Photo above: Dean Paul Shepson Congratulates the SoMAS Class of 2024
Congratulations to our graduates! The annual SoMAS Convocation event was held on Friday, May 17, 2024 at the Bauman Center for Leadership and Service. Students gathered with their friends and family and SoMAS faculty and staff to celebrate the completion of their journey at Stony Brook University.
Dean Paul Shepson provided opening remarks after the processional and Ms. Laura Klahre (MS, ’97) gave the keynote address.
Stony Brook University celebrated the 64th Annual Commencement earlier that day, with 4,905 bachelor’s degrees conferred — among the 7,785 degrees presented overall. There were also 2,075 master’s degrees, 580 doctoral and professional degrees and 225 certificates conferred at the ceremony. Graduates represented 45 states and 65 countries and ranged in age from 19 to 77.
SoMAS 2024 Convocation Program (PDF)
Convocation Keynote Address (PDF)
Awarding of Undergraduate Certificates
B.S. in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences Presented by Dr. Brian A. Colle
- Taylor Fitzgerald, Indigo Fox, Kevin Gamboa, Skyler Harman, Samantha Lankowicz, Kosta Sakellaridis, John Tafe, Chelsea Truong, Vincent Vozzolo, Sierra Whiteman
B.A. in Environmental Studies Presented by Dr. Gordon Taylor
- Morgan Bittmann, Nicolas Burzo, Jake Butkevich, Andy Carbajal, Jade Carmichael, Kaitlyn Casper, Carmela Cassara, Maruf Dawan, Matthew Dean, Maxwell Eisenberg, Thomas Giovanniello, Rebecca Greenwald, Merines Hernandez Rosario, Miracle Johnson, Dylan Jung, Xavier Kabemba, Daniel Kao, Arthur Kuntarakornkiti, Allison Ledermann, Sunwoo Lee, Willow Mercer, Scout Miller, Katherine Molloy, Brandon Mooney, Jack Obiol, Kevin Pipicelli, Patrycya Prusaczyk, Elizabeth Raczkowski, Jacinto Rojas III, Lauren Russell, Sydney Sherbitsky, Daniel Spanbauer, Samara Steinbock, Naila Strong, Tania Valenzuela Lozano, Olivia Vargas, Kunyue Zhang, Kevin Zheng
B.S. in Marine Sciences Presented by Dr. Gordon Taylor
- Boaz Abramson, Taylor Alleluia, Strayer Bartoshesky, Seamus Callaghan, Ariana Colon, Alesi Cook, Anna Crouse, Joel Cuenca-Levanon, Tristan Ene, Nathaniel Felicetti, Tiana Ferrer, Erin Fix, Justin Flores, Jonah Florholmen-Bouman, Cassidy Guianen, Jake Guyer, Milan Hauer, Kevin Heitmuller, Sydney Hennessy, Ella Kaneshiro, Faith Keller, Adrianna Mannino, Alayna Radner, Michaela Reitzel, Paul West, Beatrice Wicker, Sarah Wittenburg, Jun Peng Wu, Molly Yang, Katy Zurbaran
B.S. in Marine Vertebrate Biology Presented by Dr. Gordon Taylor
- Abbie Austin, Grayson Avesato, Chase Carey, Aracely Chavez, Matthew DeMilt, Tracy Feng, Mae Galliher, Charleigh Kilgallon, Kaitlyn Kopetic, Cass Lamb, Sang Youb Lee, Steven Leyva, Liam Macintosh, Vandana Menser, Ayla Naghsh, Amy Oblitas Rojas, Carolina Padilla, Analisa Pizzola, Mallory Reading, Amber Ringle, Angelina Sapienza, Cayla Schaeffer, Jade Wu, Selena Yapp, Jasmina Yeung
B.S. in Coastal Environmental Studies Presented by Dr. Donovan Finn
- Anthony Calabrese, Leslie Mejia, Riley Smith, Laila Swingle
B.A. in Ecosystems and Human Impact Presented by Dr. Donovan Finn
- Shawna Bonilavri, Juliette Gomez Rojas, Alexa Lightbourn, Fiona McLoughlin, Jaden Xu
B.A. in Environmental Design, Policy and Planning Presented by Dr. Donovan Finn
- Madelene Julia Asuncion, Zhenyu Bai, Bowen Cheng, Jaden Davis, Donowa Dopwell, Anthoni Haynes, Weronika Kosciolek, Francis Andre Loquellano, Emma McCarthy, Marlyn Mejia Juan, Valiana Melissourgos, Quinlan Montgomery, Adrian Ponichtera, Phillip Ren, Joseph Rispoli, Danielle Stone, Alyssa Swett, Helena Tang, Mahmoud Telab, Heather Wickham
