By Kevin Dudley, WSU Spokane
SPOKANE, Wash. – About 400 students will graduate from Washington State University Spokane at 2 p.m. Friday, May 8, at the INB Performing Arts Center. Doors open at 1 p.m. and family, friends and faculty are invited. Tickets are not required for the free commencement ceremony.
Chancellor Lisa Brown will preside. Guest Susan Wilburn, sustainability director of Global Green and Healthy Hospitals network and Health Care Without Harm international coalition, will speak about trends and needs of sustainability and health.
Among the graduates are 16 doctoral candidates in education, nursing, neurosciences, pharmaceutical sciences and psychology and 85 professional candidates in pharmacy.
Student spotlights
The following students will be recognized during the ceremony based on nominations by faculty, staff and peers:
* After taking a semester off following her father’s death, Hannah Huether completed undergraduate courses while pursuing her master’s degree in nutrition and exercise physiology and juggling practice experiences.
* Ethan Landstrom, bachelor’s degree in nutrition and exercise physiology, has lived with rheumatoid arthritis since age 2, which helped him discover a love for nutrition and exercise physiology. Clients give him glowing reviews.
* Cyndy Cole worked for a decade mostly for the employer-based health insurance because she was shut out of the private market due to a serious and costly chronic illness. Her experiences lend weight to discussions on health policy; she will receive her master’s in health policy and administration
* Mandi Hopkins, Ph.D. in pharmaceutical sciences, had to begin a new dissertation after her mentor left WSU. She transferred to a different research project and with her team gained international attention in March from work showing how omega-3 fatty acids could help fight against prostate cancer.
* Semir Shifa, bachelor’s degree in nursing, was an Eritrean soldier before immigrating to the United States. He has co-led the Diversity Club and, in collaboration with classmates, helped coordinate the Upward Bound program on campus for future health care students.
* Laura Gonzales, bachelor’s in speech and hearing sciences, was diagnosed during her first semester with a non-epileptic seizure disorder, which is difficult to treat with medications. With determination and effort, she will graduate on time.
Contacts:
Kevin Dudley, WSU Spokane communications, 509-358-7528, kevin.dudley@wsu.edu