Graduate Student Oath I have entered the serious pursuit of new knowledge as a member of the community of graduate students at The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine. I will strive to uphold the values of integrity, professionalism and scholarship. INTEGRITY I will uphold academic and scientific honesty. I will conduct and apply research objectively, using my knowledge responsibly. I will not allow financial gain, competition, or personal ambition to cloud my judgment in the conduct of ethical research, and the advancement of public health. PROFESSIONALISM I will share knowledge and resources resulting from my research and experiences, within the limits of the law. I will contribute to the public understanding of the scientific process and the impact of my results and interventions. I will minimize the adverse effects of my scientific pursuits on society and the natural world. SCHOLARSHIP I will build a strong foundation of knowledge. I will recognize the limits of my knowledge, and will pursue life-long learning. I will fulfill my responsibility to mentor and instruct the next generation of scientific professionals. Penn State College of Medicine is one of only a small number of schools with a professional oath for biomedical graduate students in training. In the fall of 2008, the leadership of the Penn State Hershey Graduate Student Association (GSA) decided to craft an oath for graduate students modeled on the idea of the Hippocratic Oath. After examining various professional oaths both within and outside the biomedical sciences, the GSA leadership decided that an oath based on the fundamental principles of integrity, professionalism, and scholarship would best reflect the core ethical responsibilities of biomedical scientists. Over the next several months, the oath was developed, revised, and presented to the Penn State Hershey graduate student body for comments. The final draft was then presented to the Penn State Hershey Academic Team, which endorsed the oath and the commitment to professional ethics that it represents. The Graduate Student Oath was formally adopted by GSA in spring 2009, and the first Graduate Student Oath Ceremony was held on August 21, 2009, with twenty-three advanced students and more than forty new students participating. Approximately twenty faculty members and more than thirty family and friends witnessed this important event. The oath was revised by the GSA in 2014 to be inclusive of graduate students studying public health. Physician Assistant Professional Oath I pledge to perform the following duties with honesty and dedication: I will hold as my primary responsibility the health, safety, welfare and dignity of all human beings. I will uphold the tenets of patient autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence and justice. I will recognize and promote the value of diversity. I will treat equally all persons who seek my care. I will hold in confidence the information shared in the course of practicing medicine. I will assess my personal capabilities and limitations, striving always to improve my medical practice. I will actively seek to expand my knowledge and skills, keeping abreast of advances in medicine. I will work with other members of the health care team to provide compassionate and effective care of patients. I will use my knowledge and experience to contribute to an improved community. I will respect my professional relationship with the physician. I will share and expand knowledge within the profession. These duties are pledged with sincerity and upon my honor. The Oath of Modern Hippocrates, 1987 By all that I hold highest, I promise my patients competence, integrity, candor, personal commitment to their best interest, compassion, and absolute discretion, and confidentiality within the law. I shall do by my patients as I would be done by; shall obtain consultation whenever I or they desire; shall include them to the extent they wish in all important decisions; and shall minimize suffering whenever a cure cannot be obtained, understanding that a dignified death is an important goal in everyone’s life. I shall try to establish a friendly relationship with my patients and shall accept each one in a nonjudgmental manner, appreciating the validity and worth of different value systems and according to each person a full measure of human dignity. I shall charge only for my professional services and shall not profit financially in any other way as a result of the advice and care I render my patients. I shall provide advice and encouragement for my patients in their efforts to sustain their own health. I shall work with my profession to improve the quality of medical care and to improve the public health, but I shall not let any lesser public or professional consideration interfere with my primary commitment to provide the best and most appropriate care available to each of my patients. To the extent that I live by these precepts, I shall be a worthy physician. About the oath The Hippocratic Oath is traditionally administered to the young physician upon entering the profession. Although usually attributed to Hippocrates, it is probably an ancient Roman oath. Hippocrates, the Greek physician called the Father of Medicine, lived from about 460 B.C. to 377 B.C. He placed medicine on a scientific foundation, freeing it from superstition, philosophy, and religious rites; gave sound and shrewd descriptions of many diseases; and raised the ethical standards of medical practice. His physiology, pathology, and therapeutics were based largely on the doctrines of his predecessors. Bulger, Roger. “A Dialogue with Hippocrates and Griff T. Ross, M.D.”; In Search of the Modern Hippocrates, edited by Roger Bulger, 253. Iowa City: University of Iowa City Press, 1987.

Commencement

2026 Program

Explore the Program

Commencement

Keepsake Program

To download an electronic version of the printed commencement program, click the link below. You can also explore the program contents on this web page.

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Welcome

To Our Guests:

Welcome to the 56^th Penn State College of Medicine Commencement Ceremony.

Commencement, the solemn but joyful climax and recognition of the graduates’ years of study, is an important and meaningful occasion to the commonwealth, the University, the College of Medicine, faculty, staff, students and their families. It is a privilege to have you here to share in this occasion.

When the academic procession enters at the beginning of the ceremony, the audience is asked to rise. Please remain standing until all members of the platform party have taken their places and asked to be seated.

Professional photographers will be taking pictures throughout the ceremony. We would like to remind you that no other photography is permitted during the ceremony. Please be considerate of our graduates and other guests by ensuring that all cell phones and other electronic devices are silent during the ceremony. Out of respect to everyone present, any crying infants or restless children should be taken to the lobby. Banners or other items that block the view of other guests are not permitted.

Please keep in mind that the Hershey Lodge is smoke-free.

Please join in the celebration by sharing and posting to #PSUgrad.

Order of Ceremony

Presiding

Neeli Bendapudi, PhD
President, The Pennsylvania State University

Procession of Candidates

Triumphal March from the Opera “Aida” — Verdi

Academic Processional

Crown Imperial – Walton

Marshal

Emmanuelle Williams, MD, MEd
Associate Dean, Office of Student Affairs
Associate Medical Director, The Penn State Carlino Family Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center
Professor, Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology

Assistant Marshals

Lisa M. Shantz, PhD
Chair, Biomedical Sciences Graduate Program
Associate Professor of Cellular and Molecular Physiology

Catherine S. Abendroth, MD
Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
Distinguished Educator

David Richard, MD, FAAFP
Professor and Vice Chair for Education
Department of Family and Community Medicine
Medical Director, Physician Assistant Program

Welcome

Kent Vrana, PhD, FAAAS, FASPET
Elliot S. Vesell Professor of Pharmacology and Chair Emeritus
Department of Molecular and Precision Medicine

Welcome Remarks

Neeli Bendapudi, PhD
President, The Pennsylvania State University

Karen E. Kim, MD, MS
Dean, Penn State College of Medicine
Physician-in-Chief, Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Rural Health Research
Professor of Medicine

Commencement Remarks

Maria T. Kraus
Chair, Board of Managers, Milton Hershey School
Chair, Board of Directors, Hershey Trust Company
Chair, Board of Directors, The Hershey Company
Board of Managers, M.S. Hershey Foundation

Commencement Address

Michael Kupferman, MD, MBA
Chief Executive Officer
Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center

Authorization to Confer of Degrees

David M. Kleppinger
Chair, Board of Trustees
The Pennsylvania State University
Chairman Emeritus, McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC

Graduate Introduction and Student Oath

Leslie J. Parent, MD
Vice Dean for Research and Graduate Studies
Associate Vice President for Health Sciences Research
Co-Director, Medical Scientist Training Program
Professor of Medicine and Molecular and Precision Medicine

Michael Verderame, PhD
Senior Associate Dean of the Graduate School, The Pennsylvania State University
Professor, Department of Medicine

Physician Assistant Introduction and Professional Oath

Larissa Whitney, DBA, MHS, PA-C
Assistant Dean and Physician Assistant Program Director
Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine

Medical Introduction and Oath of Modern Hippocrates

Kevin Black, MD, FAOA
Interim Vice Dean for Educational Affairs, Penn State College of Medicine
Professor of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation

Greetings from the Alumni Society

To-Nhu Vu, MD ‘93
President, Penn State College of Medicine Alumni Society Board

Special Greetings and Closing Remarks

Kent Vrana, PhD, FAAAS, FASPET

Recessional

Pomp and Circumstance March No 1 - Elgar

Audience remains seated.

Honor Societies and Awards

Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) is the first and most recognized medical honor society in the world. Its purpose is to recognize and perpetuate excellence in the medical profession. The letters Alpha-Omega-Alpha are derived from the Greek form of the society’s motto: “Be Worthy to Serve the Suffering.” AOA was founded in 1902 by William Webster Root and five other medical students in Chicago and now has 125 chapters.

Alpha Omega Alpha is a nonprofit organization whose mission statement embodies “the belief that in the profession of medicine we will improve care for all patients by recognizing high educational achievement, honoring gifted teaching, encouraging the development of leaders in academia and the community, supporting the ideals of humanism, and promoting service to others.”

AOA’s programs are available to all medical students and physicians, and include visiting professorships, support of student research projects, funding of service activities, recognition of resident physician excellence, and national awards for both professionalism and gifted teaching. AOA publishes The Pharos, a quarterly compilation of essays, poetry, photography, and other works related to humanistic medicine.

Class of 2026 Members of Alpha Omega Alpha National Medical Honor Society Pennsylvania Eta Chapter

Angel Baroz
Lena Becker
Himi Begum
Carly Brogan
Morgan Chadwick
Emma Chiristensen
Gianna Dafflisio
Elen Deng
Eleni Fafoutis
Vanna Giang
Corrine Corrina Hartford
Mandy Hsu
Sarah Kazzaz
Hannah Kuntz
Taylor Lan
Courtney Landis
Kiera Murphy
Rahul Nachnani
Fae Nova
Samantha Olson
Abdul Wasay Paracha
Michaela Pitcher
Jessica Santucci
Sahil Sardesai
Sonakshi Sharma
Andrea Shehaj
Angela Tran
Emily Tufford
Alexandra Vaughan-Masamitsu
Amber Vinluan

Pi Alpha is the national PA honor society organized for the promotion and recognition of PA students, faculty, alumni, and honorary members. Founded in 2004, Pi Alpha operates as a program sponsored and supported by the PA Education Association (“PAEA”).

The Pi Alpha purpose is to engage Pi Alpha Chapters to promote the PA field and to encourage and recognize PA students, faculty, and alumni who meet the Society’s Standards of current and ongoing commendable academic achievements, leadership, research, community/professional service, character, and conduct, and satisfy the requirements of their membership class.

Membership is limited to 15% of the total graduating class and signifies inductees’ significant academic achievements and honors them for their leadership, research, community/professional service, and other related activities. The society also encourages a high standard of character and conduct among students, faculty, alumni, and honorary members.

