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Higher Degree Ceremony Program

Friday, May 9, 2025  |  3 p.m. 
Gateway Center, ESF Campus
Syracuse, New York


Program


Greetings
Zora Thomova, Ph.D.
Dean of Graduate School and Associate Provost for Academic Affairs

Joanne M. Mahoney, J.D.
President

Recognition of Faculty
Lindi Quackenbush, Ph.D.  
Provost  

Recognition and Hooding of Ph.D. Graduates
Major Professors
President, Trustee, Provost, and Dean

Recognition of Master’s Graduates
Major Professors
President, Trustee, Provost, and Dean

Remarks
Emme Christie, Ph.D.
Immediate Past President, Graduate Student Association

Concluding Remarks
Dean Zora Thomova

Reception

 

 

# Denotes veteran of the United States Armed Forces

Department of Environmental Biology

M. Emma Bland (M.S.) 
Dr. Hyatt Green and Dr. Michael Schummer, Co-Major Professors

Macy Carr (M.S.)
Dr. Don Leopold and Dr. Stewart Diemont, Co-Major Professors

Samia Cushing (M.S.)
Dr. Kim Schulz, Major Professor 

Kaya DeerInWater (M.S.)
Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer, Major Professor

Clay Gibbons (M.S.)
Danilo Fernando 

Rachel Hopkins (M.S.)
Dr. Martin Dovciak, Major Professor

Dineh Judd (M.P.S.)
Dr. Robin Kimmerer and Dr. Gregory McGee, Co-Major Professors

Samantha Long (M.S.)
Dr. Melissa Fierke, Major Professor

Evelyn Pae (M.S.)
Dr. Dylan Parry, Major Professor

Alison Schroeder (M.S.)
Dr. Jonathan Cohen, Major Professor

Erica Wood (M.S.)
Dr. Robin Wall Kimmerer and Dr. Stewart Diemont, Co-Major Professors 

 

Department of Environmental Resources Engineering

Max Cassans (M.S.) 
Douglas Daley, Major Professor

Natasha Haskell (M.S.) 
Douglas Daley, Major Professor

Eniola Onatayo (M.S.) 
Dr. Bahram Salehi, Major Professor

Sheyla Gaviota Rios Galeano (M.S.) 
Dr. Giorgos Mountrakis, Major Professor

 

Division of Environmental Science

Mary Banner (M.P.S.)
Dr. Stacy McNulty, Major Professor

Jenelle Booker (M.S.) 
Emanuel Carter, Major Professor

Elizabeth Kehas-Dewaghe  (M.S.) 
Dr. Stewart Diemont, Major Professor

Wint Maw (M.S.) 
Dr. Charles Kroll, Major Professor

Taposh Mollick (M.S.)  
Dr. Lindi J. Quackenbush, Major Professor

Alexandra Walls (M.S.) 
Dr. Shari Dann and Dr. Andrea Feldpausch-Parker, Co-Major Professors

Laurel Williams (M.S.)
Dr. Patrice Kohl and Dr. Colin Beier, Co-Major Professors

 

Department of Environmental Studies

Matthew Bolton (M.S.) 
Dr. Paul Hirsch, Major Professor

Beth Sua Carvajal  (M.S.) 
Dr. Theresa Selfa , Major Professor

Austin Parr (M.P.S)
Dr. Paul Hirsch and Dr. Patrice Kohl, Co-Major Professors

 

Department of Landscape Architecture

Bre Dahn (M.L.A.)
Dr. Ellen White, Major Professor

Jesse Horning (M.L.A.)
Dr. Ellen White, Major Professor 

Tanner Laramee (M.L.A.)
Emanuel Carter, Major Professor

Layna Pratt (M.L.A.)
Dr. Thomas Hogge, Major Professor

Jake Totten (M.L.A.)
Thomas Hogge, Major Professor

 

Department of Sustainable Resources Management

Corin Augustin (M.P.S.)
Dr. Christopher Nowak and Dr. David Newman, Co-Major Professors