B.A. in Environmental Humanities Presented by Dr. Donovan Finn
- Sylvia Bird, Julia Davies, Marlon Duran, Suzette Hernandez
B.A. in Sustainability Studies Presented by Dr. Donovan Finn
- Julianna Bernard, Mia’ Bonventre, Garrett Davis, Reese German, Marina Lee, Sean Mello, Noah Perez, Christina Reed, Alyssa Swett, Ankitha Varanasi, Elizabeth Vool, Blair Wittneben, Aneesa Zaman,
Awards
Undergraduate Research Honors presented by Dr. Paul Shepson, Dean
- Sylvia Bird – Environmental Justice in Place: How Urban and Rural Needs Differ in the Upper Midwest – Dr. David Taylor, Advisor
- Shawna Bonilavri – The Effect of Polyvinyl Alcohol exposure on Azolla growth – Dr. Sharon Pochron, Advisor
- Merines Hernandez Rosario – The Impact of Short-term Exposure to PVA on Planaria Regeneration in Pond Water – Dr. Sharon Pochron, Advisor
- Alexa Lightbourn – Bird Species Decline in Response to Biodiversity Loss, Climate Change, and Human Pressures: Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar 2005 vs 2022 – Dr. Patricia Wright, Advisor
- Leslie Mejia – The Use of Black Carbon as an Indicator of Wildfire Impact on Coastal Waters – Dr. Luis Medina, Advisor
- Noah Perez – The Effect of Polyvinyl Alcohol Contamination on Planaria Survivorship, Growth and Regeneration – Dr. Sharon Pochron, Advisor
- Kunyue Zhang – The Impact of BPA on Earthworm Health – Dr. Sharon Pochron, Advisor
SoMAS Dean’s Scholarship Awards for Academic Excellence Presented by Dean Paul Shepson
- Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences: Indigo Fox
- Coastal Environmental Studies: Leslie Mejia
- Ecosystems and Human Impact: Alexa Lightboum
- Environmental Studies: Sydney Sherbitsky
- Marine Sciences: Jun Peng Wu
- Marine Vertebrate Biology: Mallory Reading
- Sustainability Studies: Christina Reed
Timothy Magnussen Memorial Scholarship Award Presented by Dr. Brian A. Colle
- Alexander Laporte (Junior), Isabella Gagliano (Senior)
Petra M. Udelhofen Memorial Scholarship Award Presented by Dr. Brian A. Colle
- Sophia Caprara
Nuria Protopopescu Memorial Award for Excellence in Teaching Presented by Mr. Thomas Wilson
- Darci Swenson Perger
Provost’s Award for Academic Excellence
- Sydney Sherbitsky
Chancellor’s Award for Student Excellence
- Christina Reed
Award of Graduate Certificates
Master of Arts in Marine Conservation and Policy Certificates Presented by Dr. David Taylor
- Serena Bandlow, Juliana Dovi, Jessica Esposito, Thaliyah Fraser, Silvia Gao, Thomas Gaylor, Isabella Imbo, Royce Kang, William Laffey, Claire Liebowitz, Jonathan Lim, Isaac Nikolic, Ana Penavic, Bryanna Porter-Pompey, Jessica Salmon, Yurika Tomita, Daniella Toto, Emilie Wigchers
Master of Science and Doctoral Certificates in Marine and Atmospheric Sciences Presented by Dr. Jackie Collier
Master of Science in Marine & Atmospheric Sciences
- Jeffrey Kraemer
Effects of Hypoxia and Acidification on Early-stage Bivalves Under Natural and Artificial Cycling Conditions
Dr. Christopher J. Gobler, Advisor - Melissa Leone
Using Passive Acoustics to Quantify Fish Spawning, Marine Mammal Presence, Sources of Anthropogenic Noise, and Changes in Behavior of an Endangered Shorebird
Dr. Joseph Warren, Advisor - Rebecca Rogers
The Role of Nutrients, Prey, and Temperature in Controlling Harmful Algal Blooms Formed by Dinophysis acuminata
Dr. Christopher J. Gobler, Advisor
Master of Science in Marine Atmospheric, & Sustainability Sciences
- Kirsten Hutz
Assessing Human Impacts on Historically Monitored Zostera Marina Habitat and Future Restoration Sites in the Peconic Estuary
Dr. Sungheel Jang, Advisor - Kate Colucci
