Graduate Commencement Program May 2025

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May 2025 Graduate Degree Candidates

 

Distinguished Graduate Faculty Award Recipient

Jennifer Jacobs, Associate Professor, Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education

Jennifer Jacobs is the Lane Zimmerman Endowed associate professor in the sport and exercise psychology program within the Department of Kinesiology and Physical Education in the College of Education. Her research examines sport as a tool for social change with vulnerable populations.

Jacobs has developed and studied sport programs in diverse settings such as after-school clubs, summer camps, professional sports organizations and juvenile detention centers. Some outreach she is most proud of includes a decade-long summer camp in the Chicagoland neighborhood she grew up in; a middle school girls’ body empowerment boxing club; and a multiyear international exchange program with national sport organizations in Belize.

Jacobs has more than 50 research publications and 80 national or international conference presentations showcasing her work. She has received over $3.5 million dollars in grant funding. Her work has been recognized nationally through receiving the 2021 Early Scholar Award from the Journal of Sport for Development, the 2020 Young Alumni Award from the University of Illinois College of Applied Health Sciences and the 2023 Illinois Juvenile Justice Volunteer of the Year Award.

May 2025 Graduate Degree Candidates

The list of graduate degree candidates was compiled from information received from the Graduate School as of February 2024, and should not be regarded as conclusive evidence of graduation.

Doctor of Philosophy

Nader Omar Alghoul, "Meaningful Legislative Conflict: The Role of Party Competition." Department of Political Science. Major Professor: Scot Schraufnagel, Ph.D.

Gobind Basnet, "X-Ray Standing-Wave Fluorescence Study of the Interaction of an Anti-Microbial Peptide with a Supported Phospholipid Bilayer." Department of Physics. Major Professor: Laurence Lurio, Ph.D.

Adam John Bauer, "Above and Belowground Biomass of a Multidecadal Restored Tallgrass Prairie Chronosequence and Its Influence on Soil Carbon Dynamics." Department of Earth, Atmosphere and Environment. Major Professor: Wei Luo, Ph.D.

Mark Lee Broderius, "Green's Functions and Fixed Points of Quadratic Quasiregular Maps." Department of Mathematical Sciences. Major Professor: Alastair Fletcher, Ph.D.

Brooke Ann Butcher, "Exploring School Psychologists' SLD Decisions for Emergent Bilingual Students." Department of Psychology. Major Professor: Kara Styck, Ph.D.

Sultaan Edward Byrd, "Cut It Out and Cut Us In: The Radicalization of Chicago's Black Activists and the Evolution of the City's African-American Youth Activism." Department of History. Major Professor: Stanley Arnold, Ph.D.

Jill Caradec, "Romantic Relationship Quality, Coparenting, and Parenting:  An Actor Partner Interdependence Mediation Model." Department of Psychology. Major Professor: Laura Pittman, Ph.D.

Pei Yuan Cheng, "Supporting Effective Instruction: A Multifaceted Approach to Teacher Development and Curriculum Design Across Contexts." Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment. Major Professor: Wei-Chen Hung, Ph.D.

Alex Hinnov Craver, "The Roots of Empire and Industry: The Transnational History of the Soviet Rubber Industry." Department of History. Major Professor: Andy Bruno, Ph.D.

Cody Gibson, "Hurts So Good: An Exploration of Benign Masochism and Other Motivations Towards Discomfort." Department of Psychology. Major Professor: Brad Sagarin, Ph.D.

Darita Rose Grays, "Race into the Future: Counselor Educators' Experiences Training with an Antiracist Pedagogy." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Dana Isawi, Ph.D.

M. Panchalie Bhagya Gunathunga, "Gustatory Behaviors of House Flies: Body Parts Used and Response to Bitter." Department of Biological Sciences. Major Professor: Bethia King, Ph.D.

Sarah Hill, "Investigating the Impact of a Brief Self-Compassion Intervention on Shame and Psychopathology for Women with Histories of Childhood Emotional Abuse." Department of Psychology. Major Professor: Holly Orcutt, Ph.D.

Kristen Karen Jacobson, "International Students' Information-Seeking Experiences with a Library Discovery Tool." Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment. Major Professor: Pi-Sui Hsu, Ph.D.

Audra Paige Jensen, "The Role of Metaperceptions in Mindset Formation from Perfomance Feedback." Department of Psychology. Major Professor: Amanda Durik, Ph.D.

Priyanka Jha, "Path Analysis of Person, Socio-Cognitive, and Environmental Factors of International Counseling Students’ Research Development." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Peitao Zhu, Ph.D.

Jennifer Lynn Justice, "Gaming the System: A Study of the Effect of Simulation Gaming on the Performance of First-Year Writing College Students." Department of English. Major Professor: Bradley Peters, Ph.D.