Class of 2026 Members of the Pi Alpha Honor Society:

Kyla Brossoit

Allison Mikita

Quincy Garrison

Camdin Carpenter

The Gold Humanism Honor Society (GHHS) is a community of medical students, physicians, and other leaders who have been recognized for their compassionate care. GHHS reinforces and supports the human connection in healthcare, which is essential for the health of patients and clinicians. Established by pediatrician Dr. Arnold Gold in 2002, GHHS now has more than 180 chapters in medical schools and residency programs and more than 45,000 members. Each year, rising MS3 students nominate their peers to GHHS based on clinical and classroom interactions with patients, staff and each other. The top 10-15% of those nominees are inducted into the cohort.

At Penn State, the home for GHHS is the Department of Humanities, whose motto is “Advancing humanism in medicine and society.” MS4 students work with a humanities faculty advisor to carry out activities during their final year of medical school, including Thank a Resident Day, Solidarity Day which celebrates the bond of compassion and trust that characterizes humanistic care, and a capstone service project. Penn State Health also has a thriving residency chapter that engages in humanistic outreach each year.

Class of 2026 Members of the Gold Humanism Honor Society

Andy Akins
Hannah Artz
Katrina Bakhl
Lena Becker
Himi Begum
Eleni Fafoutis
Cooper Grove
James Hughes
Mandy Hsu
Ellen Jordan
Rahul Nachnani
Brianna Papoutsis
Devika Patel
Torri Peck
Jessica Santucci
Congzhou Mike Sha
Natalie Hurt Noah Stewart
Swathi Tata
Angela Tran
Amber Vinluan
Hildegard Wulf
Rani Zierath

Sylvia And Gilbert Nurick Medical Achievement Award For Outstanding Academic Excellence

Nitya Devireddy

Molly Stegman

Emily Tufford

Dr. Irwin L. Baird Memorial Award For Outstanding Academic Achievement

Sai Kurapati

Christa Wilk

Alphonse E. Leure-Dupree Exemplary Medical Student Award

Eleni Fafoutis

Fae Nova

Dean’s Award

Theodore Miller

Jessica Santucci

Sir Frederick Hewitt Award For Excellence In Anesthesiology

Bridget Lunney

The Howard E. Morgan Award For Outstanding Achievement In Basic Science Research

Maryknoll Linscott

Department Of Emergency Medicine Award For Excellence

Natalie Hurt

The Society For Academic Emergency Medicine Award For Excellence

Gavin Schaefer-Hood

The American College Of Emergency Physicians Medical Student Professionalism And Service Award

Carly Brogan

Timothy '74, Brenda And Brian '21 Drury Scholarship For Emergency Medicine

Maaz Ali

Deflitch Family Program

Andrea Shehaj

Thomas L. Leaman, MD Award In Family And Community Medicine

Molly Stegman

Ted And Millie Kantner Family Practice Award

Chad Grundy

The Leonard Tow Humanism In Medicine Award For Graduating Medical Students

Manvita Mareboina

J. Lloyd Huck Chair In Medicine Award For Excellence In Medicine

Caroline Soderman

Satish A. Shah, MD And Robin Shah Cardiology Medical Student Scholarship

Mackenzie Goldsmith

Satish A. Shah, MD Oncology Medical Student Scholarship

Manvita Mareboina

Robert B. Spieth Scholarship Award For Oncology

Katrina Bakhl

Stephen And Shari Massini Scholarship

Jessica Santucci

American Academy Of Neurology Award For Excellence In Adult Neurology

Natalie Gurevich

American Academy Of Neurology Award For Excellence In Child Neurology

Anne Pino

The Kothari Family Award For Excellence In Neurology

Eleni Fafoutis

Ann E. Seward Memorial Scholarship In Women’s Health - Outstanding OBGYN Medical Student

Brynn Zerbe

Ann E. Seward Memorial Scholarship In Women’s Health - Excellence in OBGYN

Christen Hillenbrand

Hy Berman Memorial Scholarship In Ophthalmology

Vanna Giang

Edwards P. Schwentker Outstanding Orthopaedic Student Award

Natalie Pahapill

Christopher M. Frauenhoffer, MD Memorial Scholarship

Hong Ly

Andrew Creasy And Savino Family Award

Morgan Chadwick

Alpha Tall

Brittney Schoellhorn

Mckayla Vliem

Department Of Pediatrics Award For Excellence In Pediatrics

Morgan Chadwick

Christina Hermann

Diana Orabueze

Hannah Salvucci

Alpha Tall

Brittney Schoellhorn

Mckayla Vliem

Pat J. Bruno, MD '72 And Lois W. Bruno Scholarship In Pediatrics

Diana Orabueze

Dr. Richard W. And Marcia D. Geller Excellence Endowment

Hannah Salvucci

Drs. R. P. Drago & M. Lavacca Pediatric Scholarship Fund

Christina Hermann

Department Of Psychiatry Award For Clinical Excellence In Psychiatry

Lena Becker

Department Of Psychiatry Award For Excellence In Psychiatry Research

Rahul Nachnani

Susann Schetter Memorial Scholarship In Radiology

Himi Begum

Department Of Surgery Awards For Excellence In Surgery

Mary Newland

Katrina Olenwine

Thomas P. And Gretchen C. Carbaugh Endowed Surgery Scholarship

James Hughes

Judith Bond, MD/PhD Award For Outstanding Achievement In Research And Clinical Training

Esther Choi

Sarah Kazzaz

Fae Nova

Congzhou Mike Sha

Medical Student Research Awards

These awards are given to the top medical student research projects from the Class of 2026.

Emma Christensen

Gianna D’Afflisio

Nitya Devireddy

Mathias Kant

Ema Karakoleva

Asma Khursheed

Manvita Mareboina

Benjamin Marks

Andrew Meci

Theodore Miller

Camille Moeckel

Devika Patel

Sonakshi Sharma

Dean’s Award For Scholarly Achievement

Hannah Goudsward

Maryknoll Linscott

Sara Mills-Huffnagle

Fae Nova

Alexandra Nusawardhana

Alexander Pham

Rebecka Serpa

Zizhong Tian

Anatomy Graduate Program Commencement Award

David Diaz

Biomedical Sciences Graduate Award

Amal Elhaw

Alexandra Nusawardhana

Alexander Pham

Neuroscience Graduate Program Commencement Award

Victoria Vernail

Moskowitz Family Endowment Award For Graduate Research Excellence

Victoria Vernail

Department Of Neural And Behavioral Sciences Award

Sarah Mills-Huffnagle

Victoria Vernail

D. Eugene Rannels Award For Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation In Cellular And Molecular Physiology

Skylar Bodt

Department Of Microbiology And Immunology John F. Edners Award

Juliana Restrepo Munera

Carol S. Weisman Award For Excellence In The Doctor Of Public Health Graduate Program

Victoria Francois

Gary Chase Award For Excellence In The Master Of Public Health Graduate Program

Morgan Kelley

Mark J. Young Award For Outstanding Scholarship In Public Health Sciences

Smita Dandekar

Award For Student Excellence In Public Health Preparedness – Homeland Security

John Appleby

Kevin McVeigh Jr.

Dean's Award For Academic Excellence

Blake Nizinski

Dean’s Award For Clinical Excellence

Tyler Koch

The Art Of Primary Care Award

Abigail Bedi

PA Student Award For Leadership And Service

Kevin Carballo

Excellence in Health Advancement and Community Engagement

Johanna Arevalo

Distinguished PA Student Research Award

Lauren Romanchek

Graduates

*Graduating in absentia

Master of Professional Studies in Homeland Security

John W. Appleby, BAS, Wayland Baptist University
MAJOR: Public Health Preparedness
CAPSTONE: Capstone- Systematic Review of Tick-borne Disease and Pre-Exposure Prophylactic Doxycycline
ADVISER: Eugene Lengerich, DVM

*Sydney A. Lynch, BA, Duquesne University
MAJOR: Public Health Preparedness
CAPSTONE: The Developing Techniques of Artificial Intelligence: Enhancing Emergency Management Effectiveness
ADVISER: Jennifer Osetek, PhD, MHS

Kevin McVeigh, BS, Oregon State University
MAJOR: Public Health Preparedness
CAPSTONE: Strengthening Disaster Preparedness and Community Resilience at College/Universities with Campus CERT
ADVISER: Jennifer Osetek, PhD, MHS

*Seth A. Wilkinson, BA, San Diego State University
MAJOR: Public Health Preparedness
CAPSTONE: The Decline of Trust in Vaccines in the United States: The Role of Misinformation, Disinformation, and Miscommunication During the COVID-19 Pandemic
ADVISER: Jennifer Osetek, PhD, MHS

*William F. Williamson IV, BA, American Public University
MAJOR: Public Health Preparedness
CAPSTONE: Bridging the Battlefield and the ER: A Systematic Review of Integrating Military Field Triage Tactics into Civilian Healthcare Practices
ADVISER: Jennifer Osetek, PhD, MHS

Master of Public Health

*Pamela Benitez, BS, George Mason University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: CDC Recruit and Retain program: Existing Program Evaluation
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Ashlie Sewdass Carter, B.A., Johns Hopkins University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Use of An Endometriosis Self-Assessment Tool (ESAT) to Facilitate a Diagnosis of Endometriosis
ADVISER: Michelle Laclair, MPH, CHES

Carisa Byich, BS, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Gabriela Cavalheiro, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: The Relationship Between Sleep, Hygiene, and Academic Performance in Graduate Students
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

Mekele Sekai Chambers, BS, Austin Peay State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Mobile Health Clinics and the Effect on Public Health Endemics
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Heather Costigan, BS, Lockhaven University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Using Mixed-Methods Data Transformation to Compare Impact of Two Advance Care Planning Interventions
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

Sandra Crawford, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Pilates as a Community-Based, Evidence-informed intervention to Promote Physical and Mental Health: A Global Public Health Analysis
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Joanna Delaney, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Understanding Biostatistics in Risk Prediction Modeling for Human Movements Throughout the Lifespan
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Sophia Fareri, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Dating App Usage, How It Affects STI Transmission, and How Researchers and Consumer Can Navigate the Risk
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Ava Ferry, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Public Stigma Predicting Support for Willingness to Obtain Naloxone in Pennsylvania: A Secondary Data Analysis
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Tessa Folino, BSN, Pennsylvania College of Technology
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Camerin Gallagher, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Measles vaccination rates among patients receiving care at a Boston community health center versus national incidence of measles within the United States
ADVISER: Michelle LacClair, MPH, CHES

Chloe Harper, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Addressing Health Disparities Among Low-income Asthmatic Children: Management & Reduction of Household Asthma Triggers
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Yuan-Ren Hsieh, Taipei Medical University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Comparative Effectiveness of Romosozumab and Teriparatide in Fracture Prevention Among Postmenopausal Females with Osteoporosis Using EHR Data
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Chia-Chi Hsu, Taipei Medical University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: The Association Between Baseline High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (hs-CRP) Levels and Time to Dementia Diagnosis in Older Adults
ADVISER: Michelle Laclair, MPH, CHES

