1,420 undergraduate students, 401 graduate students, 61 College of Law students and 43 School of Pharmacy students are scheduled to graduate May 18.
Among the graduates this spring are Jess Fahlsing, from Rock Springs and Dylan Rust, of Green River, the two the winners of the Rosemarie Martha Spitaleri and Tobin Memorial Award, which recognizes the most outstanding graduates from the 2018-19 undergraduate class.
Molecular biology/physiology major, Rust will graduate with a 4.0 GPA. He also has honors and psychology minors. Rust has engaged in research through the Wyoming IDeA Networks of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) program, is actively involved with Big Brothers/Big Sisters, is involved in service work through UW’s Mortar Board and is a wellness ambassador.
“I am very honored that the selection committee thought enough of me to give me this great award,” Rust said. “There are a lot of fantastic people who have helped me along the way and much of the credit goes to them.”
Fahlsing is graduating with a bachelor’s in psychology and gender and women’s studies, as well as minors in honors, creative writing and queer studies. She carries a 3.97 GPA.
She is a mentor for the Honors College, a leading facilitator of Laramie’s PrideFest and is an active member of Wyoming Equality, Spectrum and the United Multicultural Council. This year, Fahlsing was co-chair of the Matthew Shepard Memorial Group and served on the Shepard Symposium on Social Justice and the Martin Luther King Jr. Days of Dialogue committees. She is also a member of UW’s Council on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
These two students, along with the rest, will be graduating in one of several ceremonies that are scheduled for May 18. Each will feature a keynote speaker, student speakers, a reading of all graduates’ names and presentation of diplomas to each student. Two honorary degree recipients will also be honored at the 8:30 a.m. and the 3:30 p.m. undergraduate ceremonies.
The first ceremony will take place at 8:30 a.m. and is for students graduating from the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the College of Business, the College of Engineering and Applied Science, the College of Health Sciences and the School of Energy Resources. The WyoCast link is: wyocast.uwyo.edu/WyoCast/Play/e9302c67ecb4469ca7a0913a03ad50cb1d.
Peter Sherman, executive vice president for Omnicom Group, a New York-based worldwide advertising company will be the keynote speaker for the first ceremony. Sherman graduated from UW in 1986 with a journalism degree and is a member of the UW Foundation Board of Directors.
Lauren Elliott of Cheyenne will be the student speaker for the ceremony. She will be graduating with degrees in kinesiology and health and in Spanish, with minors in nutrition and honors. Casper native and civil rights advocate and president of the Matthew Shepard Foundation Board of Directors, Judy Shepard, will be the honorary degree recipient for this ceremony.
The UW graduate students will be celebrated during the second ceremony taking place at 12:15 p.m. The WyoCast link is: wyocast.uwyo.edu/WyoCast/Play/f4ab06b1efaf4fc593d91a54a9e51d3b1d.
The keynote speaker of the second ceremony is Julian Good, a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner in Cheyenne. He received his bachelor’s in 2001, his master’s in 2002 and came back in 2012 to obtain his post-master’s certificate as a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner from UW. Since 2006, Good has been part of UW’s Family Practice Residency Program in Cheyenne.
The 12:15 p.m. ceremony will feature Rachel Ratliff of Laramie as the student speaker. She is graduating with a master’s degree in mental health counseling.
The third ceremony is set for 3:30 p.m. for students graduating from the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Education and the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources. The WyoCast link is: wyocast.uwyo.edu/WyoCast/Play/5034221c046b435091b01d852c7463d21d.
For the third ceremony, Superintendent of Public Instruction, Jillian Balow, will be the keynote speaker. She earned her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from UW in 1993 and her master’s in education from Regis University in 2005. Balow dedicated more than a decade in Wyoming classrooms and was reelected to serve a second term in 2018.
Rock Springs native Benjamin Audevart will be the student speaker for the 3:30 p.m. ceremony. He will be graduating with a degree in secondary English education. The honorary degree recipient for this ceremony will be Judy Catchpole, former Wyoming superintendent of public instruction, education advocate and community volunteer.
UW’s College of Law will be holding its own graduation ceremony in the Buchanan Center for the Performing Arts at 10 a.m. The WyoCast link is: wyocast.uwyo.edu/WyoCast/Play/c4b987c6f4ab4d14bae5fa0dea86c9431d.
