STONY BROOK, N.Y., May 19, 2017 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Words of
encouragement, wisdom and sage advice prevailed from all who
addressed the class of 2017 during the 57th Commencement Ceremony
at Stony Brook University today,
including honorary degree recipients Michael J. Fox and Jonathan Oringer, Stony Brook University
President Samuel L. Stanley Jr.,
Senate Minority Leader Chuck
Schumer, and student speaker, Danielle Jean.
"Every single one of you has the power within you to impact the
world, if you choose to act," said Fox, who received the honorary
degree of Doctor of Fine Arts. "You represent a world of endless
possibilities," he told the Class of 2017. "Among you may be the
first human to walk on Mars, the engineer who will revolutionize
the world's energy technology, the next great investigative
journalist who exposes corruption, or the groundbreaking scientist
who discovers the cure for Parkinson's."
Oringer, introduced by President Stanley as one who personifies
technological innovation and whom Business Insider named 'the
coolest person in all of New York
technology', received his undergraduate degree in Computer Science
and Mathematics in 1996 from Stony
Brook University, and today received an honorary Doctor of
Science.
"Today, I want to share three lessons I learned here at
Stony Brook, which have served me
well throughout my entrepreneurial journey. They are: Stay curious,
take calculated risks, and embrace diversity. Stay curious, ask
questions and make sure you get the answers; don't be afraid to
take calculated risks, but at the same time make sure you
understand both the upside and the downside; and embrace diversity:
only together can we truly make the world the best it can be. The
most successful countries will be the ones that have immigration
policies that attract, retain and truly embrace the smartest people
on the planet, while at the same time serving those people most in
need, wherever they may come from," Oringer said. "Stony Brook is, and always has been, very
diverse and welcoming - and I know it's one of the values that the
university strives for," he added.
Oringer also recognized Stony
Brook faculty for their commitment which he said helped mold
his business.
"For the curious like me, the one thing I always loved about
Stony Brook was how accessible
professors were. We have modeled Shutterstock in that same way -
there are no office hours and people are free to find me (almost)
anytime."
During his commencement address, President Stanley reminded the
class of 2017 that a Stony Brook
degree helps them on their way to success. He cited the recent
study from Stanford which indicates
that their new alma mater is ranked number three in the country
among all colleges and universities and number one in the Northeast
for its ability to transform students who may come from a lower
income household and after graduation are empowered to move into
the top 20% of the income earning potential.
President Stanley went on to highlight three personal stories
about Stony Brook University
student achievers:
Jonathan Conyers, who graduated
today with a 3.5 GPA, a Bachelor's degree in Respiratory Care and a
Minor in Biology, plans to work in respiratory therapy as he
pursues his dream of becoming a doctor. Jonathan entered
Stony Brook University during the
2013 EOP/AIM Summer Academy and immediately became a leader amongst
his peers. He is an ambassador for Stony
Brook, representing Stony
Brook in the EOP High School Initiative where he goes to
multiple high schools in New York
City and speaks about what it takes to be an EOP student and
his story of success and has been prominently featured in
Stony Brook University's Far
Beyond campaign.
Antonio Xu Liu graduated
with a Bachelor's Degree in Engineering Science, and a minor in
business management, and has accepted a full time position with
National Grid, USA. Antonio
originally came from Venezuela in
2004 with his family who were seeking political asylum in
the United States. While their
original quest was not successful, in 2012 Antonio's life changed
when he received DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals)
status, and became able to drive, work, and lose the daily fear of
deportation. As a freshman, Antonio was selected to be an
Undergraduate Teaching Fellow for the Undergraduate College of
Arts, Culture and Humanities. He was a resident assistant in his
sophomore and junior year of college, and while working to raise
awareness about mental health issues on campus, he helped form the
Reach Out and Reconnect (ROAR) Committee, a group of student
leaders who work to destigmatize mental health issues on campus. As
an Engineering Major he worked successfully to reinstate the
student chapter of the National Society of Professional Engineers
and became its president. He was also vice president of the student
chapter of the Long Island Water Environment Association (LIWEA)
for the past two years, which is an organization that brings
together students who have a passion for preserving the natural
environment of Long Island.