Kelsea Kaschak, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Naloxone Vending Machine Implementation in Hazleton, PA
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

Morgan Kelley, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: LION Mobile Clinic Outreach Report: Connecting, Educating, And Empowering Health in Centre County
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Chelsey Kellum, BS, Weber State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Invisible Risk: Exploring the Health Impacts of Residential Radon Exposure in Central Pennsylvania and Beyond
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Kianna Lee, BS, Pennsylvania State University
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Marissa Locondro, BS, Thiel College
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

Sharon Lyston, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Assessing the Feasibility of Integrating Oral Health Services into Rural Primary Care in Clarion County, Pennsylvania
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Alison Miller, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE:
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Macy Miskiewicz, BS, Pennsylvania State University
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Jourdyn Mitchell, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Advancing Pediatric Cancer Awareness and Early Diagnosis in Haiti
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

Youssef Mohamed, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Evaluating the Impact of Prior Authorization and Utilization Management Policies on Access, Cost, and Health System Performance
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Trent Morrison, BS, Pennsylvania State University
ADVISER: Michelle Laclair, MPH, CHES

*Ryan Nutter, BS, Houston Community College
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Olivia Pytel, BS, Pennsylvania State University
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Maximilian Radicchi Pawling, BS, Pennsylvania State University
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

Braeden Rettammel, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Project Plan: Implementing Point of Care Testing for the LION Mobile Clinic
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

Emily Reynolds, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Formative research using a social marketing framework for the culturally-appropriate introduction of Multiple Micronutrient Supplements (MMS) in Madagascar
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Ken Rodriguez, BS, Walden University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Building the Public Health AI Toolkit: Opportunities, Barriers, and ROI-Driven Implementation Frameworks
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

Margaret Scicchitano, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Addressing Substance Use Disorder Among Older Adults in Pennsylvania: A Community Toolkit
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Grace Shields, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Addressing the Real Issue of College Student Burnout
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

Elisa Thabateh, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Evaluating Enrollment and Retention in the WIC Program: Addressing Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Pennsylvania and Cumberland County
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Tyler Trippetti, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Depression, Chronic Pain, and Opioid Prescribing in Privately Insured U.S. Adults: A Longitudinal Retrospective Cohort Analysis of Trends and Risk Factors
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

Jessica Urquiza, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Reciprocity as a Framework for Equity: Evaluating Participant and Partner Experiences in the Penn State Global Health Exchange Program (GHEP)
ADVISER: Julie Lentes, DEd, MPA

*Ethan Welch, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Comparison of Global Neisseria Gonorrhoeae Resistance to Ciprofloxacin by World Health Organization Region, 2009-2018
ADVISER: Michelle LaClair, MPH, CHES

*Gabriella Wolfkill, BS, Pennsylvania State University
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Mind Matters PA: Building a Stronger Commonwealth, One Mind at a Time
ADVISER: Michelle Laclair, MPH, CHES

Master of Science

Cong Cong, Bachelor of Medicine, Peking University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
THESIS: Backside Interactions of ATG3 and LC3B: Minimal Role for ATG3 and Direct Membrane Engagement by LC3B
ADVISER: Fang Tian, PhD

*Smita Dandekar, Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery, University of Mumbai
MAJOR: Clinical Research
THESIS: Patient Level Barriers and Facilitators for Human Papilloma Virus Vaccine Opportunities in Young Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer
ADVISER: Jeffrey Yanosky, PhD

Pavithra Gali, Bachelors in Pharmacy, Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research
MAJOR: Clinical Research
THESIS: A Retrospective Study on the association between Psychological Distress and Benign Breast Diseases
ADVISER: Shouhao Zhou, PhD

Malajah Nickol Johnson, BS, Thiel College
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
THESIS: Evaluating the effects of SREBP inhibition and statin treatment in breast cancer
ADVISER: Raymond Hohl, MD, PhD

*Genesis Newton-Lebron, DVM, Lincoln Memorial University
MAJOR: Laboratory Animal Medicine
THESIS: COMPARISON OF KETAMINE, EXTENDED-RELEASE BUPRENORPHINE AND LIPOSOMAL BUPIVACAINE FOR THE ATTENUATION OF PAIN AFTER STRESS AND FULL THICKNESS THERMAL INJURY IN FEMALE SD RATS
ADVISER: Jennifer Nyland, PhD

*Ryan Nguyen, BS, Lebanon Valley College
MAJOR: Anatomy
THESIS: INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF CHRONIC PIEZO1 MECHANOSENSITIVE CHANNEL ACTIVATION ON CHANNEL EXPRESSION AND CELLULAR SURVIVAL IN NEURO 2A NEUROBLASTOMA CELLS
ADVISER: Salvatore L. Stella, Jr. PhD

*Lori Sampsell, DVM Ross University
MAJOR: Laboratory Animal Medicine
THESIS: THE VAGUS NERVE AND ITS ROLE IN STRESS HABITUATION
ADVISER: Yuval Silberman, PhD

*Varun Sharma, BS, Pennsylvania State University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
THESIS: TREATING MASLD BY TARGETING THE MEVALONATE PATHWAY
ADVISER: Raymon Hohl, MD, PhD

Gabriella Louise Surovcik, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
MAJOR: Anatomy
THESIS: Investigating Delay Discounting in Individuals Who Smoke Cigarettes Daily
ADVISER: Andrea Hobkirk, PhD

Ritika Tambe, PharnD, Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed University
MAJOR: Clinical Research
THESIS: Mental health outcomes in sglt2 inhibitors vs dpp4 inhibitors
ADVISER: Li Wang, PhD

Doctor of Public Health

Candace R. Bordner, BS, MS, West Chester University of PA
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: A Qualitative Inquiry of Childhood Food Insecurity in Adults Seeking Bariatric Weight Loss
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Andrea Rigby, DPsy

Demesvar Darlyns Destin, BBA,The City College of New York
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: Predictive Testing for AIMSS: Exploring Associations of Obesity and Inherited Genetic Variations in Postmenopausal Women
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Cheryl Thompson, PhD

Victoria Francois, BS, Penn State Univeristy
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: "I wish they would've handled me more with care": A Mixed Methods Study of Black Women's Experiences with Delayed Endometriosis Diagnoses
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Sophia Allen, PhD

*Bhuwan Gautam, BA, Western New England University
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: Type 2 Diabetes Among Resettled Bhutanese in the U.S: Lived Experiences of Patients and Providers
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Casey Pinto, PhD

*Jamelia Graham, BS ,College of Charleston
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: Ascertaining the Barriers to Social Needs Screener and Medical-Legal Partnership Integration in Primary Care
DISSERTATION ADVISER: William Calo, PhD

*Kayla Rutt, BS, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: Mapping Health Equity: Analyzing the Impact of a Fruit and Vegetable Prescription Program on Diabetes Outcomes, and Food Access Using Spatial Analysis
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Susan Veldheer, DEd

Uttara Seshu, BA, University of Delhi
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: Feasibility and Validation of a Survey-Based Screening Tool with a Quality of Life Assessment: A Community-Based Pilot Study in Rural India
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Casey Pinto, PhD

Nehath Sheriff, BA, University of Washington
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: Caring for Aging Parents in the United States: A Mixed Methods Study of Informal Caregiving Among South Asian and Middle Eastern Adults
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Jennifer Kraschnewski, PhD

Grace Wilkowski, BS, BA,Washington State University
MAJOR: Public Health
DISSERTATION: The Relationship Between Social Determinants of Health and Substance Use Disorder Treatment using Health Claims Data
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Douglas Leslie, PhD

Doctor of Philosophy

*Mofida M. Abdelmageed, B.A., Connecticut College
MAJOR: Neuroscience
DISSERTATION: Mapping the Variation of DNA Repair in the Aging Brain: Cell-Class Vulnerabilities with Shifting Presence of DNA Polymerase Kappa
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Anirban Paul, PhD

Raz F. Abdulqadir, BS, Lebanon Valley College
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Molecular Insights into Bifidobacterium bifidum BB1- Enhancement of the Intestinal Epithelial Tight Junction Barrier
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Thomas Ma, MD

Natashia Josephine Benjamin, BS, University of the District of Columbia
MAJOR: Bioinformatics and Genomics
DISSERTATION: Untangling Genetic Threads: Decomposing Local Ancestry from Summary-Level Data to Improve Detection of Genetic and Ancestry-Environment Interactions in Admixed Populations
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Dajiang Liu, PHD

Skylar Maddison Lynn Bodt, BS, University of Maryland, College Park
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Human Beta-Cardiac Myosin Molecular Structure Function to Pathogenic Remodeling of the Heart
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Christopher Yengo, PhD

Jessenia Laki Chavez, B.A. in Biology, Willamette University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: A POGZ-containing PRC1.6 complex regulates neuronal differentiation through inhibiting the BMP pathway
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Zhonghua Gao, PhD

*Siyuan Chen, BS, Xi’an Jiaotong University
MAJOR: Biostatistics
DISSERTATION: Instrumental Variable Methods in Statistical Genomics and Genetics
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Dajiang Liu, PhD

*David Diaz, BS,Western Reserve, MS, University of California
MAJOR: Anatomy
DISSERTATION: Influence of Short-Term Topical Naltrexone Treatment on Diabetic Dry Eye in Rats
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Patricia McLaughlin, DEd

Avantika Diwadkar, BS, University of Pune
MAJOR: Bioinformatics and Genomics
DISSERTATION: Statistical approaches to infer the genetic basis of cell-cell interaction and phenotype heterogeneity with applications in autoimmune and neurodegenerative disease
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Dajiang Li, PhD

Amal Taher Elhaw, B.Pharm, Tanta University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: EARLY DETACHMENT-INDUCED ADAPTATIONS IN OVARIAN CANCER: RHOV AS A NOVEL DRIVER OF PERITONEAL METASTASIS
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Nadine Hempel,PhD

*Xinying Fang, BA, BS, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
MAJOR: Biostatistics
DISSERTATION: Statistical Methods to Accelerate Drug Development
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Shouhao Zhou, PhD

Hannah J. Goudsward, BS, Arcadia University
MAJOR: Neuroscience
DISSERTATION: Modulation of Voltage-Gated Calcium Channels in Gastric Vagal Afferents in Health and Following Spinal Cord Injury
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Gregory Holmes,PhD

*Michelle V. Green, BS, Penn State
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Effects of Mevalonate Pathway Inhibition on High-Risk Neuroblastoma Cancer Stem Cells
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Jeffrey Neighbors,PhD

Nathan Jentink, BS, Old Dominion University, Florida State University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Cryo-ET Reveals the Multiplex Architecture of Native Human Chromatin and its Regulation by Epigenetic Histone Modifications
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Sergei Grigoryev, PhD

Brianna Kable, BS, York College of Pennsylvania
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: The Role of Nucleosome Repositioning in Developmentally Regulated Chromatin Condensation in Mouse Retina
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Sergei Grigoryev, PhD

