What

University of Nevada, Las Vegas Spring 2011 Commencement Ceremonies

When

Saturday, May 14, beginning at 9 a.m.

9-11:30 a.m. - colleges and schools of law, fine arts, allied health sciences, community health sciences, nursing, liberal arts, sciences and urban affairs and the graduate college

2-4:30 p.m. - colleges and schools of dental medicine, business, education, engineering, hotel administration and the graduate college

Where

Thomas & Mack Center at UNLV

Details

Nearly 3,000 UNLV undergraduate, graduate and professional students are eligible to participate in this year's spring commencement ceremonies. This spring's grads range in age from 19 to 78.

UNLV President Neal Smatresk will honor three graduating students during each ceremony for their outstanding academic and community achievements. Smatresk will also recognize Anna Lou Call Peterson and Genevieve Segerbloom during the morning ceremony and Theron and Naomi Goynes during the afternoon ceremony as Distinguished Nevadans for their contributions to the community and support of higher education.

Social Media

Commencement will also stream live at unlv.vegasgraduations.com

Graduates can upload and share their spring 2011 commencement photos on UNLV's social media sites.

Facebook: Log on to the UNLV Official Facebook page, like the page and upload a photo celebrating the accomplishment.

Twitter: Follow the UNLVNews Twitter feed, use the hashtag #UNLVGrad. The message or photo will be retweeted to UNLVNews followers.

Graduates can also send in photos of their graduation caps through Facebook and Twitter. The best decorated graduation hats will be posted on these sites.

For additional details, including guest and visitor information, please visit UNLV Commencement or call (702) 895-3229.

Media

Floor access during commencement is limited to participants and media with UNLV commencement credentials only. Media can reserve a UNLV commencement credential by calling (702) 443-3962 (A.M. Ceremony) or (702) 510-4628 (P.M. Ceremony).

Outstanding Graduates

UNLV President Neal Smatresk selects outstanding graduates after a semester-long nomination process. Students are chosen based on outstanding academic achievements, community outreach, and their ability to overcome adversity.

A.M. Outstanding Graduates

Cody Bremner - B.S. in Athletic Training
Cody Bremner's combination of classroom success and commitment to serve both his community and his country make him a prime example of the power of higher education. A U.S. Army veteran who served honorably in Iraq, Cody came to UNLV from Utah and has made a remarkable impact as an athletic training student and advocate for improved management of concussions in athletes. Cody was chosen to represent Nevada in two national athletic training student leadership conferences, served as an athletic trainer to local high school and UNLV student athletes, and was selected for a summer internship at the prestigious Mayo Clinic. He recently completed an internship with Major League Baseball's Kansas City Royals and played a key role on UNLV's athletic training quiz bowl team that won the regional championship after being ahead at one point by more than 10,000 points. Cody graduates with a 4.0 GPA and plans to enroll as a graduate student in the School of Allied Health Sciences this fall.

Sean Comeau - M.P.H. in Public Health
Sean Comeau's master's program research into ways of combating the quagga mussels that have invaded Lake Mead has placed him in a regional, if not national, spotlight. For 52 consecutive weeks he went out on the lake to conduct multiple sample collections of the tiny creatures that some consider the most serious nonindigenous biofouling pests introduced into the freshwater systems of North America. With no national standard on how to decontaminate boats infested with these invasive mussels, Sean developed one. An article on the subject -- on which Sean served as lead author -- already has appeared in the top environmental health journal Biofouling. This fall Sean plans to begin studying for a medical degree at the University of Nevada School of Medicine.

Leisl Carr Childers -- Ph.D. in History
Leisl Carr Childers graduates as a published academic with a 3.95 grade point average. She is the first student in UNLV's history doctoral program to pass both the written exams and the oral exam with the distinction of Honors. During her doctoral studies she has presented 13 professional papers at the most prestigious national conferences in her field and has published -- or has forthcoming -- four scholarly articles and essays. Already, at least three university presses have shown interest in publishing her 600-page dissertation, "The Size of the Risk: An Environmental History of the Nuclear Great Basin." Leisl served as assistant director of UNLV's nationally recognized Nevada Test Site Oral History Project and has received several awards, including the first Hal Rothman Student Scholarship and the 2009-20010 UNLV President's Fellowship. This fall she will be joining the faculty of Northern Arizona University.

P.M. Outstanding Graduates

Shipra De -- B.A. in Economics, B.A. in Computer Science, and B.S. in Math
Shipra De completes her undergraduate career at UNLV by receiving not one, but three bachelor's degrees. The Honors College student has earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics, a Bachelor of Arts degree in computer science, and a Bachelor of Science degree in math -- all with summa cum laude honors. Her grade point average is 3.978 and she graduates with both university and departmental honors. She has participated in several research projects, including one in the field of graph theory, which was part of the National Science Foundation's EPSCoR Undergraduate Research Program. She is the recipient of numerous honors and close to 20 scholarships, including the 2010 Goldwater Scholarship, the 2011 Nevada Regents Scholar Award, and the Wolzinger Family Research Scholarship. Shipra was also a National Merit Scholar and valedictorian of her Green Valley High School class of 2006.

Courtney Waldron -- B.A. Economics
Courtney Waldron orchestrated a well-rounded college experience. An Honors College student, she graduates with a 3.9 grade point bachelor's degree in economics with a minor in math, concentration in music, and both university and departmental honors. Courtney is also an accomplished cellist with the UNLV Symphony and has performed with local bands. For her Honor's thesis, and as part of a National Science Foundation EPSCoR grant, Courtney investigated ways to track the public's willingness to pay for efforts to reduce the effects of climate change. Her combination of talents in the arts and in economics has earned her a Fulbright fellowship for the coming year. She will be studying the link between cultural attractions and economic diversification at the University of the Basque Country in Bilbao, Spain. After the fellowship, she plans to pursue a doctorate in economics.

Elian Aljadeff-Abergel -- M.S. in Sports Education Leadership
Elian Aljadeff-Abergel is proving the important link between physical education and overall learning. With a perfect 4.0 grade point average, the native of Israel earned a master of science in education. She easily overcame language and cultural barriers as a teaching assistant to earn high evaluations from UNLV undergraduates. Elian's research proved that an intervention system for at-risk students vastly improved academic and social skills. Her work has resulted in a number of journal articles and impressive presentations at international conferences. She has touched the lives of local children by teaching physical education classes at two local schools. She took four particularly challenged students under her wing and turned their school behavior around, earning them high praise from their regular teachers and peers.