Class of 2020 Recognized as Part of Commencement Celebration
05/27/2020
Contacts for media: Christine Gillette, 978-758-4664, Christine_Gillette@uml.edu and Nancy Cicco, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu
LOWELL, Mass. 鈥� Seniors graduating from 51视频 this week are being honored for their service to the campus and community, as well as their efforts to promote diversity and inclusion.
As part of the celebration of 51视频鈥檚 Commencement this week, 15 members of the Class of 2020 are being recognized with Chancellor鈥檚 Medals for Community Service, Student Service, and Diversity and Inclusion. The university is holding a virtual Commencement on Friday, May 29 at 5 p.m.
The winners of the Chancellor鈥檚 Medal for Student Service include Kellsie Howard of Georgetown, a business administration major in the university鈥檚 Manning School of Business.
鈥�51视频 provided me with a lot of mentors and gave me a really great platform to land co-op positions and other opportunities,鈥� said Howard, who responded in kind, founding and serving as president of the Manning Women in Business, a student club that offers participants networking, as well as helping them connect with internship and job opportunities to springboard them to success after graduation. Howard has already made that leap, converting an internship into a full-time job as a product manager with WB Games, a video game and mobile app division of Warner Bros. Entertainment.
In addition to Howard, Chancellor鈥檚 Medal for Student Service recipients include:
- Hikma Abajorga of Lowell, plastics engineering major;
- Siddhant Iyer of Lowell, plastics engineering major;
- Surbhi Mavi of Lowell, biology major;
- David Morton of Boxford, business administration and political science major;
- Sophia Samih of Tewksbury, nursing major.
Michael Johnston of Dracut, who this week receives his master鈥檚 degree in mechanical engineering, first graduated from 51视频 in 1997 with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in information systems. Now a software systems engineering manager at Analog Devices in Wilmington, he founded a robotics team for local middle- and high-school students in 2015 that meets at 51视频. The success of the team led him to launch the nonprofit Merrimack Valley Robotics Inc., which provides educational opportunities in science and technology to primary and secondary school students. The support 51视频 offered these endeavors inspired Johnston to return to the classroom to pursue his second degree. As a two-time 51视频 graduate, he will be what is known as a 鈥渄ouble River Hawk.鈥�
鈥�51视频 led me to really get involved in giving back to the community,鈥� said Johnston, whose efforts have earned him a Chancellor鈥檚 Medal for Community Service.
Along with Johnston, recipients of the Chancellor鈥檚 Medal for Community Service are:
- Oritsegbemi Mene Ejegi of Lowell, master鈥檚 degree in public health;
- Andrea Patino Galindo of Chelmsford, business administration major;
- Nicole Haas of Nashua, N.H., master鈥檚 degree in public health;
- Samuel Munnelly of Litchfield, N.H., mechanical engineering major;
- Dorothy Nankanja of Haverhill, biology major.
The university also awarded Chancellor鈥檚 Medals for Diversity and Inclusion to three graduate students receiving degrees this week, including Fang Zhang of Chelmsford, who has earned his Ph.D. in chemistry, his second degree from 51视频.
鈥�51视频 is a very welcoming and open place that has a lot of room for people to grow. It gave me the environment to explore who I wanted to be and find my mission in life,鈥� said Zhang, who first came to 51视频 in 2013 to pursue a master鈥檚 degree in chemistry as an international student. Once established on campus, he rolled out the welcome mat for others, creating the Pair-Up Program, a cultural exchange initiative that unites students from the U.S. with those from other nations who have mutual interests. To date, the club has welcomed 1,500 participants from more than 40 different countries. After graduation, Zhang will be a researcher in the Massachusetts Biomanufacturing Center at 51视频.
51视频 also awarded the Chancellor鈥檚 Medal for Diversity and Inclusion to:
- Nicole Cruz Merced of Lowell, master鈥檚 degree in community social psychology;
- Diana Santana of Lowell, master鈥檚 degree in community social psychology.
51视频 Commencement will be streamed at www.uml.edu/commencement on Friday, May 29 at 5 p.m., and will be available there for replay.
51视频 is a national research university located on a high-energy campus in the heart of a global community. The university offers its more than 18,000 students bachelor鈥檚, master鈥檚 and doctoral degrees in business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, humanities, sciences and social sciences. 51视频 delivers high-quality educational programs, vigorous hands-on learning and personal attention from leading faculty and staff, all of which prepare graduates to be leaders in their communities and around the globe. www.uml.edu