*Yasi Li, BS, SUNY at Stony Brook
MAJOR: Epidemiology
DISSERTATION: Air Pollution and Health: Ecological Associations Between Depression
Prevalence and Criteria Air Pollutants, and Effects of Short-Term Changes in Ambient
Carbon Monoxide on Sickle Cell Disease Hospital Encounters
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Jeffrey Yanosky, ScD

Meghana Matur, Bachelor of Engineering, Visveswaray Technological university
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Role of TAL-ented epigenetic regulators in normal and malignant hematopoiesis
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Suming Huang, PhD

*Christopher McCurry, BA, Mount Saint Mary College
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: THE ROLE OF REGULATED IN DEVELOPMENT AND DNA DAMAGE RESPONSE 1 (REDD1) IN DIABETES-INDUCED NLRP3 INFLAMMASOME ACTIVATION AND DIABETIC RETINOPATHY
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Michael Dennis, PhD

Sara L. Mills-Huffnagle, BS, Pennsylvania State University
MAJOR: Neuroscience and Clinical and Translational Science
DISSERTATION: Establishing a preclinical model of neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) and evaluating minocycline treatment for withdrawal and subsequent inflammation and cognitive effects
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Jennifer Nyland, PhD

*Ioannis Mouratidis, BS, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
MAJOR: Bioinformatics and Genomics
DISSERTATION: Computational and machine learning methods for k-mer sequence analysis in large-scale omics data
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Ilias Georgakopoulos-Soares, PhD

Makenzie Nolt, BS, Pennsylvania State University
MAJOR: Neuroscience and Clinical and Translational Science
DISSERTATION: The Neuroprotective Effects of a Common Mutation in the Homeostatic Iron Regulatory Gene in Traumatic Brain Injury
DISSERTATION ADVISER: James Connor, PhD

Alexandra Nusawardhana, BS, Indiana University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Investigating the Regulation of EXO1 in Genomic Instability and Cancer Therapy
DISSERTATION ADVISER: George-Lucian Moldovan, PhD

Casandra Nyhuis, BS, University of Arizona
MAJOR: Epidemiology
DISSERTATION: Multidimensional Sleep Health and its Association with Cardiometabolic Risk in Adolescents
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, PhD

*Laura Odom, BS, University of Alabama at Birmingham
MAJOR: Anatomy
DISSERTATION: The OGF-OGFr Axis in Angiogenesis in Multiple Sclerosis and Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Patricia McLaughlin, Ded

Alexander M. Pham, BS, Pennsylvania State University Main Campus
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Mechanisms and Models for Merkel Cell Polyomavirus Persistence
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Hyun Jin Kwun, PhD

Abbey M. Rebok, BS, Wilson College
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: The Role of DNA Polymerase Kappa in Nucleotide Excision Repair
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Thomas Spratt, PhD

Juliana Restrepo Munera, BS, University of the Sciences Philadelphia College of Pharmacy
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: EXPLORING THE IL-1 AXIS IN B CELL ACTIVATION AND DIFFERENTIATION IN THE CONTEXT OF INLFLUENZA VIRUS INFECTION
DISSERTATION ADVISER: S. Rameeza Allie, PhD

Alexis Scudder, BS, Towson University
MAJOR: Anatomy
DISSERTATION: A Glimpse into Schweinfurthin Effect on Endoplasmic Reticulum-Mitochondrial Calcium in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Jeffrey Neighbors, PhD

Rebecka O. Serpa, BA, UCLA
MAJOR: Neuroscience and Clinical and Translational Science
DISSERTATION: REIMAGINING IRON AND DOPAMINERGIC THERAPY IN PARKINSON’S DISEASE: A CONCEPTUAL SHIFT
DISSERTATION ADVISER: James Connor, PhD

Yimeng Shang, BS, East China Normal University
MAJOR: Biostatistics
DISSERTATION: Statistical Methods for Addressing Challenges in Propensity Score Estimation for Causal Inference
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Lan Kong, PhD

Priscilla Tang, BS, University of California, Irvine
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: The Multifaceted Roles of Redox-Dependent Adaptations in Metastatic Ovarian Cancer
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Nadine Hempel, PhD

Zizhong Tian, B.A. in Mathematics; B.S. in Econometrics and Quantitative Economics, University of Colorado Denver
MAJOR: Biostatistics
DISSERTATION: STATISTICAL METHODS FOR RATER AGREEMENT AND CONCORDANCE IN COMPLEX DATA STRUCTURES
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Shouhao Zhou, PhD

Ashley M. VanCleave, BS, Briar Cliff University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Investigation of regulatory mechanisms that govern the stress response protein Regulated in Development and DNA Damage Response 2 (REDD2)
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Michael Dennis, PhD

*Victoria Vernail, BS, Chatham University
MAJOR: Neuroscience
DISSERTATION: ANGIOTENSIN-(1-7) ENGAGES INHIBITORY CIRCUITS WITHIN THE ARCUATE NUCLEUS OF THE HYPOTHALAMUS TO LOWER BLOOD PRESSURE
DISSERTATION ADVISER: Amy Arnold, PhD

Doctor of Medicine / Master of Public Health

Benjamin J. Marks, BS, Allegheny College
CAPSTONE EXPERIENCE: Harvesting Risk: An Ecologic Study of Agricultural Practices and Patterns and Melanoma Incidence in Pennsylvania
ADVISER: Eugene Lengerich, DVM

Doctor of Medicine / Doctor of Philosophy

Morris Alexander Aguilar, BS, University of California, Santa Barbara
MAJOR: Bioinformatics and Genomics
DISSERTATION: “Omics of Disease”: Automation, Weaving, and Capturing
INDUSTRY POSITION: Palentra

Esther Sue Choi, BA, University of Colorado Boulder
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: SOD1 TRIMERS IN AMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS
RESIDENCY: Thoracic Surgery, UC San Diego Medical Center

Sarah A Kazzaz, BA, Kenyon College
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: The Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Interacting Protein (AIP) is a Negative Regulator of the Innate Antiviral Immune Response
RESIDENCY: Internal Medicine, University of Maryland Medical Center

Maryknoll Palisoc Linscott, BS, The Ohio State University
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Evolution in Mammary Cancer: Using Mouse Models to Investigate the Selective Pressures Driving the Progression of Distinct Mutant Clones
RESIDENCY: Surgery, The Ohio State University

Rahul Nachnani, BS, University of California, San Diego
MAJOR: Biomedical Sciences
DISSERTATION: Weeding out the truth: Cannabinoid Pharmacology and Human Health
RESIDENCY: Psychiatry, UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience

Fae Nova, BS, MS, Boston University
MAJOR: Neuroscience
DISSERTATION: A Developmental Mouse Brain Common Coordinate Framework for Cell Census Atlasing
RESIDENCY: Psychiatry, University of Chicago Medical Center

Congzhou Mike Sha, BA, BAS, University of Pennsylvania
MAJOR: Engineering, Sciences and Mechanics
DISSERTATION: Manifold Learning in Structural Biology: Docking, Folding, and Simulation
RESIDENCY: Dermatology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Anna Albright, BS, Ursinus College
Clinical Plans: Family Medicine

Johanna Arevalo, BS, University of Pittsburgh
Clinical Plans: Undecided

Abigail Bedi, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Clinical Plans: Family Medicine | Lancaster and Elizabethtown, PA

Kyla Brossoit, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Clinical Plans: Pediatrics

Kevin Carballo, BS, Quinnipiac University
Clinical Plans: Orthopedic Surgery | Waterbury, CT

Camdin Carpenter, BS, Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania
Clinical Plans: Family Medicine

Thomas Eiler, BS, Temple University
Clinical Plans: Undecided

Jodee Flurry, BS, Auburn University
Clinical Plans: Oncology

Riley Francis, BS, University of Michigan
Clinical Plans: Surgical Specialty | Arlington, VA

Quincy Garrison, BS, University of Michigan
Clinical Plans: Women's Health | Lebanon, PA

Jordan Geis, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Clinical Plans: Pediatrics

Samantha Grimsley, BS, Mary Baldwin University
Clinical Plans: Emergency Medicine | Virginia Beach, VA

Elise Gryler, BA, Macalester College
Clinical Plans: Neonatal ICU | Hershey, PA

Corinne Horne, BS, The Pennylvania State University
Clinical Plans: Dermatology

Jake Johnson, BS, Utah State University
Clinical Plans: Medical School | Rocky Vista University College of Osteopathic Medicine | Englewood, CO

Tyler Koch, BA, MS, University of North Florida / George Washington University
Clinical Plans: Sports Medicine | Raleigh, NC

Tamara Luechinger, BS, University of California Santa Barbara
Clinical Plans: Emergency Medicine

Joseph Martin, BS, Albright College
Clinical Plans: Critical Care | York, PA

Allison Mikita, BS, University of Oklahoma
Clinical Plans: Critical Care

Blake Nizinski, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Clinical Plans: Active Duty Army | PA

Ethan Rogers, BS, Lock Haven University
Clinical Plans: Emergency Medicine

Lauren Romanchek, BS, Purdue University
Clinical Plans: Emergency Medicine

Madison Rosemeier, BA, BS, Kent State University
Clinical Plans: Endocrinology

Maqbul Safi, BS, George Mason University
Clinical Plans: Cardiology | Fairfax, VA

Kostiantyn Sokyrchuk, BA, Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University / Thomas Edison State University
Clinical Plans: Critical Care

Morris Alexander Aguilar – BS, University of California, Santa Barbara; PhD, The Pennsylvania State University

Miranda Akins – BA, Denison University
Residency: Family Medicine | UC Davis Medical Center | Sacramento, CA

Billal Alamarie – BS, New York University Tandon School of Engineering
Residency: Neurology | SUNY HSC Brooklyn | Brooklyn, NY

Maaz Ali – BS, The Pennsylvania State University Residency: Emergency Medicine | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Samantha Allen, BS, University of Wisconsin-Madison; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | Abington Memorial Hospital | Abington, PA

Hannah Artz – BA, Messiah University
Residency: Internal Medicine | University of Virginia Medical Center | Charlottesville, VA

Katrina Bakhl – BA, City University of New York, Hunter College
Residency: Internal Medicine-Pediatrics | UMass Chan – Baystate | Springfield, MA

Derek Barnett – BS, MEd, The Pennsylvania State University Residency: Emergency Medicine | University of Washington Affiliated Hospitals | Seattle, WA

Angel Ray Baroz – BS, University of California, Santa Cruz; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Dermatology | Duke University Medical Center | Durham, NC

Daniel Bastian – BS, Brigham Young University Residency: Neurology | University of Utah Health | Salt Lake City, UT

Trevor Bean – BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Anesthesiology | University of Colorado School of Medicine | Aurora, CO

Lena Becker – BS, BA, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Psychiatry | Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center | Boston, MA