Lora Webster graduated today with
a Bachelor's degree in Sociology. She is a proud mother of three
living in Point Lookout, NY, an
elite athlete, a cancer survivor, and a Seawolf. Lora is a
paralympic sitting volleyball player who has attended the
Paralympic Games four times: 2016 (where she won Gold), 2012
(Silver) , 2008 (Silver) and 2004 (Bronze). She and her team also
won gold in the 2010 Parapan American Championship. At age
11, Lora was diagnosed with bone cancer in her left tibia. She
underwent a procedure known as rotationplasty to remove the
cancerous bone, which included the knee. As part of the procedure,
her lower leg was rotated 180 degrees and connected to the remnants
of the femur. This gave her full range of movement, allowing her to
play sports. In 1998, she was fitted with prosthesis; she played
four years of high school volleyball, ran track for a year and also
was on the diving team and in 2004, her high school volleyball team
won the state title.
Vice Provost for Graduate and Professional Education and Dean of
the Graduate School, Dr. Charles
Taber, announced this year's recipients of the Ward Melville
Valedictorian Award, the University's most distinguished
undergraduate honor which goes to the graduating senior or seniors
who have attained the most outstanding academic record during their
four years at Stony Brook. This
year's recipients are Taylor Brant,
Megan Cooney, Melissa Gartner,
Ingy Ghobashy, Joel Kovoor, Anita
Lee, Naveen Mallangada, Hannah
Mieczkowski, Ankit Patel,
Janki Patel, Rebecca Shum and Andrew Sullivan.
Taber also announced Jason Kay
and Natalia Dutra Rodefeld as recipients of the H. Lee
Dennison Valedictorian Award, named in honor of Suffolk County's first chief executive, and
presented to the graduating senior or seniors who entered
Stony Brook as a transfer student,
completed at least 60 credits of letter-grade work at Stony Brook and attained the most outstanding
academic record in that work.
The student speaker, Danielle
Jean, who graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology, was
selected by a committee of staff and faculty from a pool of
submitted speeches provided through the annual senior speaker
competition, shared her thoughts about her four years as a
Seawolf.
"We're ready," Jean said. "We are ready because we know that our
degree isn't just proving to others that we've mastered a lot of
content; our degree is proving to us that we have all of the tools
that we need to face and overcome the next set of challenges."
Finally, on behalf of the Class of 2017, Senior Class
Representative Jonathan Rodriguez
presented President Stanley with the Senior Class Gift of
$15,000 which will support Stony
Brook Children's, student scholarship, student life, and Stony
Brook Athletics, among other University initiatives. This gift adds
to the nearly $250,000 Stony Brook students have raised the past 10
years to support a variety of areas that touched their lives
including their individual departments, colleges or to one of a
variety of other University priorities including Student
Scholarships.
Stony Brook University's 57th
commencement ceremony was held at Kenneth P. LaValle Stadium,
where 6,991 graduates, joined more than 160,000 alumni around the
globe whose lives and work personify what Stony Brook embraces -- the relentless pursuit
of excellence and commitment to make a real difference. The
graduates span 71 countries, 42 states and range in age from 19 to
65.
For more information about the 57th Commencement ceremony visit
http://bit.ly/1mqbSLb.
GRADUATION 2017 FAST FACTS (as of 5/19/2017)*
Baccalaureate: 4,292
Masters: 1,999
Doctoral: 449
Certificates: 226
MD: 129
DDS: 40
Editor's Note: Useful Links: Infographic - Graduation By the
Numbers
About Stony Brook
University
Stony Brook University is going
beyond the expectations of what today's public universities can
accomplish. Since its founding in 1957, this young university has
grown to become one of only four University Center campuses in the
State University of New York
(SUNY) system with more than 25,700
students, 2,500 faculty members, and 18 NCAA Division I athletic
programs. Our faculty have earned numerous prestigious awards,
including the Nobel Prize, Pulitzer Prize, Indianapolis Prize for
animal conservation, Abel Prize and the inaugural Breakthrough
Prize in Mathematics. The University offers students an elite
education with an outstanding return on investment: U.S. News &
World Report ranks Stony Brook
among the top 40 public universities in the nation. Its membership
in the Association of American Universities (AAU) places
Stony Brook among the top 62
research institutions in North
America. As part of the management team of Brookhaven
National Laboratory, the University joins a prestigious group of
universities that have a role in running federal R&D labs.
Stony Brook University is a
driving force in the region's economy, generating nearly 60,000
jobs and an annual economic impact of $4.65
billion. Our state, country and world demand ambitious
ideas, imaginative solutions and exceptional leadership to forge a
better future for all. The students, alumni, researchers and
faculty of Stony Brook University
are prepared to meet this challenge.
Media Contact: sbu_news_office@stonybrook.edu
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