Penn State Brandywine Fall 2021 Commencement

good morning my name is dr brad kovaleski and i'm the director of student affairs here at penn state brandywine and i'm honored to serve as your master of ceremonies today in just a few moments our ceremony will begin we're excited to host our fall 2021 commencement on campus today in right that's worth tuned in keeping with penn state's proud academic heritage we want to make sure our commencement ceremony is a meaningful and enjoyable one for all our graduates and guests additionally with the covet 19 pandemic continuing your health safety are especially important to us so let me take a moment to share a few public health guidelines and ceremonial occasion reminders with you please keep your mask on and remain in your seat throughout the ceremony should you require assistance at any point ushers wearing blue blazers or golf shirts are there to assist you a professional photographer will be taking photos of the graduates as they walk across the stage the company grab images will be contacting you with information about how to order the photographs we ask that you please hold your lively cheers and applause until the last graduate from each academic program walks across the stage every family wants to be able to hear their graduate's name finally please take a moment to silence your cell phones and now please stand for pomp and circumstance in the procession of our fall 2021 graduates thank you you may be seated it is now my pleasure to introduce taramata bintu danfa a member of our class of 2021 for the recognition of the flags fatamata graduated in august with a bachelor of science degree in biology she is currently working for a pharmaceutical company and plans to attend medical school in the near future please join me in welcoming faramata thank you friends and family for coming here to celebrate our graduates today our american flag is more than a national symbol whether our banner is referred to as stars and stripes or the red white and blue the colors of our flag has have significance representing veiler perseverance and justice these values are reflected in our penn state values which are integrity respect responsibility discovery excellence and community our american flag also represents to many a life living service to this country we have one veteran among us today joanne levin who answered the call to serve she is wearing a red white and blue entwined honor cord our student veterans have sacrificed so that we may have the opportunity to attend higher institutions like penn state you may have noticed the flags of several nations around the world flying on our land post across campus lawn today these flags are to honor brandywine's international students who have come to us from about 60 countries these flag also represent the many host nations around the world that to which our students and faculty travel through our global programs our international students travel thousands of miles to be educated right here in media at bandywine penn state it is an impressive journey these flags that brighten our campus are the banners of other countries but the students who identify with them are here making a difference enriching our campus life right here in the greater philadelphia region i would like to add one more acknowledgement of country we acknowledge that this land in the delaware valley is the traditional land of the illini lenape people and that we respect their spiritual relationship with their country we acknowledge that the complex histories of displacement genocide and assimilation that have contributed to our current circumstances we acknowledge that the lenie lenape cultural's and her heritage beliefs are still as important to the living lenape people today we express gratitude and appreciation lanai lenape and honor that they have been living and working on the land from time immemorial as stewards to this land it is our responsibility to uphold the lessons and history as we educate the bright young minds and the next generation of leaders at this time please rise for a national anthem performed by jemima moaba class of 2021 followed by lift every voice and sing performed by the brandywine music association oh say can you see by the dawn's early light what's so proudly at the twilight's last gleaming who's brought stripes and bright stars we were so gallantly streaming and getting gave proof through the night does that start banner and the home of the brave brave hey hey so a let it resolve harder sing facing the rising slope till victory is all thank you you may be seated thank you once again to jemima and the brandywine music association we are extremely grateful for your talents it is now my honor to introduce our chancellor dr marilyn j wells welcome graduates families friends alumni and distinguished guests we are now officially convened for the fall 2021 commencement at penn state brandywine commencement is a grand day this is your day go on and cheer see we made you wait outside a little bit in the cold so you'd be fired up when you came in here i would like to now introduce members of our platform party and honored guests please stand as i call your name dr beep castrail director of academic affairs our academic officer dr brad kovalevsky our master of ceremonies for today and director of stu student affairs dr steven zambala our commencement marshal and distinguished professor of political science steve this is i was counting up i think this is about my 75th commencement ceremony but i think you have a few on me dr michael yaturo chair penn state brandywine faculty senate and associate professor of mathematics mr jonathan savage class of 82 president penn state brandywine advisory board and vice president pinani associates incorporated and mr devin zuck class of 08 president board of directors of our penn state brandywine alumni society and software architect and senior development at cadmium you