Himi Begum – BS, University of Rochester Residency: Interventional Radiology | UC San Francisco | San Francisco, CA

Joshua Beiler – BS, Messiah University
Residency: Anesthesiology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Christian Benedict – BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Orthopaedic Surgery | Geisinger Health System | Danville, PA

Emilienne Bolettieri – BS, Cornell University Residency: Child Neurology | UPMC Medical Education | Pittsburgh, PA

Travis Boman – BS, Utah State University Residency: Orthopaedic Surgery | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Carly Brogan – BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Emergency Medicine | CMSRU/Cooper University Hospital | Camden, NJ

Morgan Chadwick – BS, Cornell University Residency: Pediatrics | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Sonia Chen – BA, New York University Residency: Psychiatry | University of Maryland Medical Center | Baltimore, MD

*Kyra Chester-Paul – BA, Miami University of Ohio; MBA, Babson College
Residency: Emergency Medicine | Albany Medical Center | Albany, NY

Esther Choi – BA, University of Colorado; PhD, Penn State College of Medicine Residency: Thoracic Surgery | UC San Diego Medical Center | La Jolla, CA

Emma Christensen – BS, MS, The Pennsylvania State University Residency: Internal Medicine-Pediatrics | Ohio State University Medical Center | Columbus, OH

Carlos Contreras – BS, University of California, Los Angeles Residency: Internal Medicine | George Washington University | Washington, DC

Ross Cottrill – BS, The Pennsylvania State University Residency: Radiology-Diagnostic | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Madison Crago – BS, The Pennsylvania State University Residency: Internal Medicine-Pediatrics | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center| Hershey, PA

Gianna D’Afflisio – BS, Eastern University Residency: Thoracic Surgery | Duke University Medical Center | Durham, NC

William DeKryger – BS, Cedarville University Residency: General Surgery | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Elen Deng – BS, Stony Brook University Residency: Internal Medicine Preliminary | NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine | Mineola, NY

Nitya Devireddy – BS, University of Southern California; MPH, State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences University
Residency: Ophthalmology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Ravendra Dhanraj – BA, Colgate University
Residency: Neurology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

**Nadia DiNunno

Eleni Fafoutis – BA, University of Virginia; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University Residency: Neurology | Mass General Brigham | Boston, MA

Dayna Gager – BA, University of Maryland Residency: Dermatology | Thomas Jefferson University | Philadelphia, PA
Vanna Giang – BS, BA, University of California, Irvine; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Ophthalmology | Tulane University | New Orleans, LA

Mackenzie Goldsmith – BS, University of Pittsburgh
Residency: Internal Medicine | Medical University of South Carolina | Charleston, SC

Cooper Grove – BS, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania
Residency: Internal Medicine | Allegheny General Hospital | Pittsburgh, PA

Chad Grundy – BS, Grove City College
Residency: Family Medicine | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Natalie Gurevich – BS, University of Michigan; MS, Case Western Reserve University
Residency: Neurology | Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center |Boston, MA

Woolim Han – BS, University of Maryland
Residency: Internal Medicine | Inova Fairfax Hospital | Falls Church, VA

Corrine Corrina Rosealine Hartford – BA, Colgate University
Residency: General Surgery | University of Arizona College of Medicine | Tucson, AZ

Christina Hermann – BS, Boston College
Residency: Pediatrics | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Christen M. Hillenbrand – BS, Boston College
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | Rutgers-Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center | Livingston, NJ

Mandy Hsu – BA, Johns Hopkins University; MPH, Columbia University
Residency: Urology | University of California at Davis | Sacramento, CA

Eric Hu – BS, University of Southern California
Residency: Emergency Medicine | Northwestern McGaw | Chicago, IL

Michael Huang – BA, Dartmouth College
Residency: Psychiatry | Boston University Medical Center | Boston, MA

James Manning Hughes – BS, Wilkes University; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: General Surgery| Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Christian Hurt – BS, MS, University of Michigan
Residency: Emergency Medicine | HealthPartners Institute | St. Paul, MN

Natalie Sicher Hurt – BA, Harvard University
Residency: Emergency Medicine | HealthPartners Institute | St. Paul, MN

Grace Hwang – BS, Cornell University; MPH, Columbia University
Residency: Internal Medicine| ISMMS NYC Health + Hospitals | Elmhurst, NY

Simrat Kaur Jassal – BA, University of Virginia
Residency: Family Medicine | EVMS Old Dominion University | Norfolk, VA

Elhaam Nilofur Jawadi – BS, Virginia Commonwealth University
Residency: Family Medicine | Temple University/Chestnut Hill Hospital | Philadelphia, PA

Ellen Jordan, BA, Franklin & Marshall College; MPH, Emory University
Residency: Internal Medicine | Virginia Commonwealth University Health System | Richmond, VA

Mathias Kant, BS, Seton Hall University
Residency: Surgery-Preliminary | University of Minnesota Medical School | Minneapolis, MN

Ema Karakoleva, BS, Hillsdale College
Residency: Psychiatry | Harvard South Shore | Brockton, MA

Sarah Kazzaz, BA, Kenyon College; PhD, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: Internal Medicine | University of Maryland Medical Center | Baltimore, MD

Asma Khursheed, BS, New York University
Residency: Internal Medicine | Zucker SOM-Northwell South Shore | Bay Shore, NY

Hannah Kuntz, BS, Rochester Institute of Technology
Residency: Internal Medicine-Pediatrics | UPMC Medical Education | Pittsburgh, PA

Sai Kurapati, BS, MS, Brown University
Residency: Ophthalmology | Boston University Medical Center | Boston, MA

Taylor Lan, BA, University of California, Berkeley
Residency: Urology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Courtney Landis, BS, Cornell University
Residency: Internal Medicine | NYP Hosp-Weill Cornell Medical Center | New York, NY

John Philip Le, BS, University of Virginia
Residency: Emergency Medicine | UPMC Medical Education | Pittsburgh, PA

Viet Le, BS, Muhlenberg College
Residency: Radiology-Diagnostic | ISMMS Mount Sinai Morningside-West | New York, NY

John Philip Lee, BS, The Pennsylvania State University; MS, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: Psychiatry | Naval Medical Center | San Diego, CA

Maryknoll Palisoc Linscott, AS, College of Southern Nevada; BS, BS, The Ohio State University; MS, Johns Hopkins University; PhD, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: General Surgery | Ohio State University Medical Center | Columbus, OH

Bridget Lunney, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Anesthesiology | CMSRU/Cooper University Hospital | Camden, NJ

Hong Ly, BS, University of California, San Diego
Residency: Pathology-Anatomic and Clinical | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Kylie Manuppelli, BS, BA, University of Pittsburgh
Residency: Internal Medicine-Pediatrics | Christiana Care | Newark, DE

Manvita Mareboina, BS, University of California, Los Angeles; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Internal Medicine | UC Irvine Medical Center | Orange, CA

Evelyn S. Marin, BS, The Pennsylvania State University; MPH, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: Internal Medicine | Boston University Medical Center | Boston, MA

Benjamin Marks, BS, Allegheny College; MPH, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: Internal Medicine | Duke University Medical Center | Durham, NC

Maria Fabi Martin, BS, United States Military Academy
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | University of Kansas School of Medicine | Kansas City, KS

Meghan Matheny, BS, Davidson College
Residency: Urology | University of Cincinnati | Cincinnati, OH

William Joseph Mathias, BS, High Point University
Residency: Surgery-Preliminary | UPMC Mercy Hospital | Pittsburgh, PA

Andrew Meci, BS, Juniata College; MPH, Sorbonne University
Residency: Otolaryngology | University of Tennessee Health Science Center | Memphis, TN

Jacob R. Miller, BS, Brigham Young University; MHS, Johns Hopkins University; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | University of Rochester Medical Center | Rochester, NY

Theodore Miller, BS, The University of Georgia; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Internal Medicine-Pediatrics | Ohio State University Medical Center | Columbus, OH

Camille Moeckel, BA, Princeton University; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Dermatology | Cleveland Clinic | Cleveland, OH

Mahad Muhammad, BS, The University of Scranton
Residency: Anesthesiology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Kiera Murphy, BS, The College of New Jersey
Residency: Dermatology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Rahul Nachnani, BS, University of California, San Diego; PhD, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: Psychiatry | UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience | Los Angeles, CA

Mary Newland, BS, Wake Forest University
Residency: Plastic Surgery | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Megan Thaonhu Nguyen, BA, University of Virginia
Residency: Surgery-Preliminary | Medical University of South Carolina | Charleston, SC

**Gavin Nichols, BS, BM, Utah State University (add 2 stars to his name)
Residency: Neurology | Baylor S&W-Baylor Medical Center | Temple, TX

Chaitanya Nimmagadda, BA, Temple University
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | Christiana Care | Newark, DE

Fae Nova, BS, Boston University; MS, Boston University College of Medicine; PhD, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: Psychiatry | University of Chicago Medical Center | Chicago, IL

Ian O’Shea, BS, Northeastern University
Residency: Neurology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Katrina Olenwine, BS, BA, University of Pittsburgh; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: General Surgery | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Samantha N. Olson, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Orthopaedic Surgery | University of Colorado School of Medicine | Aurora, CO

Diana Orabueze, BS, Georgia State University
Residency: Pediatrics | Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia | Philadelphia, PA

Natalie Pahapill, BS, University of Wisconsin-Madison
Residency: Orthopaedic Surgery | Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education | Rochester, MN

Brianna Papoutsis, BA, Franklin & Marshall College
Residency: Psychiatry | Kaiser Permanente | San Jose, CA

Abdul Wasay Alam Paracha, BS, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Residency: General Surgery| Baylor College of Medicine | Houston, TX

Devika Patel, BS, MS, Stanford University
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | Tower Health/Reading Hospital | Reading, PA

Krishna Patel, BS, Lehigh University; MHS, Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health
Residency: Family Medicine | University of Utah Health | Salt Lake City, UT

Wesley Paulson, BA, Colorado College; MMS, Wake Forest University
Residency: Anesthesiology | Zucker SOM-Northwell Vassar Brothers MC | Poughkeepsie, NY

Torri Peck, BS, University of Utah; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | George Washington University | Washington, DC

Griffin Perry, BA, University of Virginia
Residency: Internal Medicine | ISMMS Mount Sinai Morningside | New York, NY

Gianni Pescetto, HBSc, University of Toronto
Residency: Internal Medicine | Brown University Rhode Island Hospital | Providence, RI

Anne Francine Pino, BA, Seton Hall University
Residency: Child Neurology | Duke University Medical Center | Durham, NC

Michaela Pitcher, BS, Clemson University
Residency: Orthopaedic Surgery | West Virginia University School of Medicine | Morgantown, WV

Medha Prabhu, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Internal Medicine | Boston University Medical Center | Boston, MA

Deepika Pugalenthi Saravanan, BS, University of California, Los Angeles
Residency: Internal Medicine | UC Davis Medical Center | Sacramento, CA

