To Our Graduates
Today you are graduates of the University of Illinois.
This is a remarkable achievement, and we are thrilled to celebrate the occasion with you.
Commencement is a joyous and deeply symbolic event for all, including the faculty members, staff, family, friends, and others who have supported you on your journey. As members of the Class of 2026, you have overcome many challenges to earn your degree.
Congratulations, and we look forward to learning of your future success.
Order of Exercises
Welcome
Adrian Burgos, Jr., Professor and Chair, Department of History
Procession
Faculty and Degree Candidates from the Departments of History and Philosophy
Music Provided by Sycamore Brass Quintet
Greetings from the College of Liberals Arts & Sciences
Antony Augoustakis, Associate Dean for Humanities & Interdisciplinary Programs, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Convocation Speaker
Mikki Kendall, BA ’05, University of Illinois, History, 2026 University of Illinois College of LAS Alumni Achievement Award Winner, Author of Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists: A Graphic History of Women’s Fight for Their Rights
Presentation of Degree Candidates
Antony Augoustakis, Associate Dean for Humanities and Interdisciplinary Programs, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Jochen Bojanowski, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy
James Brennan, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of History
Marc Hertzman, Associate Chair and Director of Graduate Studies, Department of History
Presentation of Degree Candidates
Antony Augoustakis, Associate Dean for Humanities and Interdisciplinary Programs, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
Jochen Bojanowski, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy
James Brennan, Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of History
Marc Hertzman, Associate Chair and Director of Graduate Studies, Department of History
Closing Remarks
Luvell Anderson, Professor and Head, Department of Philosophy
Singing of “Hail to the Orange”
Hail to the Orange,
Hail to the Blue,
Hail Alma Mater,
Ever so true.
We love no other,
So let our motto be,
Victory, Illinois
Varsity!
Recession of Faculty and Graduates
Music Provided by the Sycamore Brass Quintet
Guests are asked to remain seated until the faculty and graduates have left the Hall.
Title
Academic Dress
Title
Academic Dress
Image
Academic dress, consisting of cap, gown, and hood, originated about the 12th century and was worn primarily for warmth. Subsequently, the material of the gown and lining, and the shape of the hood, represented the economic and social, as well as academic, status of the wearer.
In the United States, the great majority of the academic costumes now worn are in accordance with the general provisions of the Intercollegiate Code of 1895, which was revised in 1932 and again in 1960. Under this code, the bachelor’s gown has pointed sleeves, the master’s gown has oblong sleeves with an arc at the bottom, and the doctor’s gown has bell-shaped sleeves. All gowns are black, although the adoption of colored gowns by individual institutions in the United States is becoming more prevalent.
The bachelor’s and master’s gowns are untrimmed. The doctor’s gown is faced down the front with velvet and has three bars of velvet across the sleeves. The facing and bars may be black or may be the color of the subject to which the degree pertains. The bachelor’s gown is worn closed; the master’s and doctor’s gowns may be worn open or closed. Women may wear white collars with the bachelor’s gown when no hood is worn.
Hoods are also black. The bachelor’s hood is 3 feet in length; the master’s 3 ½ feet; and the doctor’s 4 feet. Hoods are lined with the official color or colors of the college or university conferring the degree. At the University of Illinois, the lining is orange and blue. The colored velvet border of the hood, which is 2 inches, 3 inches, and 5 inches wide for the bachelor’s, master’s, and doctor’s degree respectively, identifies the faculty or field of study to which the degree pertains.
The black mortarboard cap is standard in the United States. Usually, all tassels are black, but where the graduating seniors do not wear hoods, as at the University of Illinois, the color of the cap tassel indicates the department of study. At the University of Illinois, candidates for degrees wear tassels on the right front quadrant of their caps before degrees are conferred and move them to the left front quadrant after degrees are conferred. Caps are considered a part of the costume and are customarily removed only during an invocation or benediction, and then by men only. The orange and blue braided cords worn on the left shoulder signify University Honors. The white cord is worn by James Scholars.