may be seated i would like to introduce additional members of our penn state brandywine advisory board who are here this morning their presence indicates their deep commitment to you our graduates and all of our campus vinnie cinderella assistant superintendent garnett valley school district michael gamble practice business manager at alex brown and jerry parsons chairman ctdi and i would like to introduce now the members of our chancellor's council in addition to vipka and brad dr margaret batchelor director of workforce and innovation and senior director of statewide continuing education and workforce development bobby caprice chair of our brand new brandywine staff advisory council and also our director of athletics dr nicola defranzo heitzer director of enrollment management justin dematio director of information technology services and keeping everything going a plus this morning i should say along with his team sergeant felicia gee brandywine station commander university police and public safety marlene livingstone director of development and alumni relations bill tyson director of strategic communications and vip ye whom you just heard with the brandywine music association is our rosenberg director center for ethics and civic engagement i would like to now and importantly recognize our world-class faculty at penn state brandywine i've been at a few universities and they are truly extraordinary teaching excellence is clearly a hallmark at penn state brandywine you our faculty have cared for taught advised encouraged and pushed our class of 2021 to be here this morning you have mentored our graduates in research capstone projects and internships please stand now so our graduates can give you a big roar i can assure you they uphold academic rigor at every turn and your degrees are well earned and now i would like to thank our dedicated brandywine staff your work shines in many ways to our students into our campus many are here this morning working to give our graduates and your guests a commencement to remember please wave so we can wave back and recognize you and to our fall 2021 graduates let me be amongst the first to congratulate you each generation has its defining moments and for you it's the covid 19 pandemic you have demonstrated your grit and determination you exemplify our penn state brandywine vision penn state brandywine will be a leader in student success known for educating students to become respected professionals leaders creators alumni and citizens just yesterday we shared our holiday video greetings and one of the lines in that video greeting is our students tell our story in just a few moments you're going to hear each of the graduates names be called to walk across the stage and receive their degrees but let me tell you just the few of the stories behind each of these graduates and their degrees our graduates are entering careers from business to engineering technology to communications and many more several of our graduates are headed to prestigious graduate and professional schools graduates if your next step in your journey is graduate or professional school be that in january or next fall or a few years from now please stand so we can share for you there we go this morning we take pride in our very first graduate in two of our newest degree programs our very first graduate in cybersecurity analytics and operations who won fon is already training for his new position with the department of homeland security in washington d.c he's in such a high demand that he was unable to enjoy to join us this morning hubong along with other graduates in cyber security are prepared to protect our digital information from cyber attack through cyber defense strategies huang is already at work protecting us we also have our first graduate in project and supply chain management cal peterson kyle is also graduating with a major in business and earned penn state's enterprise resource planning with sap certificate cal and other project and supply chain management graduates are prepared to design and operate complex management systems including managing critical components in organizational supply chains as you know this degree could not be more timely and relevant with all we have witnessed with what the pandemic has done to our supply chains 10 brandywine graduates are also earning minors in the fields of biology business human development and family study psychology security and risk analysis and homeland security the major with a minor makes some powerful credentials that our employers are high demand many of our graduates are beginning their careers with their very first professional position as a result of their internships for example information sciences and technology graduate frank smith will begin his professional position with lockheed martin right away in january where he interned this past summer and fall you were already introduced to jemima mwaba earlier this morning in addition to her amazing vocal talent i don't know about you but i was getting chills up and down my spine she is also an award-winning student leader on campus she received the jackson williams award for cross-cultural understanding and the individual leadership award for her leadership roles with the nittany christian fellowship the multicultural club the step and dance teams and the black student union wow she has lived in orchard hall since its grand opening in fall 2017 and has served as a resident assistant or ra since spring 2020 assisting students living in the residence halls through the pandemic at penn state brandywine we also take great pride in our athletics and student athletes who excel academically as well as athletically one of our scholar athlete graduates dean kane was the very first member or was a member of our very first pennsylvania state university athletic conference championship men's basketball team in 2017-2018 after one year at university park he returned to