Xinyue Qiu, BS, Emory University
Residency: Family Medicine | University of Maryland Medical Center | Baltimore, MD

Nigel Ravida, BS, Bucknell University; MS, Penn State College of Medicine; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Surgery-Preliminary | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Devon W. Ream, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Internal Medicine | Maine Medical Center | Portland, ME

Maya Rockwell, BS, Westminster University
Residency: Emergency Medicine | Temple University Hospital | Philadelphia, PA

Grace Soojin Ryu, BA, MS, University of Southern California
Residency: Surgery-Preliminary | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Hannah Salvucci, BA, Franklin & Marshall College
Residency: Pediatrics | Nationwide Children’s Hospital | Columbus, OH

Fadi Samaan, BS, The City College of New York; MSCR, Penn State College of Medicine
Residency: Radiation Oncology | Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education | Jacksonville, FL

Jessica Santucci, BS, MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Internal Medicine | Allegheny General Hospital | Pittsburgh, PA

Sahil Sardesai, BS, BS, University of Maryland
Residency: Interventional Radiology | MedStar Georgetown University Hospital | Washington, DC

Sajay Sarin, BS, University of Michigan
Residency: Anesthesiology | University at Buffalo School of Medicine | Buffalo, NY

Gavin Schaefer-Hood, BA, Hamilton College
Residency: Emergency Medicine | Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center | Boston, MA

Brittney Schoellhorn BA, University of Oregon
Residency: Pediatrics | MGB-Massachusetts General Hospital | Boston, MA

Congzhou M Sha, BA, BAS, MS, University of Pennsylvania; PhD, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Dermatology | Vanderbilt University Medical Center | Nashville, TN

Sonakshi Sharma, BS, BA, University of Rochester
Residency: Plastic Surgery | West Virginia University School of Medicine | Morgantown, WV

Andrea Shehaj, BS, University of Massachusetts
Residency: Emergency Medicine | Mass General Brigham | Boston, MA

Sarah Simion, BS, Lebanon Valley College
Residency: Anesthesiology | University of Rochester Medical Center | Rochester, NY

Safitaj Sindhar, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Internal Medicine | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Madeline Pack Snyder, BS, Syracuse University
Residency: Family Medicine | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | State College, PA

Caroline Soderman, BS, Gettysburg College
Residency: Internal Medicine | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Molly Stegman, BS, Virginia Tech
Residency: Family Medicine | University of Tennessee School of Medicine-Knoxville | Knoxville, TN

Alpha Tall, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Pediatrics | Nationwide Children’s Hospital | Columbus, OH

**Sisi Tang, BS, Duke University
Residency: Neurology | SSM Health/St Louis University School of Medicine | St Louis, MO

Swathi Tata, BS, University of Pittsburgh
Residency: Child Neurology | Children’s National Medical Center | Washington, DC

Laura Telfer, BS, Cornell University; MS, Georgetown University
Residency: Psychiatry | Boston University Medical Center | Boston, MA

Corey Tooke, BS, Morehead State University
Residency: Family Medicine | University of Alabama - College of Community Health Sciences | Tuscaloosa, AL

Angela Tran, BS, St. John's University
Residency: Internal Medicine | Zucker SOM-Northwell NS/LIJ-NY | Great Neck, NY

Nam Tran, BS, The George Washington University
Residency: Emergency Medicine | Thomas Jefferson University | Philadelphia, PA

Tammy Tran, BS, Virginia Commonwealth University
Residency: Family Medicine | Inova Fairfax Hospital | Fairfax, VA

Nguyen Minh Truong, BS, University of California, Irvine
Residency: Family Medicine | Pomona Valley Hospital | Pomona, CA

Emily Tufford, BS, Elon University; MEd, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Orthopaedic Surgery | Penn State Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Alexandra Vaughan-Masamitsu, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Plastic Surgery | University of Illinois College of Medicine | Chicago, IL

Amber Vinluan, BS, Tulane University
Residency: General Surgery | Boston University Medical Center | Boston, MA

McKayla Vliem, BS, Bethel University
Residency: Pediatrics | Mayo Clinic School of Graduate Medical Education | Rochester, MN

Nathan C. White, AA, Harrisburg Area Community College; BSN, Millersville University
Residency: Radiology-Diagnostic | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

Christa Wilk, BS, The Ohio State University; BA, Kent State University
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | Medical College of Wisconsin Affiliated Hospitals | Milwaukee, WI

Hildegard Wulf, BA, Vassar College
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | University of Rochester Medical Center | Rochester, NY

Brynn Zerbe, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Obstetrics and Gynecology | Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center | Hershey, PA

**Kebo Zhang, BS, The Pennsylvania State University
Residency: Family Medicine | Jefferson Health Northeast | Philadelphia, PA

Harmony Kay Zimmerman, BA, Wheaton College
Residency: Family Medicine | Lancaster General Hospital | Lancaster, PA

William Zofkie, BS, The Ohio State University
Residency: Family Medicine | University of North Carolina Hospitals | Chapel Hill, NC

Elizabeth Zook, BS, University of South Florida
Residency: General Surgery | HCA Healthcare East FL Division | Miami, FL

*Graduated December 2025
**Graduating in Absentia

Additional Information

Neeli Bendapudi, PhD

President
The Pennsylvania State University

Neeli Bendapudi, PhD, serves as the 19th president of Penn State, having begun her tenure in May 2022. Her vision for the University is grounded in the principles of Purpose, Agility and Opportunity, with strategic goals focused on student success; research excellence; land-grant impact; diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging; transforming internal operations; and enhancing the University’s health enterprise.

She has previously worked as the executive vice president and chief customer officer for Huntington National Bank and as the president of the University of Louisville, in addition to academic and administrative leadership positions with the University of Kansas and Ohio State.

As a researcher, her scholarship focuses on the study of consumer behavior in service contexts. She holds a bachelor’s degree in English, a master of business administration and a doctorate in marketing.

Karen E. Kim, MD, MS

Dean
Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Rural Health Research and Professor
Penn State College of Medicine
Physician-in-Chief
Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center
Penn State University

Karen Kim, MD, MS, was named dean at the Penn State College of Medicine in 2023. As the Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Rural Health Research, Dr. Kim leads the College of Medicine’s education, research and clinical missions, the culture of innovation, and is focused on enhancing team-based interdisciplinary collaboration across the College of Medicine, Penn State Health, the University at large and across commonwealth campuses. As Physician in Chief, Dr. Kim plays a critical role in shaping the academic health system.

In addition to being dean, Dr. Kim is a nationally recognized leader in health disparities research, curricular innovation and public policy. Her research focuses on the rigorous development and evaluation of multi-level strategies to advance cancer health equity among marginalized and vulnerable populations. As founder and director of the Center for Asian Health Equity community-academic partnership, Dr. Kim is a national leader in public policies for the inclusion of Asian Americans and underserved populations in research.

Prior to joining Penn State, Dr. Kim served as the Vice Provost for Research and Senior Research Officer at the University of Chicago, the Sara and Harold Lincoln Thompson Chair and Professor of Medicine and Associate Director of the University of Chicago Comprehensive Cancer Center. During her tenure as Vice Provost for Research, Dr. Kim collaborated with divisions, schools, centers and institutes across the University and national laboratories to establish strategic research priorities, significantly increase interdisciplinary research and funding success and to enhance broader impact through inclusive innovation.

Dr. Kim brings extensive expertise in community-based participatory research (CBPR), dissemination and implementation science, intervention design and minority health research. Her work has been recognized and supported through collaborations with leading federal agencies and national initiatives, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Cancer Institute’s Beau Biden Cancer Moonshot Initiative, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Minority Health and the National Institutes of Health. She has led the State of Illinois’ colorectal cancer control program across both urban and rural communities and has advanced innovative, technology-enabled solutions to address gaps in care delivery among federally qualified health centers and rural populations.

In addition to her research, Dr. Kim is deeply committed to civic engagement and has dedicated significant time to advancing health through service to numerous nonprofit organizations and national boards. Dr. Kim has been nationally recognized for her advocacy and policy work and received the International Women’s Leadership Award, the Chicago Foundation for Women Impact Award and the Cancer Prevention Laurel for Increasing Health Equity.

She is a member of the American College of Physicians, the American Gastroenterological Association, the American Medical Association, the American Association for Cancer Research and the American Public Health Association.

She is the College’s first female dean and the only Korean-American to hold such a title nationally.

Kent Vrana, PhD, FAAAS, FASPET

Elliot S. Vesell Professor of Pharmacology and Chair Emeritus
Department of Molecular and Precision Medicine
Penn State College of Medicine

Dr. Kent Vrana is the Elliot S. Vesell Professor of Pharmacology (Chair Emeritus) in the Department of Molecular and Precision Medicine at the Penn State College of Medicine and Director of the PA-approved Medical Marijuana Academic Clinical Research Center at Penn State.

Dr. Vrana has a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Iowa, and a PhD from the LSU Medical Center in New Orleans. He was a post-doctoral fellow in embryology and molecular biology at Johns Hopkins University. Following faculty positions at West Virginia and Wake Forest Universities, Dr. Vrana assumed his leadership position at Penn State in 2004.

Dr. Vrana is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Medical Cannabis and Cannabinoids, and associate editor of Pharmacology. He has co-authored more than 225 scientific articles, book chapters and monographs (including two textbooks) and has had a distinguished career.

Dr. Vrana is an elected Fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET). He has received the Penn State College of Medicine Career Research Excellence Award and, in 2024, was honored as one of four recipients of the AAMC’s prestigious Alpha Omega Alpha Robert J. Glaser Distinguished Teacher Award. This recognition highlights his exceptional contributions to medical education and reflects a distinguished career in academic medicine and scientific research.

Maria T. Kraus

Chairman, Board of Managers of The Milton Hershey School
Chairman, Board of Directors of The Hershey Trust Company
Chairman, Board of Directors of The Hershey Company
Board of Managers of the M.S. Hershey Foundation

Ms. Kraus was appointed to the Board of Managers of Milton Hershey School and Board of Directors of The Hershey Trust Company in January 2018 and has been Chairman of the Boards since December 2023. She also serves on the Board of Managers of the M.S. Hershey Foundation and was Chairman from December 2020 to December 2023. Ms. Kraus has been on the Board of Directors of the Hershey Company since May 2024 and was appointed Chairman in August 2025. Ms. Kraus also sat on the Board of the Girl Scouts of Eastern Pennsylvania from May 2008 to May 2023 and received their Governance Award in 2015.

She is currently the Chief Financial Officer of Wedgewood Pharmacy, the largest compounding pharmacy devoted to animal health in the United States. Prior to joining Wedgewood Pharmacy in 2021, Ms. Kraus was the Chief Financial Officer at Accelerated Enrollment Solutions, a division of PPD, a global contract research organization that provides comprehensive drug development, laboratory and lifecycle management services. Prior to this, Ms. Kraus served in various executive financial roles at Biolinica (now Clario), a company providing pharmaceutical outsourced services. She started her career with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Ms. Kraus attended Pennsylvania State University where she earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Accounting and holds a C.P.A. license in Pennsylvania.