The Contribution of Nitrate to CDOM Absorption Coefficients in Oceanic Waters
Dr. Steven Beaupré, Advisor - Mackenzie Laney
Bioaccumulation Of Per/Polyfluoroalkyl Substances by Benthic Marine Polychaetes: Impact of Species and Sediment Origin
Drs. Kevin A. Reed & Christopher J. Gobler, Co-Advisors - Miles Litzmann
The Observed Relationship Between Radar Proxies of Midlevel Updrafts and Low-level Mesocyclones, and Their Connection to Tornado Formation & Intensity in Supercells
Dr. Michael French, Advisor - Ian Maywar
An Interspecies Comparison of Albatross Flight Behavior Relative to Wind Variability
Dr. Lesley Thorne, Advisor - Josef Moses
Flood Risk Perceptions and Protective Actions: Investigating the Impacts of Immersive Visualization and Group Interactions on Vulnerable Populations
Dr. Brian Colle, Advisor - Jason Mueller
Mapping the Seabed Sediment of Oyster Bay Harbor, NY to Analyze the Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Shellfish Dredging
Dr. Roger Flood, Advisor - Sivanna Trainer
Understanding the Effects of Temperature Stress and Disease on Bay Scallop Argopecten irradians Health and Physiology
Drs. Bassem Allam & Emmanuelle Pales Espinosa, Co-Advisors - Justice Woke
Assessing the Performance of Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) Coupled with Ion Exchange Resin for Per-/polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS) Removal in Water by Rapid Small-Scale Column Test (RSSCT)
Dr. Arjun K. Venkatesan , Advisor - Lucas Wong
Differences In Species Richness Between Floating and Benthic Oyster Aquaculture Cages
Dr. Bradley Peterson, Advisor
Doctor of Philosophy in Marine & Atmospheric Sciences
- Christopher Brianik
Evaluation of Triploid Eastern Oysters (Crassostrea virginica) for Northeastern Waters: Growth, Immunity, Disease and Survival
Dr. Bassem Allam, Advisor - Cong Cao
Characterization of Volatile Organic Compounds from Urban and Suburban Regions in New York State
Dr. John E. Mak, Advisor - Stephen Heck
Cascading Effects of Black Sea Bass, Centropristis striata, on Bivalves and Interactions with Seagrass Habitat Complexity and Predator Identity
Dr. Bradley J. Peterson, Advisor - Megan Ladds
The Role of Zooplankton Grazing in Altering Plankton Community Diversity During Harmful Algal Blooms
Dr. Christopher Gobler, Advisor - Kimberly Lato
Effects of Urbanization on the Ecology of Gulls
Dr. Lesley Thorne, Advisor - Darci Swenson Perger
Benthic Iron Fluxes and Cycling in Sandy Bioirrigated Sediments
Dr. Laura Wehrmann, Advisor - Laine Sylvers
Ability of Macroalgae to Combat Harmful Algal Blooms and Other Anthropogenic Threats to Coastal Ecosystems
Dr. Christopher J. Gobler, Advisor - Kristofer Tuftedal
Climatologies of Convection Across the United States
Dr. Michael French, Advisor - Nathaniel Willse
Filling Critical Data Gaps in Crustacean Fisheries With A Mixed Approach, Using Stakeholder Engaged Research, Regional Expert Testimony, and Historic Data To Resolve Data Deficiencies
Dr. Yong Chen, Advisor - Darci Swenson Perger
Iron and phosphorus cycling and benthic fluxes in sandy bioirrigated sediments
Dr. Laura Wehrmann, Advisor
Many thanks to Ginny Clancy for organizing this event! This event could not have happened without the support of the numerous volunteers, including Christina Fink, Steve Ortega, Nancy Black, Kim Knoll, Erica Shannon, Kaitlin Giglio, Diane Vigliotta, Lucas Merlo, Tom Wilson, and Mark Lang.
Photos from the event taken by Kurt Bretsch are available on Google Photos. Video from the livestream edited by Mark Lang is available on YouTube. The student slideshow created by Lucas Merlo and Tom Wilson is available on YouTube.