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[ORCHESTRAL MUSIC PLAYING] MARLA LUJAN: Good afternoon. On behalf of the faculty and staff of the Division of Nutritional Sciences, it is my pleasure to welcome parents, grandparents, siblings, other family members, friends, and, of course, you, the class of 2024, to the celebration of all that you've accomplished while here at Cornell. Please be seated.
[APPLAUSE]
My name is Marla Lujan and I'm a member of the faculty in the Division of nutritional sciences, and I have the pleasure of serving as the Director of Undergraduate Studies. A few safety considerations before we begin. Please take note of the nearest exit to you, with the understanding that it may be located behind you. Please take photos at your seats to prevent any safety hazards in the aisles. We have a professional photographer on site today that will take photos of each of your graduates, and they will be shared with you free of charge.
[APPLAUSE]
Understandably so. Wonderful. Class of 2024, today we recognize your work ethic, your creativity, your collaboration, your generation of new knowledge, and most importantly, your resilience. Your years at Cornell brought unique challenges, and you met those challenges with determination and more often than not, grace.
Today, we marvel at your ability to truly engage in coursework, outreach, research and the discourse that is necessary to propel our understanding of nutrition, human health, and public policy. As a faculty, we are dazzled by your talents and your unwavering commitment to improve your communities and our world. We share in the excitement of today in full knowledge that your future is bright and your successes immeasurable.
The energy in this room says it all. We share in your pride. We share in your exhilaration. And we share in your hope for all that is to come. Please keep in touch and know that we are grateful to have been part of this journey with you.
This weekend, we celebrate your accomplishments, which were made possible not only by your hard work and perseverance, but also by the support of others. Your families and friends fostered your success throughout your time at Cornell. So today, it is also important to celebrate those people in your life that are here for you every day and in so many ways. So please join me in extending a heartfelt thank you to your family and your friends.
[CHEERING]
I'm thrilled to get our ceremony underway. And I share the stage with my fellow faculty, Dr. Laura Bellows, associate professor of nutritional sciences and director of graduate studies, Dr. Roger Figueroa, assistant professor of nutritional sciences, and Dr. Martha Field, assistant professor of nutritional sciences. I invite to the stage Ryan O'Donnell, my former and fabulous teaching assistant in laboratory studies for human anatomy and physiology, but also a member of today's graduating class of human biology, health and society. Ryan.
[CHEERING]
RYAN O'DONNELL: Thank you so much, Dr. Lujan. Hi, everyone. I want to say thank you to the friends, family, and faculty that are able to join us here today to celebrate the accomplishments of the Cornell graduating class of 2024. Let me first express how grateful I am to finally be having an in-person graduation ceremony, where I can share-- yes, yes.
[CHEERING]
--where I can share the excitement of graduating in the same room as my family, and also hug my best friends. I'm usually not one to dwell on the past, but it's mind blowing to think of how my last graduation ceremony was spent sticking my head outside of my family's sunroof, waving goodbye to my high school teachers. So think about and reflect upon how much has changed since then, especially for the class of 2024.
I think that whoever coined the phrase, "college is the best four years of your life," might have been in the minority. Especially starting in the middle of a pandemic, there were times where the journey was definitely not pretty. I would instead argue that college is four of the most important years of your life, and here's why.
Picture yourself at the end of your first day in Ithaca, eager to move into your first home away from home for the next year. And now see yourself today as the Cornell alumnus that you will soon become. The amount of growth that each of us have endured physically, mentally, and emotionally has probably been like unlike anything we've ever experienced. We've been academically challenged and prepared to solve real world problems as the future leaders in our chosen field.
We've learned how to take care of ourselves and live on our own as independent adults, even if that means waking up for a class after a long night of studying in the cocktail lounge. And we've made interpersonal connections to last a lifetime. I want all of the graduates to know that your place here today was because of the hard work that you put in day in and day out, and that you deserve the honor of graduating from Cornell University.
The tools acquired and relationships built have shaped us into the people we are today, and will continue to do so far into the future. And that's what I want everyone to focus on today-- the future. What have you taken from these past four incredibly important years that will guide you into the future? If I had to sum up my college experience into one word, it would be inspiring. I've been inspired every day by the work of my classmates, what they do in the labs, in the teaching centers, and in the Ithaca community.