Ms. Kraus is an alumna of Milton Hershey School, having graduated as valedictorian in 1989, and is a recipient of the Milton Hershey School Alumni Career Award. She is also a recipient of the Coalition of Residential Excellence Catherine Hershey Award for Trustee of the Year. Enthusiastic about the mission, she serves as a role model for future generations of students. Ms. Kraus is proud to advance the legacy of Milton and Catherine Hershey.

Michael Kupferman, MD, MBA

Chief Executive Officer
Penn State Health

Dr. Michael Kupferman joined Penn State Health as its chief executive officer on June 23, 2025. He focuses on optimizing access to expert-driven, quality care for communities across the health system’s core counties of Berks, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lebanon and Lancaster; fostering a workplace that promotes research and innovation; maintaining a culture of safety for staff and patients; and enhancing collaboration across the region’s only locally based integrated academic health system to train and educate the workforce of the future.

Kupferman is a fellowship trained head and neck cancer surgeon who completed his clinical and research fellowships at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where he served as senior vice president of clinical and academic network development from 2006 to 2022. He led the development, management and growth of clinical oncology and research programs across the MD Anderson Cancer Network, inclusive of all domestic and international relationships.

He joins Penn State Health after serving as president of the Banner University Medicine Division and senior vice president of the physician enterprise for Phoenix-based Banner Health, one of the largest health systems in the U.S. His responsibilities at Banner included academic medicine, system and service line strategy, hospital and medical group operations, patient access and health network performance.

In his role as CEO of Penn State’s $4.2 billion health system, Kupferman works closely with Penn State College of Medicine Dean Dr. Karen Kim and other leaders of the College of Medicine and University to foster increased collaboration across the clinical and academic enterprises. In addition to his administrative duties as CEO, Kupferman intends to continue caring for head and neck cancer patients, as well as teaching medical students, residents and fellows. He holds a College of Medicine faculty appointment as a professor of otolaryngology-head and neck surgery.

He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science and biology from Yeshiva University and received his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. He completed his surgery internship and otolaryngology-head and neck surgery residency at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. He also holds a master’s in business administration from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management. He is board-certified in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery.

David M. Kleppinger

Chairman Emeritus, McNees Wallace and Nurick LLC
Chair of the Board of Trustees

David M. Kleppinger was appointed to the Pennsylvania State University Board of Trustees by Governor Tom Wolf effective January 2017. He was elected to serve as Vice Chair of the Board in 2020 and elected to serve as Chair of the Board in 2024. He also serves as a member of the Penn State Health Board of Directors.

Kleppinger earned his B.A. from Penn State in 1977 and his J.D. from the Temple University School of Law in 1980. Kleppinger is Chairman Emeritus at McNees Wallace and Nurick LLC, a law firm in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, after serving as Chairman for 12 years. He served as Vice Chair of the Board of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry from 2015-2018 and as Chair from 2019-2020. At Penn State, he is a member of the College of the Liberal Arts Political Science Department’s Board of Visitors, for which he served as Chair from 2013-2015.

Penn State

The Pennsylvania State University is a multi-campus, land-grant, public research university that educates students from around the world and supports individuals and communities through integrated programs of teaching, research, and service.

Penn State, founded in 1855 as an agricultural college, admitted its first class in 1859. The Pennsylvania legislature designated Penn State as the Commonwealth's sole land-grant institution in 1863, which eventually broadened the University's mission to include teaching, research, and public service in many academic disciplines. Penn State has awarded more than a half-million degrees and has been Pennsylvania's largest source of baccalaureate degrees at least since the 1930s.

Although the University is privately chartered by the Commonwealth, it was from the outset considered an "instrumentality of the state," that is, it carries out many of the functions of a public institution and promotes the general welfare of the citizenry. The governor and other representatives of the Commonwealth have held seats on Penn State’s Board of Trustees since the University's founding, and the legislature has made regular appropriations in support of the University's mission since 1887. Today, Penn State is one of four “state-related” universities (along with the University of Pittsburgh, Temple University, and Lincoln University), institutions that are not state-owned and -operated but that have the character of public universities and receive substantial state appropriations. With its administrative and research hub at the University Park campus, Penn State has twenty-three additional locations across Pennsylvania. While some of these locations, such as the Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, have specialized academic roles, they all adhere to a common overall mission and set of core values and strategic goals.

Our instructional mission includes undergraduate, graduate, professional, continuing, and extension education offered through both resident instruction and distance learning. Our educational programs are enriched by the talent, knowledge, diversity, creativity, and teaching and research acumen of our faculty, students, and staff.

Today Penn State awards more associate, baccalaureate, and graduate degrees than any other institution in the Commonwealth. Penn State programs show up in the top 10 in many national rankings. Graduates of the University join a family of some 800,000 alumni. The Penn State Alumni Association the largest dues paying organization of its kind—helps Penn Staters stay connected with each other and the University through a powerful network of more than 139 chapters and other affiliated groups across the United States and around the world.

Learn more at the Penn State website.

Board of Trustees of The Pennsylvania State University

MEMBERS EX OFFICIO

Neeli Bendapudi
President, The Pennsylvania State University

Cynthia A. Dunn
Secretary, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources

Russell C. Redding
Secretary, Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture

Carrie Rowe
Secretary, Department of Education

Joshua Shapiro
Governor, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR
Suzan T. Collins
David M. Davis
Daniel J. Delligatti
Kenneth C. Kane
David M. Kleppinger
Daniel A. Onorato

ELECTED BY ALUMNI
Ali Krieger
Anthony P. Lubrano
Kelley M. Lynch
Matthew J. McGloin
Uma P. Moriarity
Carl P. Nassib
Joseph “Jay” V. Paterno Jr.
J. Gregory Pilewicz
Brandon D. Short

ELECTED BY DELEGATES FROM AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES
Randall “Randy” E. Black
Donald W. Cairns
Valerie L. Detwiler
Lynn A. Dietrich
M. Abraham Harpster
Chris R. Hoffman

ELECTED BY BOARD REPRESENTING BUSINESS AND INDUSTRY
Robert F. Beard
Robert E. Fenza
Naren K. Gursahaney
Karen H. Quintos
Mary Lee Schneider
Richard S. Sokolov

ELECTED BY BOARD REPRESENTING – AT-LARGE
Tracy A. Riegel
Julia Anna Potts
Matthew W. Schuyler

STUDENT TRUSTEE
Ruby Bjalme

ACADEMIC TRUSTEE
Nicholas J. Rowland

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT, ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
Anand R. Ganjam

GOVERNOR’S NON-VOTING REPRESENTATIVE
Evan A. Myers

Penn State College of Medicine

This year, we celebrate our 56th Commencement ceremony. Penn State College of Medicine opened its doors to its first class of medical and graduate students in 1967.

We were the first medical school in the nation with a dedicated Department of Humanities and Department of Family and Community Medicine. Our founders understood that it wasn’t enough to teach students the science of medicine; they also needed to understand the humanity of medicine.

Our history is intertwined with the legacy of Milton S. Hershey. In 1963, The Milton S. Hershey Foundation offered $50 million to Penn State to establish a medical school in Hershey. With this grant, and $21.3 million from the U.S. Public Health Service, the University built a medical school, research center and teaching hospital – Penn State Health Milton S. Hershey Medical Center. The University broke ground in 1966, and Penn State College of Medicine opened its doors to students in 1967. The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center accepted its first patients in 1970.

The original buildings at Hershey Medical Center included the Medical Science Building and University Hospital, Animal Research Farm, Laundry and Steam Plant and University Manor Apartments. Since 1970, the campus has grown from 318 to 552 acres. Many additions have been made to the academic and patient care facilities, reflecting the steady increase in patient demand for services, the need to expand research and training programs and the College’s commitment to be an innovator in improving health.

In 2016, the new University Technology Center opened, offering bold, new opportunities for clinicians and researchers to utilize “big data” to enhance patient care through disease modeling and predictors for disease.

Since the first commencement in 1969, Penn State College of Medicine students have become accomplished physicians and scientists. Including today’s graduates, the College of Medicine has now conferred master’s and doctorate degrees to over 4,500 physicians, nearly 1,400 scientists and other biomedical and public health professionals. To date, more than 4,000 resident physicians have been trained in medical specialties at the Medical Center.

In 2014, the College of Medicine began offering a master’s-level physician assistant program, with the first class of 30 students graduating in 2016.

Our regional medical campus at University Park also continues to grow. Since 2012, as many as 50 third- and fourth-year medical students have come to the regional campus for unique clinical opportunities and to participate in joint degree programs. In 2015, we began a new family and community residency program that brings six new family physicians to this region each year. In the summer of 2017, we began to offer a full medical school curriculum at the regional campus, with the students starting and completing their medical school studies at University Park.

Nursing students from Penn State College of Health and Human Development, as well as students from other colleges throughout central Pennsylvania, come to the Medical Center for their clinical experience. The extended Bachelor of Science degree program for nurses is offered in conjunction with the College of Health and Human Development. Additionally, a joint Doctor of Medicine/Master of Business Administration program is offered through the regional medical campus.

Continuing Education activities serve the College of Medicine, Penn State Health, and other healthcare professionals throughout Pennsylvania and beyond, with annual enrollments exceeding 60,000.

Basic science and clinical research to treat and cure major diseases are conducted at the College of Medicine and the Medical Center. This past fiscal year, this research was supported by a record $160 million in awards from federal, state and private agencies; businesses; and individuals. Nearly 550 clinical trials are underway.

In addition to being an exceptional setting for educational and research programs, the Medical Center offers a variety of high-quality healthcare services to patients throughout central Pennsylvania.

In addition to the main hospital, Penn State Health Golisano Children’s Hospital and Penn State Cancer Institute, Penn State Health includes Penn State Health St. Joseph in Reading; Penn State Holy Spirit and two adult acute care hospitals, Penn State Health Hampden Medical Center and Penn State Health Lancaster Medical Center. Penn State Health also includes Penn State Rehabilitation Hospital, Pennsylvania Psychiatric Institute, outpatient surgery, an endoscopy center, and a growing network of more than 100 outpatient clinics throughout central Pennsylvania. Hershey Medical Center is a leader in providing leading-edge clinical programs in areas including cancer, heart and vascular, neurosciences, orthopedics, pediatrics, high-risk obstetrics and comprehensive breast care services.

Penn State College of Medicine and Penn State Health make up one of the nation’s premier university-affiliated health systems, recruiting faculty members who are internationally known for their accomplishments in research, education and patient care.

