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237th Commencement october seventeenth two thousand twenty Chestertown, Maryland The Academic Attire The history of academic dress reaches back into the early days of the oldest universities. A statute of 1321 required that all “Doctors, Licentiates, and Bachelors” of the University of Coimbra (Portugal) wear gowns. Gowns have identifying characteristics. Sleeves are pointed on the bachelor’s degree gown, oblong on the master’s, and bell-shaped on the doctor’s. Full-length velvet panels also appear on the doctor’s gown: these may be in black, or if the wearer prefers, the color associated with the department of learning. Hoods denote scholarly achievement. The lining is dyed in the official colors of the college or university where its wearer earned the degree. The color of the velvet represents the department of learning: Arts, Letters, and Humanities-white; Economics-copper; Education- light blue; Music-pink; Philosophy-dark blue; Physical Education-sage green; Science- gold-yellow; Social Science-citron. Washington College Commencement Welcome Wayne B. Powell Interim President of the College Invocation Pastor Leon Frison P’11 Living Water Greater Highway Church of Christ The National Anthem Megan E. Dietrich ’20 Remarks and Introductions Dr. Powell Senior Class Speaker Ryan J. Zwier ’20 Greetings Stephen T. Golding ’72 Chair, Board of Visitors and Governors Alumni Citation Suzanne Hewes ’91 Judith Lynn Brucker, Esq. ’86 Chair, Washington College Alumni Board John H. Dimsdale III ’73 Dorm Dedication Announcement Dr. Powell Conferring of Honorary Degree Dr. Powell and Mr. Golding Response & Address Sylvia Acevedo Doctor of Public Service Graduation of the Class of 2020 The Mandamus Mr. Golding Conferring of Degrees Dr. Powell Presentation of Candidates Michael P. Harvey P’20 Interim Provost and Dean of the College Senior Honors and Prizes Dr. Harvey The Jane Huston Goodfellow Memorial Prize To a graduating senior, majoring in science, who has an abiding appreciation of the arts and humanities and has shown scholastic excellence. The Gold Pentagon Awards To one senior and one alumnus, faculty or friend of the College, selected by the Omicron Delta Kappa Society, in recognition of meritorious service to Washington College. 3 Sophie Kerr Prize To the senior having the best ability and promise for future fulfillment in the field of literary endeavor. Awards Conferred by the Entire Faculty The Louis L. Goldstein ’35 Award To a graduating senior who, in the opinion of the faculty, has demonstrated unusual interest, enthusiasm and potential in the field of public affairs. Eugene B. Casey Medal To a senior woman voted by the faculty to be outstanding in the qualities of scholarship, character, leadership and campus citizenship. Henry W.C. Catlin 1894 Medal To a senior man voted by the faculty to be outstanding in the qualities of scholarship, character, leadership and campus citizenship. Clark-Porter Medal To the student whose character and personal integrity, in the opinion of the faculty, have most clearly enhanced the quality of campus life. Presented by Charles B. Clark, class of 1934, in memory of Harry P. Porter, class of 1905. George Washington Medal and Award To the senior who shows the greatest promise of understanding and realizing in life and work the ideals of a liberal education. Closing Remarks Dr. Powell Benediction Pastor Frison The 237th Commencement, presented in a virtual format, will premiere on Saturday, October 17, 2020 at 10:30 a.m. Visit www.washcoll.edu/calendar for the link to the ceremony. 4 Honorary Degree Recipient Sylvia Acevedo An entrepreneur, investor, business leader, and rocket scientist, SYLVIA ACEVEDO believes in the power of transformation and disruption to change and improve lives, communities, organizations, and the world. She was one of the first Hispanic students, male or female, to earn a graduate engineering degree from Stanford University—a master of science degree in industrial engineering—and she holds a bachelor of science degree with honors in industrial engineering from New Mexico State University. Acevedo began her career as a rocket scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where she created algorithms and analyzed data from Voyager 2’s spacecraft flyby of Jupiter and two of its moons, Io and Europa. She has been an engineer and executive at Apple, Dell, Autodesk, and IBM. She most recently served as CEO of Girl Scouts of the USA. leading one of the most enduring non- profits in the world. Girl Scouts supports more than 2.5 million girls worldwide and generates more than $800 million annually through its iconic cookie program to support local Girl Scouting. Throughout her career, she has demonstrated her commitment to STEM as a critical platform for providing girls with the skills they’ll need for entrepreneurship, coding, cybersecurity, robotics, and leadership. Under the Obama administration, Acevedo chaired the White House initiative for educational excellence for Hispanics in early childhood leadership. Her book, Path to the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist, details her personal journey from the dirt streets of Las Cruces, New Mexico, to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the top executive tiers of America’s technology industry. 