Kassandra Mae Kavanaugh, "Beyond Borders: Exploring Counselors' Perceptions of Multicultural Counseling Competencies Following Cultural Immersion." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Suzanne Degges-White, Ph.D.

Lindsey Renee Kojich, "Uncertainty Tolerance in DPT Education: A Comparative Analysis Across Levels of Learners." College of Health and Human Sciences. Major Professor: Bevery Henry, Ph.D.

Riley Laffoon, "Mindful Parenting and Child Outcomes: Examining Potential Mediators." Department of Psychology. Major Professor: Julia Ogg, Ph.D.

Nikki L. LaGrone, “The Relationships Between Learner Socio-Demographic Factors, Self-Efficacy, Culture, and Student Engagement in the Online Learning Environment.” Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment. Major Professor: Rebecca Hunt, Ph.D.

Alexander Joseph Lundberg, "Moral Bonds, Modern Subjects: Peculio, Property Rights, and the Abolition of Slavery in Rio de Janeiro, 1822-1888." Department of History. Major Professor: Anne Hanley, Ph.D.

Xingyi Lyu, "Understanding the Solvation Structure of Electrolytes Using Advanced Synchrotron Small-Angle X-Ray Scattering." Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. Major Professors: Elizabeth Gaillard, Ph.D., and Tao Li, Ph.D.

Joshua Collin Mathews, "Geology, Paleoecology, and Vertebrate Biostratigraphy of the Hell Creek Formation, Carter County, Montana, USA." Department of Biological Sciences. Major Professors: Virginia Naples, Ph.D., and Mark Goodwin, PhD.

Bradley Joseph McKinney, "Creating Counternarratives to Heteronormativity in Art Education: Portraits of the Lives of Five Gay Art Teachers." School of Art and Design. Major Professors: Kryssi Staikidis, Ed.D., and Richard Siegesmund, Ph.D.

Brendan Jakob Miller, "Theoretical and Applied Considerations in Dynamical Sampling." Department of Mathematical Sciences. Major Professor: Ilya Krishtal, Ph.D.

Tan Phu Pham, "Assessment of the Psychometric Performance and Implementation of a Newly Developed Patient Activation Measure Using a U.S. Nationally Represented Sample." College of Health and Human Sciences. Major Professor: Melani Duffrin, Ph.D.

Yoonsun Pyun, "Examining the Association Between Parental Academic Socialization, Social Support, Academic Enablers, and Academic Outcomes in Early Adolescence." Department of Psychology. Major Professor: Christine Malecki, Ph.D.

Robyn Lynne Redline, "Mental Health and Belongingness in Doctor of Physical Therapy Students: A Mixed Methods Study Centering Black Student Voices." College of Health and Human Sciences. Major Professor: Lynn Herrmann, Ph.D.

Margaret Susan Scanlan, "Hidden Wounds and Secret Scars: The Post-World War II Western As a Cinema of Trauma." Department of English. Major Professor: Scott Balcerzak, Ph.D.

Faye Monique Scott, "The Impact of Teaching Students Stress and Trauma Alleviation Techniques for Coping with Distressing Materials in First-Year Composition." Department of English. Major Professor: Elizabeth Kahn, Ph.D.

Dheeban Kumar Srinivasan Sampathi, "Order Acceptance and Detailed Scheduling in a Make-to-Order Job Shop with Discrete and Batch-Processing Machines." Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering. Major Professor: Purushothaman Damodaran, Ph.D.

Ian Sugrue, "Facial Reduction of Semidefinite Relaxations of Binary Quadratic Problems." Department of Mathematical Sciences. Major Professor: Nathan Krislock, Ph.D.

Marie Swartz, "Knörr Lattices for Elementary Abelian Groups Over Unramified Extensions of Z_p." Department of Mathematical Sciences. Major Professor: Michael Geline, Ph.D.

Elizabeth Eileen Taylor, "Alternative Mechanisms for the Control of House Flies." Department of Biological Sciences. Major Professor: Bethia King, Ph.D.

Duangkamon Winitkun, "Thai Pre-Service and Early Career Teachers’ Professional Identity Formation." Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations. Major Professors: Daryl Dugas, Ph.D., and Kanjana Thepboriruk, Ph.D.

Zhexuan Yang, "Applications of Bayesian Functional Data Analysis." Department of Mathematical Sciences. Major Professor: Duchwan Ryu, Ph.D.

Lu Zhang, "Contributions to Machine Learning Methods for High-Frequency Financial Data Modeling." Department of Mathematical Sciences. Major Professor: Lei Hua, Ph.D.

George Agbenyega Zumanu, "Essays in Applied Econometrics." Department of Economics. Major Professors: Meg Cheng, Ph.D., and Jeremy Groves, Ph.D.