Graduate Student Oath

I have entered the serious pursuit of new knowledge as a member of the community of graduate students at The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine. I will strive to uphold the values of integrity, professionalism and scholarship.

INTEGRITY

I will uphold academic and scientific honesty.

I will conduct and apply research objectively, using my knowledge responsibly.

I will not allow financial gain, competition, or personal ambition to cloud my judgment in the conduct of ethical research, and the advancement of public health.

PROFESSIONALISM

I will share knowledge and resources resulting from my research and experiences, within the limits of the law.

I will contribute to the public understanding of the scientific process and the impact of my results and interventions.

I will minimize the adverse effects of my scientific pursuits on society and the natural world.

SCHOLARSHIP

I will build a strong foundation of knowledge.

I will recognize the limits of my knowledge, and will pursue life-long learning.

I will fulfill my responsibility to mentor and instruct the next generation of scientific professionals.

Penn State College of Medicine is one of only a small number of schools with a professional oath for biomedical graduate students in training. In the fall of 2008, the leadership of the Penn State Hershey Graduate Student Association (GSA) decided to craft an oath for graduate students modeled on the idea of the Hippocratic Oath. After examining various professional oaths both within and outside the biomedical sciences, the GSA leadership decided that an oath based on the fundamental principles of integrity, professionalism, and scholarship would best reflect the core ethical responsibilities of biomedical scientists. Over the next several months, the oath was developed, revised, and presented to the Penn State Hershey graduate student body for comments. The final draft was then presented to the Penn State Hershey Academic Team, which endorsed the oath and the commitment to professional ethics that it represents.

The Graduate Student Oath was formally adopted by GSA in spring 2009, and the first Graduate Student Oath Ceremony was held on August 21, 2009, with twenty-three advanced students and more than forty new students participating. Approximately twenty faculty members and more than thirty family and friends witnessed this important event. The oath was revised by the GSA in 2014 to be inclusive of graduate students studying public health.

Physician Assistant Professional Oath

I pledge to perform the following duties with honesty and dedication:

I will hold as my primary responsibility the health, safety, welfare and dignity of all human beings.
I will uphold the tenets of patient autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence and justice.
I will recognize and promote the value of diversity.
I will treat equally all persons who seek my care.
I will hold in confidence the information shared in the course of practicing medicine.
I will assess my personal capabilities and limitations, striving always to improve my medical practice.
I will actively seek to expand my knowledge and skills, keeping abreast of advances in medicine.
I will work with other members of the health care team to provide compassionate and effective care of patients.
I will use my knowledge and experience to contribute to an improved community.
I will respect my professional relationship with the physician.
I will share and expand knowledge within the profession.

These duties are pledged with sincerity and upon my honor.

The Oath of Modern Hippocrates, 1987

By all that I hold highest, I promise my patients competence, integrity, candor, personal commitment to their best interest, compassion, and absolute discretion, and confidentiality within the law.

I shall do by my patients as I would be done by; shall obtain consultation whenever I or they desire; shall include them to the extent they wish in all important decisions; and shall minimize suffering whenever a cure cannot be obtained, understanding that a dignified death is an important goal in everyone’s life.

I shall try to establish a friendly relationship with my patients and shall accept each one in a nonjudgmental manner, appreciating the validity and worth of different value systems and according to each person a full measure of human dignity.

I shall charge only for my professional services and shall not profit financially in any other way as a result of the advice and care I render my patients.

I shall provide advice and encouragement for my patients in their efforts to sustain their own health.

I shall work with my profession to improve the quality of medical care and to improve the public health, but I shall not let any lesser public or professional consideration interfere with my primary commitment to provide the best and most appropriate care available to each of my patients.

To the extent that I live by these precepts, I shall be a worthy physician.

About the oath

The Hippocratic Oath is traditionally administered to the young physician upon entering the profession. Although usually attributed to Hippocrates, it is probably an ancient Roman oath.

Hippocrates, the Greek physician called the Father of Medicine, lived from about 460 B.C. to 377 B.C. He placed medicine on a scientific foundation, freeing it from superstition, philosophy, and religious rites; gave sound and shrewd descriptions of many diseases; and raised the ethical standards of medical practice. His physiology, pathology, and therapeutics were based largely on the doctrines of his predecessors.

Bulger, Roger. “A Dialogue with Hippocrates and Griff T. Ross, M.D.”; In Search of the Modern Hippocrates, edited by Roger Bulger, 253. Iowa City: University of Iowa City Press, 1987.

Academic Procession

The Medical Center Mace, a symbol of authority, was presented to the College of Medicine by the students and staff of the Milton Hershey School during the dedication and first commencement ceremonies in June 1971. The mace was handcrafted from a beam of a barn formerly located on the Medical Center campus. The Marshal will carry the mace during the Academic Processional.

The Procession of Candidates will be led by the Assistant Marshals and will include Master’s degree candidates, Doctor of Philosophy candidates, Physician Assistant candidates, and Doctor of Medicine candidates. Following the seating of the candidates, the Academic Processional will be led by the College of Medicine Marshal and will include the faculty and the President’s Platform Party.

Academic Dress

Academic regalia worn in the procession reflects the degree held and the traditions of the granting institution. While gowns are most often black, some universities authorize the use of distinctive colors. Bachelor’s gowns feature pointed sleeves, master’s gowns have long, closed sleeves, and doctoral gowns are distinguished by full, rounded sleeves, velvet panels down the front, and three velvet bars across each sleeve. In some cases, the color of the velvet denotes the wearer’s academic discipline.

The academic hood further signifies the degree and institution. Doctoral hoods are longer than those worn for master’s degrees and include distinctive panels. Each hood is lined with the colors of the conferring institution, while the velvet border represents the field of study.

Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Cords

In recognition of their academic excellence and membership in the Alpha Omega Alpha (AOA) National Medical Honor Society, students receive green and gold honor cords to wear at their commencement ceremony.

Gold Humanism Honor Cords

In recognition of their humanistic qualities and membership in the Gold Humanism Honor Society, students receive gold honor cords to wear at their commencement ceremony.

Military Honor Cords

The military honor cords program was implemented to recognize students’ service to their country as well as their academic achievements.

Penn State graduates who have honorably served, are serving, or are commissioned to serve in the U.S. military are awarded an honor cord to wear at their commencement ceremony in recognition of their duty and sacrifice.

Degrees

Today, the University is awarding both academic and professional degrees.

The degrees master of science and doctor of philosophy are academic degrees requiring scholarship and competence in research.

The degrees master of professional studies in homeland security, master of public health, master of physician assistant studies, and doctor of medicine are professional degrees requiring scholarship and competence in the application of the results of research to improve our response to natural and human-made disasters, to improve public health, and to deliver high quality health care, respectively.

2026 Program

Explore the Program

Keepsake Program

Welcome

Order of Ceremony

Presiding

Procession of Candidates

Academic Processional

Welcome

Welcome Remarks

Commencement Remarks

Commencement Address

Authorization to Confer of Degrees

Graduate Introduction and Student Oath

Physician Assistant Introduction and Professional Oath

Medical Introduction and Oath of Modern Hippocrates

Greetings from the Alumni Society

Special Greetings and Closing Remarks

Recessional

Honor Societies and Awards

Alpha Omega Alphaplus icon

Class of 2026 Members of Alpha Omega Alpha National Medical Honor Society Pennsylvania Eta Chapter

Pi Alpha Honor Societyplus icon

Gold Humanism Honor Societyplus icon

Class of 2026 Members of the Gold Humanism Honor Society

Medical Student Awardsplus icon

Sylvia And Gilbert Nurick Medical Achievement Award For Outstanding Academic Excellence

Dr. Irwin L. Baird Memorial Award For Outstanding Academic Achievement

Alphonse E. Leure-Dupree Exemplary Medical Student Award

Dean’s Award

Sir Frederick Hewitt Award For Excellence In Anesthesiology

The Howard E. Morgan Award For Outstanding Achievement In Basic Science Research

Department Of Emergency Medicine Award For Excellence

The Society For Academic Emergency Medicine Award For Excellence

The American College Of Emergency Physicians Medical Student Professionalism And Service Award

Timothy '74, Brenda And Brian '21 Drury Scholarship For Emergency Medicine

Deflitch Family Program

Thomas L. Leaman, MD Award In Family And Community Medicine

Ted And Millie Kantner Family Practice Award

The Leonard Tow Humanism In Medicine Award For Graduating Medical Students

J. Lloyd Huck Chair In Medicine Award For Excellence In Medicine

Satish A. Shah, MD And Robin Shah Cardiology Medical Student Scholarship

Satish A. Shah, MD Oncology Medical Student Scholarship

Robert B. Spieth Scholarship Award For Oncology

Stephen And Shari Massini Scholarship

American Academy Of Neurology Award For Excellence In Adult Neurology

American Academy Of Neurology Award For Excellence In Child Neurology

The Kothari Family Award For Excellence In Neurology

Ann E. Seward Memorial Scholarship In Women’s Health - Outstanding OBGYN Medical Student

Ann E. Seward Memorial Scholarship In Women’s Health - Excellence in OBGYN

Hy Berman Memorial Scholarship In Ophthalmology

Edwards P. Schwentker Outstanding Orthopaedic Student Award

Christopher M. Frauenhoffer, MD Memorial Scholarship

Andrew Creasy And Savino Family Award

Department Of Pediatrics Award For Excellence In Pediatrics

Pat J. Bruno, MD '72 And Lois W. Bruno Scholarship In Pediatrics

Dr. Richard W. And Marcia D. Geller Excellence Endowment

Drs. R. P. Drago & M. Lavacca Pediatric Scholarship Fund

Department Of Psychiatry Award For Clinical Excellence In Psychiatry

Department Of Psychiatry Award For Excellence In Psychiatry Research

Susann Schetter Memorial Scholarship In Radiology

Department Of Surgery Awards For Excellence In Surgery

Thomas P. And Gretchen C. Carbaugh Endowed Surgery Scholarship

Judith Bond, MD/PhD Award For Outstanding Achievement In Research And Clinical Training

Medical Student Research Awards

Graduate Student Awardsplus icon

Dean’s Award For Scholarly Achievement

Anatomy Graduate Program Commencement Award

Biomedical Sciences Graduate Award

Neuroscience Graduate Program Commencement Award

Moskowitz Family Endowment Award For Graduate Research Excellence

Department Of Neural And Behavioral Sciences Award

D. Eugene Rannels Award For Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation In Cellular And Molecular Physiology

Department Of Microbiology And Immunology John F. Edners Award

Carol S. Weisman Award For Excellence In The Doctor Of Public Health Graduate Program

Gary Chase Award For Excellence In The Master Of Public Health Graduate Program

Mark J. Young Award For Outstanding Scholarship In Public Health Sciences

Award For Student Excellence In Public Health Preparedness – Homeland Security

Physician Assistant Program Awardsplus icon

Dean's Award For Academic Excellence