brandywine to complete his information sciences and technology degree he also interned at penn engineering let me go on just a bit more we would also like to recognize six of our graduates david michael deloso scott exler sarita germany fatah mata bin tu danfa graham mcallister and amanda mcgill who began their college education at delaware community college and then continued their pathway to their bachelor's degree by transferring to penn state brandywine along their journey three of these graduates david scott sarita earned their associate's degree our growing relationship with our good neighbor delaware county community college indicates our shared commitment to expanding opportunities and pathways for students in our region we are so proud of all of our transfer students and the many pathways to penn state brandywine's commencement stage and finally one more story of growth tenacity and success elizabeth oliver began her penn state journey in 2013 and after trying different campuses and courses of study for several years decided to take a break she kept in touch with her advisor michael sturm who told her she could always come back and rewrite her story she did just that in 2018 she returned to brandywine as a focused student using campus's resources to her advantage she continued to be successful through remote learning when the pandemic began by her final semester she was interviewing and receiving job offers and is now considering grad school she persevered in a brandywine we have witnessed we've been honored to witness her to survive and thrive i could go on and on with each of these stories but you could see the depth and breadth of the stories behind each of these graduates each of your stories are uniquely special and uniquely yours we can't wait to see what's next for you make sure you visit us during homecoming next fall and update us on your adventures we love keeping in touch with our graduates just this morning i met kalisha jackson one of our graduates from may who is here to cheer on jemima so we're always happy to see our graduates back graduates i have one last ask for you and family members you can remind them and push them to do this if you've not yet completed your first destination or graduate survey please do so right away well not right now but later today as an incentive you will receive a 25 gift card this isn't one out of so many will get a gift card you complete it you get the 25 gift card that's important because we want to add your success to our brandywine story speaking of pride and accomplishments our penn state brandywine advisory board is a distinguished group of more than 20 business and community leaders who provide unwavering support for you and our campus and so it is now my honor to introdu invite mr jonathan savage president penn state brandywine advisory board to the podium good morning academic leaders faculty staff graduates and guests i'm pleased to be here this morning i also wanted to thank my fellow colleagues from the advisory board for coming as well certainly stand in good stead and i'm so happy to have you all here the legal corporate body of the penn state pennsylvania state university and its board of trustees this is the entity that by our charter is given complete responsibility for the government welfare and all other interests pertaining to our university whatever responsibilities are delegated ultimate authority rests with the board chancellor wells shortly you will confer upon these students the degrees they have earned and boy have you earned them by the virtue of the authority vested in and approved by the board of trustees of the pennsylvania state university i authorize you as a designee of the president to confer on each of these candidates the degree earned as certified by the appropriate college faculty and dean graduates the penn state degree which you have worked so hard to earn will be the key to unlock many doors of opportunity and allow you to expand your mind and contribute to the communities at large i hope you are proud of what you have achieved and excited for the challenges and experiences that lie ahead on behalf of the penn state brandywine advisory board i would like to like to extend my heartfelt congratulations to you all now it's my turn to do this we are come on a little better we are we are thank you thank you jonathan not only is our advisory board exceptionally dedicated and hardworking they're also exceptionally fun and jonathan and all of the board members i really enjoy having you to work with ladies and gentlemen it is now my pleasure to introduce dr vikka strail director of academic affairs our academic officer good morning and welcome we would like to honor the resilient class of 2021 graduating after spending nearly two full academic years during a pandemic one of the reason today's commencement ceremony is significant is because our speakers are graduating students for the past 21 months our fall class of 2021 has demonstrated resilience flexibility and a determination to graduate we honor their years of dedication and tenacity by showcasing our very own students throughout the ceremony our first student speaker this morning is kristen kristen haratunian kristen is graduating with a bachelor of arts degree in communications she is currently a development and alumni intern at karen treatment center and may continue her work there after graduation kristen okay hello everybody hello let me pull this up here so i am so grateful um again my name is kristin haratunian and uh i want to share a story with you all about a little girl a girl who was highly ambitious she was athletic kind funny or so she thought and wanted nothing more than to just be a good person she wanted to make everyone proud of her academic and social accomplishments she had dreams to become something special in this world she grew up in glen mills with her mother father and two older brothers in what appeared