I've been inspired by my professors who have pushed me to my full potential and shared their passions with me. And I've been inspired by those on campus with the courage to stand up for what they believe in. And I'm inspired by the friends who make me a better person. All of these things I will take with me far into the future. Congratulations to all of the graduates here today. When I look into each of your faces sitting here before me, I see the future smiling back. And it's so incredibly bright. Thank you so much.
[CHEERING]
MARLA LUJAN: Thank you, Ryan, for those great words. I'd now like to introduce Reah Chiong, who is a doctorate student in community nutrition, to give us a few words from a graduate perspective.
[CHEERING]
REAH CHIONG: It is an incredible honor to speak in front of family, friends, faculty, and, of course, the master's and PhD graduates of the Division of Nutritional Sciences. I can still recall when I arrived in Ithaca several years ago from Southern California. People often wondered why I chose to come here.
I was asked many times, why leave the sun for snow? And like many of you, I did not just leave home in pursuit of a degree. It was in pursuit of answers to nutrition curiosities, in pursuit of new research, knowledge and skills, and in pursuit of purpose and opportunity. And sure, the natural scenery was magnetic.
I truly had no idea what graduate school at Cornell would entail or how cold it really got in Ithaca, nor could I have predicted the historical global events that would take place during our time here. Graduate school life in general is challenging. But graduate school life during a pandemic was, to say, frankly, extra challenging.
If there's anything this experience taught me, it was to adapt. Many of us had to cut our field work short, pivot our data collection procedures, and learn to manage lab supply shortages. We did all of this while simultaneously navigating this awkward identity as both nutrition professionals and trainees.
There were instances where we didn't really know what we were doing. I still don't at times. But we were able to figure it out. To outsiders, it may have appeared that all we did as DNS graduate students was run meetings and host office hours. But we did so much more than that. As graduate students, we didn't just lead lab projects. We also took aerial fitness classes, traveled the world, and ran semi-successful Instagram profiles for our pets.
We graded homework assignments while training for marathons. We participated in campus wide and departmental initiatives while preparing posters for conferences and writing responses to journal reviewers for papers we needed published yesterday. It wasn't easy. And thankfully we didn't do it alone.
As I reflect on my own experience, I know I would not have made it through the past five years without receiving encouragement and emotional support from my advisor, mentors, and colleagues, as well as my friends, family, and partner. Thank you for having faith in me, for energizing me, and for keeping me grounded in this experience.
Here at DNS, not only did I learn how to adapt, but I learned appropriate research methodologies and community nutrition. I learned how to apply stories to shape nutrition programs and policies. I learned how to advocate for myself and for others. And I even learned how to directly but politely tell colleagues to unmute themselves via Zoom.
Most importantly, I learned that this occasion, this degree, although defining, is a prologue to countless other opportunities ahead. So to the master's and PhD graduates of DNS, organizational psychologist Adam Grant once said, "success is more than achieving our goals. It's living our values." As you take what you have learned beyond biotech, Savage Hall and MVR, as your world extends beyond Cornell's gorgeous campus, I hope you remember to take what you have learned from your experience here and uphold your values.
Whether you enter academia, government, industry, or you're still unsure, remember just how exceptional all are. We deserve this moment. Congratulations.
[CHEERING]
MARLA LUJAN: Thank you, Reah. And now it's time that many of you have been waiting for. It's time that we present our students. We'll start with the undergraduates.
[APPLAUSE]
[READING NAMES]
MARTHA FIELD: And now, I would like to ask the undergraduates of the class of 2024 to please stand. And I would invite the audience-- and I'm talking to you with the noisemakers-- to give them around of applause that is amazing as they are.
[CHEERING]
MARLA LUJAN: Wonderful. Yeah, I think we're good. That was fantastic.
[CHEERING]
Now we'll invite the undergraduates to have a seat so that we can progress with the advanced degrees. I'm going to put my glasses on. Wonderful. I'd like to introduce Professor Barb Strupp as well as the faculty mentors. Great. We can begin.
[? Wenjeng Du ?] is a master's, understanding early childhood education teachers' health via qualitative interviews and photovoice. Her mentor is Dr. Laura Bellows.
[CHEERING]
I want everybody to hear the title because it's so fantastic. [? Chenyu Zhang ?] is a master's degree, engaged learning in public health nutrition, exploring students' perspectives in working with community partners. Mentor Dr. Laura Bellows. Congratulations.