Jacob Beidler (M.S.)
Dr. Ruth Yanai, Major Professor

Aayusha Chapagain (M.S.)
Dr. Paul Crovella, Major Professor

Elizabeth Clippard (M.S.)
Dr. Colin Beier, Major Professor

Morgan Condon (M.P.S.)
Dr. Jenny Frank and Dr. Robert Malmsheimer, Co-Major Professors

Melanie Costello (M.F.)
Dr. Andrew Vander Yacht, Major Professor

Richard Gentry (M.F.) 
Dr. John Wagner and Dr. Eddie Bevilacqua, Co-Major Professors

Delaney Kalsman (M.P.S.)
Dr. Rene Germain, Major Professor

Andrew Korik (M.P.S.)
Dr. John Farrell, Major Professor

Catherine McLaughlin (M.P.S.)
Dr. Danielle Kloster, Major Professor

Samuel Socash  (M.P.S.)
Dr. Danielle Kloster and Dr. Jill Weiss, Co-Major Professors

Marcus Tingley # (M.P.S.) 
Dr. John Wagner, Major Professor

Taylor Wegner (M.S.)
Dr. John Drake, Major Professor

Department of Chemical Engineering

Kalyani Ananthakrishnan 
Sustainable Biochemical Conversion of Shrub Willow to Bioethanol and Bioplastics: Process Development and Techno-Economic Assessment
Dr. Deepak Kumar, Major Professor

Linjing Jia 
Bioprocess Development for Efficient Conversion of Non-recyclable Fiber Rejects and Acid Whey into Polyhydroxybutyrate
Dr. Deepak Kumar, Major Professor

 

Department of Chemistry

Bofan Wei
Microcystin-LR and its Phtoisomerization Products in New York State Lakes
Dr. Gregory L. Boyer, Major Professor

 

Department of Environmental Biology

Erik Carlson 
Advancement of Blight Tolerance Biotechnology in Chestnut and a Tissue Culture-free Method for the Genetic Transformation and Regeneration of Populus
Dr. Andrew Newhouse, Major Professor

Jesse Czekanski-Moir
Diversity patterns in Palau and Beyond
Dr. Rebecca J Rundell, Major Professor

Katherine Lawson 
Exploring the Conservation Status of Invertebrate marine Species in Fijian Environments: Past, Present, Future
Dr. Joshua Drew and Dr. Rebecca Rundell, Co-Major Professors

Maxwell Wilder
Applications of Environmental Dna Technologies Across Biological Scales: Integrating Public Health, Species Management, and Ecosystem Monitoring
Dr. Hyatt Green, Major Professor

 

Division of Environmental Science

Weien Chen
The Changing Tides of Conservation: Navigating Global Goals and Local Realities in Taiwan’s Marine Protected Areas Governance
Dr. Paul Hirsch, Major Professor

Emme Christie
Resisting Economies of Oppression: Invoking Experience, Imagination, and Identity for Addressing Issues of Eco-Social Exploitation and Harm in the Post Colonial State
Dr. Sharon Moran and Dr. Valerie Luzadis, Co-Major Professors

Chien-Yu Lin
Unraveling Collaborative Impacts: A Framework for Investigating Key Factors in AI Integration within Urban Design Scenarios Workflows
Aidan Ackerman and Dr. Douglas Johnston, Co-Major Professors

Joanna Lumbsden-Pinto
Patterns and Drivers of Vegetation Change in Pine Barren Ecosystems in the Northeastern United States
Dr. Martin Dovciak, Major Professor

Li Zhang
Modeling Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Non-point Source Pollutant Loads with Variation in Runoff, Land Cover, and Green Infrastructure
Dr. Theodore A. Endreny, Major Professor

 

Department of Environmental Studies

Sarah Nahar
Dealing with Our Crap Literally and Metaphorically: Ecological Sanitation in the context of Environmental Studies and Religion
Dr. Sharon Moran, Major Professor

 

Department of Sustainable Resources Management

Alexandra Dill 
Techno-Economic Analysis of Greenhouse Gas Abatement Pathways in Residential Space Heating Under a Social Cost of Greenhouse Gas Framework
Dr. Tristan Brown and Dr. Robert Malmsheimer, Co-Major Professors