to be a very quote unquote normal family but there were pieces in her life that she didn't share with many people if anyone at all see this girl was loving caring and had a bright future but she also took care of her mother most of her childhood as her mother struggled with alcoholism and anorexia the young girl learned how to take care of herself earlier than a child ever should but she never showed her true feelings on the outside she acted like everything was fine on the inside she felt completely alone she was 11 when her mother had passed only a year later at age 12 she turned to substances that she thought would help ease the pain confusion and devastation that she felt as the years went on she followed in her mother's footsteps she slipped into her own addiction and mental health issues the flame that burned so bright once upon a time dwindled until it was almost burnt out that little girl was me and this is a part of my story but it's only a part if we stop at the most difficult parts of our stories we won't get to see how things could have worked out at age 17 with my family support i was able to get into drug and alcohol treatment i changed high school so i could receive the support i needed into a smaller academic environment and this school was called the bridgeway school it's the only recovery high school in pennsylvania i started going to support meetings for people who not only struggled with addiction but learned to live with it and thrive i still worried that college might be beyond my reach was i college material whatever that means i overcame my fears and submitted an application to penn state brandywine where my two brothers attended for their first two years i started my first semester i was about a year and a half into my sobriety i felt as if i was a newborn deer just trying to find my feet i'll never forget walking into my very first class sitting right up front with all my color coordinated pens and notebooks i wanted so badly to be the best student to get all the a's and just to do to do the best that i could on every paper as the cement as the semesters went on i not only found my footing but i started to think of a future for myself instead of just wanting to get the a's i yearned for a purpose and a calling today i can tell you that through penn state and my recovery i have found my calling my north star i learned how to use my experiences to help others while a brandywine student i have had the opportunity to share my story with tens of thousands of kids and adults in eight different states through the minding your mind organization every time i stand on a state on a stage and share my personal story it lights my spirit on fire i'm showing people that they never have to be alone again when i share openly and honestly i'm not just helping others i'm helping that little girl heal and have her voice heard when we're vulnerable and put our hearts out there something magical happens in my wildest dreams i never thought i would be standing here in a cap and gown about to say that i am a penn state graduate i now know that i was put on this earth to help people i can confidently say that as i reach any goal i can achieve any dream to my classmates we get the opportunity to leave here with gratitude with kindness and with an open heart to all the opportunities that present themselves to us i wish all of you to find your purpose to find your north star thank you thank you kristen i got goosebumps um next we will hear from casey cider casey is graduating with a bachelor of science degree in psychology and a minor in human development and family studies she has been part of the active minds club at brandywine she plans to pursue a career in human resources or a similar field and attend graduate school casey hello everybody good morning all right we all have our own unique path that has brought us where we are penn state likes to refer to it as our penn state story and i'm about to say something that may sound familiar to some of my fellow graduates my name is casey cider and this is my penn state brandywine story it starts off in august of 2017. move-in day i was moving into orchard hall and i was a part of the first group of students to be able to call it home but i'm getting ahead of myself first i had to make it there after driving over a thousand miles with my mom and all of my things in a car with no air conditioning from my home in florida to my dad's house in pennsylvania we arrived with a day to prepare for the start of my first year i thought i had been through the worst of it and the rest of my move and experience would be easy but the morning of the move while wrapping up a shower a water pipe was accidentally broken so that resulted in rinsing the shampoo out of my hair at the speed of light and no water for the rest of the morning also a slightly unhappy dad finally after what felt like forever but was just 11am i was on the way to penn state brandywine we were in the clear when the battery in the car that just drove up the east coast died with a quick repacking of all my belongings into another car maybe now we will make it there the events that occurred in the day so far did not help my nerves i wanted a lot for my time in college i wanted new experiences i wanted to learn make friends be part of a community and much more luckily for me the rest of my move-in day was a breeze thanks to the help of staff students and my family i was all moved in and ready to begin this new chapter each of our journeys to penn state may have been different but once we arrived on campus we all had at least one thing in common we are penn state throughout my years here i have accomplished what i originally hoped for and much more through the personal connections i have made with my professors and the opportunities the campus has given me i was able to explore grow and learn in my major and my life we have values at penn state integrity respect responsibility