[CHEERING]
Masters of science, Yue Jin optimizing iron bioavailability in bean porridge, a precision nutrition approach using food matrix strategies in anemia prevalent African countries. Mentor Dr. Saurabh Mehta.
[CHEERING]
Fantastic. Now for the doctorates of philosophy.
Chloe Michelle Chang, AQP1, a novel target in brown adipose tissue to combat obesity and metabolic disease. Mentor Dr. Joeva Barrow.
[CHEERING]
Elizabeth Centeno-Tablante, nutrition, inflammation and acute febrile illness in pregnancy and early childhood in Ecuador. Mentor Dr. Saurabh Mehta.
[CHEERING]
Hi, Good look. Congratulations.
Kripa Rajagopalan, adequacy in nutritional intake and its association with anemia and growth in children with and without EBV infection in India and Kenya. Dr. Saurabh Mehta, mentor.
[CHEERING]
Pratiwi Ridwan, zinc status and correlates among young children in the first 1,000 days of life who reside in both rural and urban India. Mentor, Dr. Saurabh Mehta.
[CHEERING]
Congratulations. Alexa Barad, investigating the genetic and non-genetic factors underlying population differences in iron status and absorption. Mentor, Dr. Kimberley O'Brien.
[CHEERING]
Abigail Benvie the role of PDGFR beta signaling in adipose tissue development. Mentor, Daniel Barry.
[CHEERING]
Congratulations. Fiona Marie Coleman, from program to plate within household insights from nutrition sensitive social protection and agricultural programs implemented in Bangladesh. Mentor, Dr. John Hoddinott.
[CHEERING]
Darius Fox, the metabolomic and proteomic signature of insulin resistance in muscle. Mentor, Dr. Nathaniel Vacanti.
[CHEERING]
Catherine Elise Hayden, interactions between folate and vitamin B12 in maintenance of genome stability and mitochondrial function. Mentor, Dr. Martha Field.
[CHEERING]
Yuanyuan Wu, towards mitochondrial DNA modification and investigation of molecular etiology of the induced heteroplasmic mitochondrial DNA variants. Mentor, Dr. Zhengrong Gu.
[CHEERING]
Heather Marie Gutterman, vitamin B12 one carbon metabolism and metabolic health in women of reproductive age. Mentor, Dr. Julia Finkelstein.
[CHEERING]
Reah Catherine Ramos Chiong, strategies, stigma and security, perspectives and lived experiences of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program beneficiaries in New York. Mentor, Dr. Roger Figueroa.
[CHEERING]
Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry. Yeah, and last we have Faith Elizabeth Carter, longitudinal assessments of ovarian morphology in women with polycystic ovary syndrome, implications for diagnosis and hypocaloric interventions. And her mentor is me.
[CHEERING]
If we could have the Masters of Science and Doctors of Philosophy candidates rise, please. Let's acknowledge the class of 2024.
[CHEERING]
Wonderful. Great. So now it says here that Marla asked the co-chairs of the DNS student advisory board and global health students advisory board to come to the stage.
[APPLAUSE]
Yeah, just fine.
KAYLA: Sorry, I've got to find my speech here. There we go. All righty, I know those hands might be tired. But let's give one more round of applause for those graduating master's and doctoral students.
[CHEERING]
Your dedication and hard work have brought you to this incredible milestone. So congrats. Next, I want to acknowledge Ana, Emily, Lillian, Karina, and Dora Lee and Sharon, who make up our wonderful DNS student services.
[APPLAUSE]
As a student advisor and co-chair of the Student Advisory Board, I've worked side by side with them and I've watched their display of dedication to transforming the student experience in DNS and their growing student services and the access to academic advising to a new level. So on behalf of all DNS students, let's give them a hand.
[APPLAUSE]
They are really the ones who put this all together. They are amazing. They are in the shadows working. Yeah, it's been so gratifying to be part of a division where disciplines like natural sciences and social sciences combine. It's here in DNS where you can take Dr. Field's method of nutrition science lab class and yeah-- yeah, let's give a hand for that class.
[APPLAUSE]
And you learn quantitative and qualitative methodologies used in nutrition and clinical research. We even got the chance to draw and analyze our own blood. So we got to learn about our individual health, which is just amazing to me. I don't know where else you get to do that.