Basanta Lamsal 
Assessing the Economic Contribution of Industries within a Regional Economy Using an Input-Output Framework
Dr. John E. Wagner and Dr. Mariela Cavo, Co-Major Professors

Stacey Mack
Analyzing Conservation Landscape Dynamics Through A Quantitative Social-Ecological Systems Approach: Resource Industries & System Resilience in the Pennsylvania Wilds
Dr. Rene Germain and Dr. Sharon Moran, Co-Major Professors

Mandira Pokharel 
Evaluating Economic and Regulatory Impacts on Tropical Timber Trade: Case Studies on Hardwood Use, Lacey Act Effects, and Naming Conventions
Dr. Rene H. Germain, Major Professor

Abishek Poudel 
Application of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in Vegetation Monitoring
Dr. Eddie Bevilacqua, Major Professor

 

 

Summer/Fall 2024

 

Department of Chemistry

Tau David (M.S.)
Dr. Gyu Leem, Major Professor

Department of Chemical Engineering

Jialong Lin (M.P.S.)
Dr. Chang Geun Yoo, Major Professor

Devin Murphy (M.P.S.)
Dr. Gary Scott, Major Professor

Revanth Vennu (M.S.)
Dr. Deepak Kumar, Major Professor

 

Department of Environmental Biology

Sarah Clay (M.P.S.)
Dr. Don Leopold, Major Professor

Hunter Collins (M.S.)
Dr. Michael Schummer, Major Professor

Brandon Ferro (M.S.)
Dr. Hyatt Green, Major Professor

Molly Heit (M.P.S.)
Dr. William Powell and Dr. Thomas Horton, Co-Major Professors

Ekaterina Khadonova (M.S.)
Dr. Eliezer Gurarie, Major Professor

Jade Little (M.S.)
Dr. Stewart Diemont, Major Professor

Kapil Mandrekar (M.S.)
Dr. Donald Stewart, Major Professor

Andrew Parnas (M.S.)
Dr. John Farrell, Major Professor

Anthony Rice (M.S.)
Dr. Joshua Drew, Major Professor

Jennie Suchewski (M.P.S.)
Dr. Michael Schummer, Major Professor

 

Division of Environmental Science

Mackenzie Case (M.S.)
Dr. Jill Weiss, Major Professor

Violet Jensen-Moulton (M.S.)
Dr. Andrea Feldpausch-Parker, Major Professor

 

Department of Environmental Studies

Jon Buchmeyer (M.P.S)
Dr. Paul Hirsch, Major Professor

Antonio Kasper (M.P.S.)
Dr. Paul Hirsch and Dr. Jill Weiss, Co-Major Professors

Irene Nganja Njende (M.P.S.)
Dr. Paul Hirsch and Dr. Benette Whitmore, Co-Major Professors

Joshua Serpe (M.P.S.)
Dr. Jill Weiss, Major Professor

 

Department of Sustainable Resources Management

Wilson Burton (M.S.)
Dr. Eddie Bevilacqua, Major Professor

Erin Cornell (M.S.)
Dr. Ruth Yanai, Major Professor

Philip J. Corney (M.P.S.)
Dr. Diane Kuehn and Dr. David Newman, Co-Major Professors

Maria Fernanda Gonzalez Montes (M.S.)
Dr. Stephen Stehman, Major Professor

Samuel Gordon (M.S.)
Dr. Colin Beier, Major Professor

Piumi Jalalath (M.S)
Dr. Obste Therasme, Major Professor

 

 

Summer/Fall 2024

 

Department of Chemical Engineering

Linjing Jia
Bioprocess Development for Efficient Conversion of Non-recyclable Fiber Rejects and Acid Whey Into Polyhydroxybutyrate
Dr. Deepak Kumar, Major Professor

 

Department of Chemistry

Saerona Kim
Hydrogen Atom Transfer Mediated Catalysis for C−C Σ-Bond Formation/Cleavage Under Aerobic Conditions
Dr. Gyu Leem, Major Professor

Zacharias Smith
Freshwater Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning Toxins and other Cyanobacterial Neurotoxins in New York Lakes
Dr. Gregory L. Boyer, Major Professor

