arts and Sciences and member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program
• Sierra Kaplan, a political science major in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, a health humanities major in the College of Arts and Sciences, and a member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program
• Emmy Njue, a finance and business analytics majors in the Whitman School of Management
• Kerrin O’Grady, a biomedical engineering major in the College of Engineering and Computer Science and a neuroscience major in the College of Arts and Sciences
• Morgan Opp, a chemistry and biology major in the College of Arts and Sciences
• Timothy Paek, a computer science major in the College of Engineering and Computer Science and member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program
• Skyla Ross-Graham a psychology major in the College of Arts and Sciences
• Yifan Shen, an architecture major in the School of Architecture, a music history and cultures major in the College of Arts and Sciences, and member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program
• Sophia Znamierowski, a biology and neuroscience major in the College of Arts and Sciences, and member of the Renée Crown University Honors Program

Mark Nzasi (Waverly Township, PA)
College of Arts & Sciences
Major: Neuroscience
Minors: Psychology

Yifan “Ivan” Shen (Shanghai, China)
School of Architecture | College of Arts & Sciences
Majors: Architecture | Music History & Cultures, Ethics
Minor: Music Performance

College of Arts & Sciences

• Ellen Clark (Sandpoint, ID)
  College of Arts & Sciences
  Majors: Political Philosophy | Citizenship & Civic Engagement
• Megan Edenfeld (Portland, OR)
  College of Arts & Sciences | Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
  Majors: International Relations | Economics
  Minor: Psychology
• Owen Opalenick (Jamesville, NY)
  College of Arts & Sciences
  Major: Mathematics
  Minors: Biology | Sport Analytics

School of Architecture

• Rebecca Goetzke (Bartlett, IL)
  School of Architecture
  Major: Architecture
• Qianzhen Li (Shanghai, China)
  School of Architecture
  Major: Architecture
  Minor: Psychology

School of Education

• Joshua Spodek (Wayne, NJ)
  School of Education | College of Arts & Sciences
  Majors: Social Studies Education | History
  Minor: Atrocity Studies and the Practices of Social Justice
• Sofia DaCruz (Princeton, NJ)
  School of Education | Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
  Majors: Women’s and Gender Studies | Citizenship & Civic Engagement
  Minor: Atrocity Studies and the Practice of Social Justice

College of Engineering and Computer Science

• Tessa DeCicco (Buffalo, NY)
  College of Engineering and Computer Science
  Major: Biomedical Engineering
• Brady McKenna (Brockton, MA)
  College of Engineering and Computer Science
  Major: Aerospace Engineering

David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics

• Laura Jayne (Arlington, VA)
  David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics | Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
  Majors: Food Studies | Environment, Sustainability and Policy
  Minor: Information, Management & Technology
• Rylee Brook Pepper (Woodhull, NY)
  David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics
  Major: Nutrition Science
  Minors: Psychology | Biology

Graduate School

• Qingyang Liu (Guangzhou, China)
  Graduate School | Falk College of Sport & Human Dynamics
  Major: Human Development and Family Science

School of Information Studies

• Rebecca Skier (Upper Saddle River, NJ)
  School of Information Studies | S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications
  Majors: Information Management and Technology | Graphic Design
• Ellie Walker (Yardley, PA)
  School of Information Studies
  Major: Information Management and Technology
  Minors: Web Design | Digital Retail Strategies

College of Law

• Noah H. Centore (Syracuse, NY)
  College of Law
  Major: Law/JD

Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs

• Christopher Bezdedeanu (Westwood, MA)
  Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
  Major: Master of Public Administration

S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications

• Charlotte Ebel (Urbana, IL)
  S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications | College of Arts & Sciences
  Majors: German Language | Literature & Culture | Women & Gender Studies and Public Relations
• Ryan E. Myers (Kennett Square, PA)
  S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications | College of Arts & Sciences
  Majors: Public Relations | Psychology
  Minors: Applied Data Analytics | Music Performance

College of Professional Studies

• Robert L. Salvato (Van Etten, NY)
  College of Professional Studies
  Major: Project Management

College of Visual and Performing Arts

• Morgan Albano (Sandy Hook, CT)
  College of Visual and Performing Arts
  Majors: Film | History
  Minor: Museum Studies
• Paige Hartquist (Novato, CA)
  College of Visual and Performing Arts
  Majors: Communication and Rhetorical Studies | Citizenship & Civic Engagement
  Minor: Education Studies

Martin J. Whitman School of Management

• Talia St.Angelo (Scituate, RI)
  Martin J. Whitman School of Management
  Majors: Marketing | Finance
  Minor: Public Communications
• Evan Kalish (Winnetka, IL)
  Martin J. Whitman School of Management
  Majors: Finance | Business Analytics
  Minors: Economics | Public Health