5 Alumni Citation Recipient Judith Lynn Brucker, Esq. ’86 In December 2017, JUDITH LYNN BRUCKER retired after a 40-year career in child protection law. Most recently she was the executive director of the McLean County Children’s Advocacy Center in Bloomington, Illinois, an organization that provides short-term therapy for child sexual abuse victims. Before this, she worked for the Illinois State’s Attorney’s Office and the McLean County State’s Attorney’s Office where she was a prosecutor in the juvenile division. She started working on child abuse cases when she was a legal secretary for a prosecutor in Maryland. An only child, Brucker moved around frequently as her stepfather was in the U.S. Army. The family eventually settled in Snow Hill, Maryland, where Brucker went to high school. Following her high school graduation in 1977, she got a job as the secretary at the Worcester County State’s Attorney’s Office, where she worked with the attorney who handled juvenile, paternity, and child support cases. She stayed there for five years and it was during this time that she found her calling to protect children. The attorneys in the office encouraged her to go to college and to law school. Brucker studied psychology at Washington College, graduating cum laude in 1986. She conducted psychiatric research for three years while attending night school, earning her law degree from the Duquesne University School of Law in Pittsburgh. She was also working as a senior law clerk for the Allegheny County Law Dept. in Pennsylvania. She was 30 years old at the time and pregnant with her first child. After law school, she continued working for Allegheny County handling child abuse and elderly protective cases. When her then-husband Tari Renner (now the mayor of Bloomington, Illinois) received a job offer they moved from Pittsburgh to Bloomington. She worked for the Illinois and McLean County’s Attorney’s Office until joining the Children’s Advocacy Center. 6 Alumni Citation Recipient John H. Dimsdale III ’73 JOHN DIMSDALE, who earned his undergraduate degree in international studies, has spent almost 40 years in radio. Semi-retired after a 20-year run at Marketplace in Washington, D.C., he now works as a freelance journalist. Dimsdale began working for Marketplace in 1990, when he opened the D.C. bureau. The next day, Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, triggering the first Gulf War. Over the course of the next 20 years, Dimsdale provided insightful commentary on the intersection of government and money for the entire Marketplace portfolio. He reported on two wars, the dot-com boom, the housing bust, healthcare reform and the greening of energy. His interviews with four U.S. Presidents, four Hall-of-Famers, broadcast journalist Walter Cronkite, computer scientist Sergey Brin, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson and former U.S. Vice President Hubert Humphrey stand out as favorites. Some of his greatest contributions include a series on government land-use policies and later, a series on the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste disposal site. Before joining Marketplace, Dimsdale worked at NPR, the Pennsylvania Public Television Network, Post-Newsweek Stations and Independent Network News. A native of Washington, D.C., and the son of a federal government employee, Dimsdale has been passionate about public policy since the Vietnam War. In addition to his undergraduate degree from Washington College, he holds a master’s degree in broadcast journalism from the University of Missouri. 7 Candidates for the Degree †First Honor Graduate *Departmental Honors First Honor Graduates Bachelor of Arts †*Lauren Elizabeth Frick, summa cum laude, The Economics Department Award, The Dr. Davy H. McCall Prize in Economics Bachelor of Science †*Caitlin Anne McDaniel, summa cum laude, The John S. Toll Prize in Physics †*Larisa Maria Okshewsky, summa cum laude, The Department of Biology Medical Professional Award, The James R. Miller ’51 Award for Excellence in Chemistry †*Jessica Lea Willey, summa cum laude, The Department of Biology Pharmacy Professional Award, The Doris T. Bell ’50 Award Bachelor of Arts Allison Wheatley, magna cum laude Jamie Lauren Solomon, summa cum laude *Robert Webster Clark, magna cum laude *Elizabeth Melanie Wilson, summa cum laude, John Bayard Hearn, magna cum laude The Political Science Award *Olivia Anne Robb, magna cum laude, The *Yisi Liu, summa cum laude, The Economics Margaret Horsley Award, The Penny J. Fall Department Award Award, Senior Athletic Award *Allison Hinshaw, summa cum laude, The *Drake Scudder Harrison, magna cum laude Department of Philosophy and Religion Award *Ana I. Reynoso-Zimmerer, magna cum laude Georgia Stubbs, summa cum laude Sophia Madeline Grabiec, magna cum laude, *Maura Elizabeth West, summa cum laude, The The Rachel Scholz Leadership Award, The Emil Department of Business Management Award, The J.