Mairui Zhang
Upcycling of Lignocellulosic Wastes to Value-added Porous Materials
Dr. Chang Geun Yoo, Major Professor

Department of Environmental Biology

Hadis Miraly
Microchemical Analyses of Fish Ear Stones and Eye Lenses to Assess Climate-Driven Deoxygenation on Aquatic Contamination
Dr. Karin Limburg and Dr. Roxanne Razavi, Co-Major Professors

Thornton Ritz
Patterns and Processes of Young-Of-Year Fish Emigration in St. Lawrence River, NY Coastal Wetlands
Dr. John Farrell, Major Professor

Katherina Bendz Searing 
The Impacts of a Changing Climate on Body Size Dynamics of North American Mammals
Dr. Mark Lomolino and Dr. Cynthia Downs, Co-Major Professors

Division of Environmental Science

Amyel Dale Cero
Investigation of Hydrological Processes Across Scales: from Stream Reaches to Large Watersheds
Dr. Stephen B. Shaw, Major Professor

Ashmita Das
CRISPR For Agroecological Transformation? Exploring Key Stakeholder Perspectives Towards the Contingencies of Complementarity Between Gene Editing & Alternative Food Movements
Dr. Theresa Selfa, Major Professor

Michael Mahoney
A Modern Macroscope: Creating Data-Driven Virtual Environments to Understand Large-Scale Systems
Dr. Colin Beier and Dr. Aidan Ackerman, Co-Major Professors

Li Zhang
Modeling Spatial and Temporal Patterns of Non-point Source Pollutant Loads With Variation in Runoff, Landcover, and Green Infrastructure
Dr. Theodore Endreny, Major Professor

 

Department of Sustainable Resources Management

Shayan Mirzabeigi
Integrated Building Envelope Assessment Towards Automation of Energy Retrofits: Drone-Based Data Acquisition, Automated Thermal Anomaly Detection, and Workflow Development
Dr. Mohamad Razkenari and Dr. Paul Crovella, Co-Major Professors

 

Self reported

Kalyani Ananthakrishnan  

  • SUNY ESF Foundation H.P. Brown Scholarship
  • Alumni Memorial Scholarship 

Mary Banner  

  • Sloan Indigenous Fellowship Scholar
     

Jacob Beidler  

  • Proskine Scholarship 

Matthew Bolton  

  • Randolph Pack Fellowship
  • Maxwell/Hanrahan Foundation  

Erik Carlson  

  • Lowe-Wilcox Scholarship
  • Science Engine "Conservation Biotech" Challenge Grant 

Amyel Dale Cero

  • Fulbright Foreign Student Program Scholarship

Aayusha Chapagain  

  • Farnsworth Fellowship 
  • Jump into Stem Competition, Second Place 

Emme Christie  

  • Fulbright Faculty Development Scholarship
  • Pack Fellowship x2
  • ESF Career Fellowship
  • Caribbean Youth Fellowship
  • Institute for AI, Society & Environment Research Fellowship 

Elizabeth Clippard  

  • NSF Graduate Research Fellowship 

Hunter Collins

  • Roy W. Glahn Memorial Scholarship —The Wildfowler’s Association of Central New York

Melanie Costello  

  • H. J. Myers Scholarship
  • J&O Bentley Scholarship
  • Alumni Association Grant Recipient 

Kaya DeerInWater  

  • Graduate Diversity Fellowship 
     

Clay Gibbons  

  • Josiah L. Lowe/Hugh E. Wilcox Graduate Fellowship 

 Rachel Hopkins

  • Edwin H. Ketchledge Scholarship
  • Torrey Botanical Society Graduate Student Research Fellowship
  • Botanical Society of America Graduate Student Research Award
  • New England Botanical Society Graduate Student Research Award
  • New York Flora Association Research Grant


Jesse Horning  

  • Landscape Architecture Foundation Olmsted Scholar
  • E. Scott Kasprowicz Award
  • President of ESF's Sigma Lambda Alpha Honor Society  

Linjing Jia  

  • Jahn Fellowship Award
  • Graduate Student Association Excellence in Applied Research and Public Service Award
  • Alumni Association Student Grant
     