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Doctor of Education

Monique Rochelle Bernoudy, "The Winning Combination: A Study of the Experience of Black Women Head Women Basketball Coaches on the Division I Level." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: LaVerne Gyant, Ed.D.

Nikolas Craig Butenhoff, "Illinois Career and Technical Education Programs: A Review of Secondary Enrollment Trends and the Relationship on Postsecondary Enrollments." Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations. Major Professor: Patrick Roberts, Ph.D.

Stacy Jean Cameron, "Advanced English As a Second Language Writing Students in an Accelerated Cohort: Influence of Peer Support on Motivation." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Quortne Hutchings, Ph.D.

Janice Lynn Klansky Edwards, "Taking the Leap: A Qualitative Study Exploring the Entanglement of the Vertical Transfer Process and Engineering Identity Development Among Community College Students." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Carrie Kortegast, Ph.D.

Marc D. Falkoff, "Building Diversity Pathways from Community College to Law School: A Descriptive Case Study." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Carrie Kortegast, Ph.D.

Laura Renee Garland, "Reimagining Traditional Education Through Humanizing Models of Personalized Learning: Examining Implementation in the Midwest." Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Major Professor: Michael Manderino, Ph.D.

Dana Renee Nichols, "Superintendents’ Perspectives on Effective School Board Governance: An Analysis of Key Characteristics in South Cook County, Illinois." Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations. Major Professor: Patrick Roberts, Ph.D.

Michelle R. Pickett, "Students' Perception of Academic Advising and Its Impact on Their College Persistence." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: LaVerne Gyant, Ed.D.

Rebecca Susan Powers, "A Qualitative Examination of Bilingual Latino Students' Perspectives of Their Educational Journeys in Preparation for Careers in STEM." Department of Curriculum and Instruction. Major Professor: James Cohen, Ph.D.

Lori Rafaj, "Graduate Students in Medical School: Navigating Their Roles As Students and Parents." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Jacqueline Mac, Ph.D.

Christopher Gray Smith, "I Always Thought That I Could Be Both Gay and Religious, but I Am Not So Sure Anymore": A Conversation of the Lived Experiences of Gay Men at Religious Institutions." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Carrie Kortegast, Ph.D.

Arezou Kashani Soto, "Another Kind of First Year Experience: A Narrative Inquiry of the Experiences of International Students' Transition in Their First Year." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Gudrun Nyunt, Ph.D.

Lauren Ashley Teso, "Identity-Conscious Supervision and the Experiences of Black Residence Hall Directors." Department of Counseling and Higher Education. Major Professor: Carrie Kortegast, Ph.D.

Tandalaya White, "Quality Control: How School Districts Define, Recruit, and Retain High Quality Teachers, a Qualitative Case Study." Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations. Major Professor: Kelly Summers, Ph.D.

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Doctor of Audiology

Leslie Castillo

Elizabeth Carol Hill

Emily Kopperud

Julia Rose Miesner

Faaria Fatin Quraishi

Clara Ann Raab

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Doctor of Nursing Practice

Kasaundra Marie Beverly-Marshall

Erin Grace Calamari

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Doctor of Physical Therapy

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Master of Arts

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Master of Science

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Master of Accountancy

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Master of Accounting Science

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Master of Arts in Teaching

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Master of Business Administration

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Master of Fine Arts

Gina Cioffi

Bernadette Kathryn Curl-Woodruff

Danielle Marie Eychaner

Audrey Mary Geysbeek

Cornelia Mae Hayes

Joshua Cody Hunt

Paul James Lang

Hardy Louihis

Alicia Margerum

Shahrzad Motallebi

Tyler Andrew Page

Julia Isabella Prieto Escobedo

Emma Jo Vitallo

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Master of Music

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Master of Public Administration

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Master of Public Health

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Master of Science in Education

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Performer’s Certificate

Jalen Tyrese Charles

Ethan Cowburn

Rashunda Christine Dorset- Headley

Christopher E Mendez

Gina Marie Stonikas

Chang Xu

Shuai Zhang

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Specialist in School Psychology

Kalista Marie Arendt

Allison Anne Benda

Juliana Nadia Nazaire

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Commencement Program

This commencement program lists the names of individuals who have applied for graduation on the presumption that all the requirements have been, or will have been, met by the end of the semester. To be listed in this program, individuals were required to apply for graduation by the respective posted dates at the Graduate School or at the Office of Registration and Records. The fact that a candidate’s name is listed in this program does not indicate that they will in fact qualify for graduation.

Photographs

A professional photograph of each graduate will be taken during the ceremony by Grad Images. To ensure that all graduates and their families and friends can view and enjoy the ceremony, we ask that guests be considerate of one another when taking photographs.

Nondisclosure of Directory Information

In accordance with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974, students who have chosen not to release directory information to public disclosure (which includes, but is not limited to, degrees conferred) will not appear in this program.