For all academic purposes, including trimmings of doctor’s gowns, edging of hoods, tassels of caps, and linings of banners, there are different colors associated with the different disciplines. The color for Liberal Arts and Sciences is white.
Caps and gowns were worn for the first time at the University of Illinois Commencement ceremony of 1897. In the early 1900s, the Commencement procession marched up Burrill Avenue to the old Armory. After diplomas were received, the procession marched back to the lawn south of Green Street. The seniors sang the State song and “Auld Lang Syne” before they said goodbye to each other and the campus.
Participating Faculty and Staff
Faculty Attending Today’s Ceremony
Luvell Anderson, Philosophy
Andrew Smith, Philosophy
Jochen Bojanowski, Philosophy
Marsha Barrett, History
Dave Beck, History
James Brennan, History
Adrian Burgos, History
Antoinette Burton, History
Ken Cuno, History
Angela Maria Diaz, History
Stefan Djordjevic, History
Marc Hertzman, History
Marco Jaimes, History
Shannan Mason, History
Leslie Reagan, History
Carol Symes, History
Roderick Wilson, History
Marshals
Marco Jaimes, History
Shannan Mason, History
Department of History Administration/Staff
Adrian Burgos, Jr., Professor and Chair
Marc Hertzman, Professor, Associate Chair and Director of Graduate Studies
James Brennan, Associate Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies
Stefan Djordjevic, Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies
Nathan Oliveira, Business Manager
Shannon Croft, Graduate Program Coordinator
Dawn Rena Voyles, Account Specialist
Cindy Gilbert, Office Support Specialist
Anthony Frasca, Undergraduate Program Director
Heather Gernenz, Communications Coordinator
Department of Philosophy Administration/Staff
Luvell Anderson, Professor and Head
John Schwenkler, Professor and Director of Graduate Studies
Shelley Weinberg, Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies
Andrew Smith, Academic Advisor
Kathy Elston, Business Manager
Kara Cantrall, Office Support Associate
Kevin Scharp, Director of Research
Kate Cressy, Communications Coordinator
Graduates and Candidates
History
Bachelor of Arts or Sciences
Mason Anthony Acquaviva
Mario Alberto Aguilar
Finley Edward Albinak
Anthony (Tony) Walter Anastasia
Paul Martin Berwick
Adam Matthew Borowski
Grant Brian Bossler
Jonah E Brue
James Buckley
Bridget Louise Callaghan
Jasmine Maria Castillo
Jack McDermott Cleary
Maeve Margaret Condon
Liam Jason Crider
Joseph (Joe) Gehrig Davis
Michael Joseph DeCoste
Grace Anne Denton
Aaron Michael Freeman
Joseph (Frankie) Franklin Frulla
Uriel Garcia
Theodore (Theo) Gary
Zary Abigail Godoy
Madeline Goldberg
Vincent Paul Griffin
Cory James Hansen
Patrick Ryan Herr
Daniela (Dany) Herrera
Thomas (Tommy) Joseph Holland
Travis Nguyen-Nam Huynh
Jenissie Elizabeth Jamison
Coralyn Ann Johnson
Jess Johnson
Audrey Marie Jones
Aidan Cuinn Joyce
Cassidy Lynn Kallas
Joseph (Joe) Patton Kapsch
Sami Majed Khalil
Caelia Kolze
Joseph Brian Korn
Jingyang (Jay) Li
Sean Robert Lindquist
Hibah Lodhi
Carter M Long
Madison Claire Luckey
Olya Maria Lykourentzos
Molly Marie Mahoney
James Richard Makarski
Samuel Jose Martinez
Sophia Mitchell
Trinity Mitchell
Peter James Nelson
Sean P OConnell
Brandon Edward O'Keefe