discovery excellence and community through the early mornings and late nights of hard work that all of us had during our time as students i feel i was able to understand these values and the roles they play integrity respect and responsibility go hand in hand for you must have respect to have integrity and integrity to have respect this is shown through the relationships you form in and out of school discovery at brandywine can be as simple as finding a club that sparks your interests or searching for what a classmate wrote in a discussion post brandywine has many opportunities to discover not only what our community has to offer but what the world has to offer excellence can be defined as the quality of being outstanding or extremely good as we sit here today i feel we have achieved excellence or at least come pretty close through the ups and downs of today's world facing unknown transitioning to online and having to learn zoom with our professors i think it is safe to say we are excellent and more importantly excited to delete zoom from our computers i would like to take a moment to thank my mom my family and my friends who all played a part in helping me get where i am today and to congratulate us the class of 2021 i would like to finish today by asking a question michelle obama once asked students who are you going to be and if you'll notice i'm not asking what are you going to do but who are you going to be i can say with confidence i am a person with integrity and respect i look for new opportunities and chances to grow i strive for excellence and i am a part of the penn state community thank you thank you casey and i would ask for one more round of applause for our outstanding students okay see you kristen at penn state we regard outstanding scholarship as deserving of high public recognition today we recognize members of the fall class of 2021 who are graduating with scholastic distinction these students are in the top 12 percent of their graduating class in their respective colleges if you are present this morning please stand as i call your name graduating magna laude and wearing a blue honor cord kyle peterson frank smith and john patrick velitsky you may be seated and now it is the moment for which we have been waiting for will all degree candidates please rise yes chancellor wells i present to you as worthy and approved candidates for the undergraduate degrees they have met the academic requirements of the university for such degrees by the virtue of the authority vested in me by the penn state board of trustees i hereby confer upon you the degree or degrees which you have earned in testimony of this you'll receive a diploma admitting you to all the honors privileges and responsibilities of your respective degree or degrees graduates you may now move your tassels from the right to the left you may now be seated and i must admit i'll share this with everyone as i was standing out back this morning waiting to join the procession i noticed not only are there tassels now on the left but i think these graduates are sporting quite a few pairs of brand new shoes so they look fine from top to bottom as the candidates for each degree are presented will the faculty marshal of the respective program please come forward graduates please follow your faculty marshall and come forward to be recognized as your name is called by dr strale mr devin zuck president of the penn state brandywine alumni society representing the penn state alumni association will greet the graduates as they leave the platform will the candidates for bachelor of science degree from barron college capitol college and the college of liberal arts please rise assistant director of academic affairs patricia hillen will escort the candidates i present the candidates for bachelor of science and finance from barron college joseph l mcgarvey graduating with dual majors in finance from barron college in economics from the college of liberal arts ayush muhan i present the candidate for bachelor of science for marketing from capitol college joanne levin i present the candidate for bachelor of science for organizational leadership from the college of liberal arts jennifer ziegfried now we will call forward graduates who have completed baccalaureate degrees in the university college will the candidates for the bachelor of science and biology please rise professor charles salud will escort the candidates to the stage i now present the biter helmet fatimata bintu danfa ali hassan beyond max no will the candidates for the bachelor of science and business please rise professor julie stanton will escort the candidates savannah cudahy matthew leo fontana william raymond king page closer amanda mcgill marsalis mitchell jemima completing dual majors in business and project and supply chain management kyle nathaniel peterson and peyton christopher stretch all right will the candidate for the bachelor of arts and communication arts and science please rise associate teaching professor joshua phillips will escort the candidate i now present jeffrey david eckert jr will the candidates for the bachelor of arts and communications please rise associate professor susan fredericks will escort the candidates i now present shania shakira coleman kristen e haratunian tyler jordan marie nicole shoemaker nicholas johns paventa will the candidates for the bachelor of science and human development and family studies please rise assistant teaching professor michael sturm will escort the escort the candidates i now present john kristen cheer cherry sierra marie dickey elizabeth and oliver well the candidates for the bachelor of science in information sciences and technology please rise lecturer and annette imperial will escort the candidates so joseph oliver collins dean kane graham mcallister manuel ortiz roy ellen risley third fazia selahooden frank smith will the candidates for the bachelor of arts and science degrees in psychology