Dineh Judd  

  • Sloan Fellowship
  • Graduate Diversity Fellowship 

Basanta Lamsal  

  • Alec Proskine ’36 Fund Scholarship
  • Albert L. Leaf Memorial Award
     

Katherine Lawson  

  • Exceptional Promise in Graduate Research Awad
  • Aquatic Ecology Section, Ecological Society of America, 2024
  • Outstanding Doctoral Student Award
  • Wilford A. Dence Fellowship
  • Stegeman Award for Invertebrate Research
  • Recipient of the National Science Foundation’s Graduate Research Fellowship (2020) 

Chien-Yu Lin  

  • Vectorworks Design Scholarship (June 2021)
  • Graduate Student Association (GSA) Travel Grant Award (June 2022)
  • Nomination for the Landscape Architecture Foundation University Olmsted Scholars
  • The Edwin T. Steffian, ’10 (Hon.) Centennial Award: Thesis Excellence
  • ASLA Merit Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement 

Samantha Long

  • Sussman Fellowship

Joanna Lumbsden-Pinto  

  • SUNY ESF Alumni Memorial Scholarship, 2021, 2025
  • Botanical Society of America, 2024 Planting Science F2 Fellow
  • SUNY ESF Excellence in Inclusion and Diversity, 2023
  • Ecological Society of America (ESA) ESA Trailblazing Work in Diversity and Inclusion Award, 2022
  • Society of American Foresters  Student Diversity Scholars, 2021
  • SUNY ESF The Edna Bailey Sussman Fund, 2020
  • New York Flora Association Research Award, 2020
  • SUNY ESF Tropical Social Forestry Scholarship, 2017
  • Arrived at ESF with a Fulbright Scholarship, 2016
     

Stacey Mack

  • Randolph G. Pack Fellowship Award

Wint Maw  

  • Lincoln Scholarship  

Taposh Mollick  

  • ESF Fellowship from Center for Artificial Intelligence, Society, and the Environment 

Sarah Nahar

  • Engaged Humanities Network Graduate Research Fellow (2022-2024)
  •  Outstanding Ph.D. student award (2024)
  • Simultaneous Ph.D. student at Syracuse University Religion department

Mandira Pokharel  

  • C. Eugene Farnsworth Memorial Fellowship 
  • Carl M. Rise Fellowship 

Abishek Poudel  

  • Sussman Fellowship
  • Cline Silviculture Scholarship
  • ASPRS Altenhofen Memorial Scholarship
  • ASPRS Fisher Memorial Scholarship 

Alison Schroeder  

  • Betty Chamberlaine Award
     

Katherina Searing

  • Graduate Fellow, NSF GK-12 Project: Graduate Teaching Fellows in Elementary School Education (2003-2005)
  • Graduate Fellow, NSF GK-12 Project: Enhancing Scientific Literacy through Environmental Science: Developing Scientists and Citizens (2005-2006)
  • Edna Bailey Sussman Foundation, SUNY ESF (2006)
  • Graduate Fellow, NSF GK-12 Project: Environmental Science to Promote Sustainable, Urban, Rural, and Indigenous Aommunities (2007-2008)
  • ESF Alumni Association Memorial Scholarship Award (2009)
  • ESF Graduate Student Association Research Grant, SUNY ESF (2009)
  • Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Grant, American Museum of Natural History (2010)

Marcus Tingley  

  • Alumni Memorial Scholarship 

Alexandra Walls  

  • Sloan Fellowship 

Taylor Wegner

  • Thomas J. Brochu Memorial Scholarship
  • Lowe-Wilcox Fellowship
  • Graduate Student Research Grant, USDA Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SARE)

Laurel Williams

  • AI, Society, and the Environment Fellowship

Erica Wood  

  • Sloan Fellowship
  • Graduate Diversity Fellowship

Mairui Zhang

  • ACS NERM Conference Award
  • The Shiri Schastri Graduate Scholarship
  • Best Poster Award in Central New York Conference on Environmental Science & Studies
  • Best Overall Presentation Award in Central New York Conference on Environmental Science & Studies