Kayla (Frances) Frances O'Neil
Rosette Pavkov
Michael George Ridyard
Ariel Renee Russell
Aidan Carlos Sadovi
Noah Jonathan Schroeder
Samuel (Sam) Alexander Schultz
Reid Thomas Shellhorn
Victoria Veronica Siek
Isabelle Marie Skibinski
William Paul Skiles
Colin Frank Stanhope
Sonny Octavian Steinhauer
Marica Szczybura
Marissa L Teehan
Peter Henry Thompson
Rebecca Ann Tichenor
Madison Treppa
Mark William Vanderwater
Ryan Isaiah Villagrana
Ewan Benjamin Ward
Shannon Colleen Warden
Lillian Caroline Webb
Carol Ann De Almeida Woulfe
Yanning (Jordan) Xu
Noah Embry Yeager
Emily Eunhae Yuh
Chende Darren Zhu
Noam Joseph Malina Zipris
Master of Arts / Master of Sciences
Chloe Attrel MA/MS
Alexander (Alex) Clarence Joffee MA/MS
Doctor of Philosophy
Heather Elizabeth Duncan
Lingyan Liu
Marissa Gabrielle Natale
Alexandra Taylor Sundarsingh
Philosophy
Bachelor of Arts or Sciences
Kaushal Vasa Amancherla
Praneetha Bhogi
Jonah Austin Black
Ronan Patrick John Boyarski
Charles (Charlie) Michael Carr
Evan Freeman Coats
Nicholas John Coghlan
Joseph (Joe) Finley Coyle
Sean An Craig
Hayes Robert Danaher
Aayush Manish Desai
Gioanna (Stefi) Stefania Elizondo D Stefano
Aidan Xavier Gomez
Tyler Eduardo Heaney
William (Will) Christopher Holland
Nicole I Huffaker
Safa Naeem Hussaini
Ayush Jain
Rami A Jameel
Shannon Xueying Ji
Keisha Kaba
Adit Kalsotra
Rajkaran (Raj) Khullar
Michael Kirylau
Renna Michelle Klimes
Aditya Rahul Korlahalli
Jessica Teri Lagios
Jesse Lee
Yixuan (Leo) Li
Peter Qingwei Lin
Samuele Longo
William (Will) Christopher Lyman
Joshua Alexander MacLeod
Kedar Reddy Manda
Nathan (Nate) James Marcus
Victoria (Tori) Crystal Mays
Olivia Addison McCauley
Jack Thomas Metzger
Savannah Faith Misius
Magnus Moeller
Anisha Nagaraj
Pranav Narayanan
Kayla (Frances) Frances O'Neil
Kaden Robert Paris
Kali Jo Pollitt
Abhived Venunarayana Pulapaka
Isabella Maria Ribeiro
Jesus Rodriguez
William (Will) Connor Scharnagl
Naavya Sukesh Shetty
Thomas Andrew Shinkle
Chloe Arianna Simpson
Dexter Auer Skobel
Fanny Eliza Smithing
Yuxuan (Fitz) Song
Parker Springer
Alexandra Hua Sullivan
John Paul Tender
Nicholas Henry Tetreault
Lukas Anthony Unguraitis
Nicole Angelique Vandervlugt
Jiayi Wu
Yanning (Jordan) Xu
Michael Yang
Daniel David Zamir
Aaryanna Isabel Zapata
Weijian (Joey) Zhou
Doctor of Philosophy
Brittney Chloe Currie
Daniel Durso
Adam Ware Estrup
Andrew L. Smith
Professional Photography
Provided by GradImages® (www.gradimages.com)
Special Thanks To:
Office of the Chancellor- Commencement and Special Events
Facilities & Services
The Graduate College
The Sycamore Brass Quintet
Herff Jones
Illini Emergency Medical Services
Illini Union Bookstore
College of Liberals Arts & Sciences
Our Gracious Volunteers
Degree Information
This program contains an unofficial list of candidates for graduation in May 2024 and a list of graduates who received degrees in August 2023 and December 2023. The list of May candidates is as accurate as possible; however, because of production deadlines, names of some degree recipients may not appear, while names of degree candidates who have not completed degree requirements may be included.
The University’s official registry for conferral of degrees is the Office of the Registrar, 901 W. Illinois, Urbana, IL 61801.