2019 commencement weekend at Cal Poly

Yesterday marked the end of another academic year at Cal Poly with a successful weekend of commencement activities. I enjoyed participating in several events to celebrate our graduating seniors. The first event was the College of Liberal Arts Student Awards Reception on the afternoon of Friday, June 14th, where one of my students, Natalie Truong, was named the Outstanding Graduating Senior in English. Since Natalie had identified me as a faculty member who made a significant impact on her academic experience at Cal Poly, I was invited to accompany her on stage as she received her award. Natalie has taken two of my classes over the past two years and completed her senior project under my supervision. In the fall, she will begin law school at UC Davis. I am so proud of her, and I know that she has a bright future ahead! Below are some pictures from the ceremony. 

Standing with Natalie on stage before she received her award.

With Natalie (left) after she received her award.

The second event that I participated in was the Asian Pacific Islander Commencement, a ceremony to honor our graduating API students, which took place on the evening of Friday, June 14th. I was joined by other members of the Asian Pacific Islander Faculty and Staff Association (APIFSA) to support these students.

With my fellow members of the APIFSA before the commencement ceremony. From left to right: me, Lisa Kawamura, Tracy Merrick, Grace Yeh, Kelly Bennion, Kristina Wong.

The last event I participated in was the English Department's commencement ceremony, which took place on Sunday, June 16th. This was a bitter sweet ceremony, as it marked the last time I would see many of my graduating senior English students. As I said goodbye to my students, many of whom are going on to begin incredible careers and enroll in top-tier graduate programs, I was reminded of how much I value being an educator and having the opportunity to work so closely with the next generation of young minds. Here are a few pictures from the ceremony.

With my colleague Catherine Waitinas.

With my colleague Regulus Allen.

With students from my Fall 2018 graduate seminar, "Refiguring Islam After 9/11." From left to right: Gage Greenspan, me, Anya Kashtanova, and Adriana Giacoletti-Crandall.

With one of my graduating students, Sami Jones.

With one of my graduating students, Maiya Bailey.