please rise associate teaching professor joshua marquit will escort the candidates all right mikko ellen bob brendan c hughes megan ellen alexis face franco syriza germany vincent t win chantelle brianna certima casey bell cider john patrick belitsky madeleine eve willis will the candidate with an associate degree in business administration please rise professor julie stanton will escort the candidate i now present kevin griswold this concludes the conferral of degrees this morning congratulations class of 2021 at this time i will ask mr devin zucheck class of 2008 to come address our new graduates thank you brad congratulations graduates i'm devin ducheck president of the brandywine alumni society board the penn state alumni association celebrates your successes and welcomes you into a proud network of penn staters your alumni association is powered by pride more than 174 thousand alumni and friends like you keep their connection to our world-class university strong through membership in the penn state alumni association today on behalf of the alumni association i'm honored to share a graduation gift to you a one-year free membership in the alumni association your membership keeps you in touch with penn state and connects you with more than 300 geographically dispersed alumni chapters interest groups and college and campus societies no matter where you live what you studied or which campus you attended we have a group that matches your interests after graduation once you're settled reach out to the brandywine alumni society or your local penn state alumni chapter your penn state family will be happy to hear from you and in the coming years when you visit penn state we hope you will come back to visit the brandywine campus or the hints family alumni center in university park and with that i'd like to ask our new graduates to please rise and with all other penn state alumni here please rise as well and it gives me great pleasure to induct all graduating students of the pennsylvania state university into the penn state alumni association and the penn state brandywine alumni society congratulations thank you you can be seated it is my honor to introduce one of our newest graduates sarita germany class of fall 2021 to deliver our closing remarks sarita is graduating sarita graduated with a bachelor of science degree in psychology and a minor in biology she served as our president of our black student union diversity affairs chair for our student government association and she was also a member of the collegiate leadership challenge team and a peer mentor and coach for our lions guides program after graduation sarita plans to take some time off to travel before attending graduate school please join me in welcoming sarita to deliver our closing remarks good morning everyone as we begin to close out the ceremony i just want to speak on behalf of the great graduating class to thank you all for being here and showing your support this morning this is a very emotional yet exciting day for us my journey at brandywine began in fall 2019. as a transfer student my time here was short and partly virtual but it honestly didn't feel that way i was determined to make the most out of my last few years of being an undergrad undergraduate student i discovered brandywine has so many resources leadership and educational opportunities although i didn't utilize most of them until it was mandatory it turns out the writing studio is really great during my time here i was able to take some of the best courses instructed by some of the most supportive professors i've met in my entire college career thank you all for understanding and acknowledging that you are all once undergrad students and that college is far from easy being involved has made me truly value my experience here at brand ui i've had the opportunity to be a mentor to first year students which led me to become the leader of the line guides peer mentor program i also took part in undergrad research became the diversity affairs chair of student government association and i also proudly represented as the president of the black student union while taking on these leadership roles i developed skills that will be great attributions to my endeavors after college i also gained connections with staff and faculty and made friendships with people who have all made a positive impact on me while at brandywine i am so grateful that i was able to walk across the stage today feeling like i accomplished a lot more than just succeeding in my academics to my fellow graduates i wish you the best of luck with your future endeavors whether you are starting a career a business going to graduate school or if you don't have a plan at all that's okay i believe in you because you believe in yourself you will be successful because you are all leaders we are now a part of the largest alumni association in the world we are thank you thank you sarita i'd like to ask everyone now to please rise for our penn state alma mater performed by our brandywine music association you may find the lyrics in the front cover of your program okay the glory of old state for have found us strong and great for the future that we wait raise the song raise the soul sing our love and loyalty sing our homes that bright and free rest oh shapeless may know you may be seated thank you to the brandywine music association and to everyone for coming to celebrate our fall class of 2021 graduates in just a moment our recessional will begin and we ask that everyone please remain in place until you're an usher dismisses your row each row will be dismissed one by one we ask that you reunite with your graduates outside thank you once again for being with us today we ask that you now please rise and give a hearty round of applause for the penn state brandywine fall class of 2021. you

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Length: 84min 25sec (5065 seconds)

Published: Sat Dec 18 2021