But it's also here where you take classes like intro to public health and you learn the basic principles, practices, and policies of public health, or capstone projects where you get to look at real life health issues like looking at health care on Apple watches, someone did. And that's the beauty of DNS. We have these classes that focus on biochemistry and the microscopic world inside our bodies. But we also have classes that translate this information to the real world and to public health.
Our minds and bodies are a gift. And we have been lucky enough to spend the past four years studying just how important those two things are. And now we're going to go out and apply this to the real world, where we'll continue to learn and continue to help others get access to health care and improve their quality of life.
[APPLAUSE]
FLAVIA: As Kayla said, what truly sets the Division of Nutritional Sciences apart is how it marries hard science innovation with a comprehensive understanding of the broader social factors at play. As a DNS student advisor, just like Kayla and Rahul here, I've had the privilege of working with so many driven and human focused individuals, from freshmen to staff to faculty members.
I remember the beginning of the year when we were welcoming a new cohort of students into DNS, and I was meeting with my group of freshmen and first year transfers, along with Dr. Laura Bellows. Our conversations started out with advice for success at Cornell, but it gradually became an in-depth discussion about what it meant to have a community focus and while also keeping in mind logic-driven solutions.
We got to hear so many students speak up about their interests for the year, from dietetics to geriatrics, and actually ended up going a little over time. It's moments like these that make me continually impressed with my fellow students, and I can't wait to see what everyone will do after graduation.
RAHUL: Thank you, Flavia. And I completely agree. DNS has been a completely transformational department where I've been able to learn and grow as a leader within my capacity as the co-president of the global health student advisory board, along with my fabulous co-president, Michael, and-- yeah.
[APPLAUSE]
But moreover, so many of us have benefited the mentorship of DNS faculty throughout our undergraduate careers. One of the biggest pillars of support over the years has been my research advisor, Dr. Figueroa. I've gotten to know him over the course of three years, having started research in his lab my sophomore year. During this time, I've worked closely with him on many projects, including a manuscript published last year and my honors thesis, which I had the opportunity to present a couple of weeks ago.
Throughout these processes, he's pushed me to aim higher and keep asking questions even when hitting hurdles in the research process. Dr. Figueroa, you've been an incredible teacher, mentor, and overall role model. I'm sure many of us can think of a faculty member that has made a similar impact on our Cornell experience, whether it was a class, office hours, research group meeting, or in a lab.
With that, we want to each extend a huge thank you to the entire division of nutritional sciences faculty. Your expertise, mentorship, and dedication have shaped our academic journey and have prepared us for an exciting path that lies ahead. So please join me in round of applause.
[APPLAUSE]
SPEAKER: Thank you, Rahul. And I definitely echo what has been previously said. Thank you again to DNS, the faculty, students, and our families who have made the last four years so special. Whether you've been here-- like my wonderful co-president, Rahul, of course, whether you've been here from the beginning or have joined us along the way, your support and encouragement has been essential.
I also want to thank the cohort of GPHS students. It's been amazing to see our growth as individuals and closeness as a cohort, from our introductory course, to our senior celebration event a couple of weeks ago.
To the entire class of 2024, I'm so excited to see everyone's amazing accomplishments in the years to come. Now, for a few important logistical announcements, we invite you to join us for a casual reception directly outside on Bailey Hall Plaza following the ceremony. There will be two photographers that will be available to capture photos of you and your graduating student at the reception.
Before you leave, please check your seats that you took all your belongings. We ask that you please remain in your seats during the recessional until all of the faculty and graduates have processed out of the building. And finally, before we head off for commencement weekend of celebrations, please join us in singing the Alma mater.
[APPLAUSE]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
(SINGING)
Far above Cayuga's waters, with its waves of blue,
stands our noble alma mater glorious to view.
Lift the chorus, speed it onward,
Loud her praises tell, Hail to thee our alma mater, hail, all hail, Cornell.
Far above the busy humming, of the bustling town.
Reared against the arch of heaven, looks she proudly down.
Lift the chorus, speed it onward,
Loud her praises tell,
Hail to thee, our alma mater,
Hail, oh hail, Cornell.
[APPLAUSE]
[CHEERING]
[UPBEAT MUSIC]
MARLA LUJAN: Thank you all. Look forward to seeing you outside.
