2020 VCU School of Business Fall Commencement
good afternoon everyone i'm ed greer dean of the vcu school of business and it's my pleasure to welcome you to the fall 2020 school of business commencement ceremony we are here to celebrate you our graduating class of 2020. we are proud of you and the work and dedication has brought you to this moment especially during these challenging and uncertain times now is my pleasure to introduce today's speaker molina davis molina is the chief executive officer and evp of the medical society of virginia the professional organization for a physician in the commonwealth she's a public health executive with expertise in leadership innovation business as well experienced community and health advocate over the past 20 years molina has become a thought leader and strategist in the non-profit industry with executive expertise in management technology marketing engagement and strategic partnerships malia is known for her entrepreneurial approach with the ability to motivate stimulate creative activity and deliver impactful results to date she's raised more than 110 million dollars for health and human services as a result of her commitment to change in community growth molina was selected as one of richmond's top 40 under 40 by inside business in 2002 richards magazine 20 people to watch in 2009 and virginia business 30 people on the move in 2013. she also serves on several boards virginia credit union the medical society of virginia insurance agency the medical society virginia foundation and probably the most important board of all virginia commonwealth university school of business foundation earned her bachelor's degree from the university of south carolina in international studies and her mba from virginia commonwealth university please welcome melina davis thank you ed i appreciate that dean welcome to the end of 2020 i know we're all thrilled to be here and i think we're all hoping that 2021 is not quite as disruptive we're all certainly um in an odd place and we all had to learn to do things differently or things we never expected it's been a tough point in our life but only a point it doesn't define our whole lives it only required that we pivot one thing i've learned along the way is that a pivot is a matter of degree not a complete abandonment of your goals just before i finished undergrad i got engaged to be married i was an international studies major i plan to work in the foreign service i'd already spent years in asia working and studied japanese for five years i excitedly shared my news about my engagement with blake my friend and lead competitor on the asia track rather than offer congratulations he extolled well your career is over you will never be a foreign service leader now you've given it all up for marriage you'll have to make too many compromises to ever be great in the field as harsh as this was he did believe in me and he was advocating for me in an odd way he thought he knew me and what i wanted turns out only i know myself really this was a pivotal moment for me and my journey i knew then i wanted to have an impact in my professional life but i also wanted a fulfilling personal life so what does this mean for you first i recommend you go through life with clear goals goals that align with your vision for the next part of your path be brutally honest with yourself and evaluate your mission in life not just your career put the time needed into ensuring your new vision and goals are the right ones for you pivoting certainly has been a theme throughout my life i guarantee it will be for you too you may find yourself wondering when is it time to pivot learn to ask yourself some key questions have i hit a plateau in my growth or momentum is one of my skills really paying off but others aren't have i learned something significant or changed my perspective doubt can be heavy when you're questioning yourself doubt certainly haunted me before i made big changes when you know it's time make a decision and make a plan do it sooner rather than later but don't be reactive secondly build from the work you've already done redirect all that you've gained along the way there's some really good stuff in there it doesn't have to be about starting from scratch you'll find and may already have that life teaches you things along the way that will be more significant later trust that you're in a building that you're building a reserve to pull from and use during a pivot next ask for input from people you trust and ask for help from anyone you think knows something about your new mission this is really hard but it is key to anything i've ever accomplished it requires being comfortable with vulnerability and that is a hard thing in life but people like to help and share insights of course it's important to choose the right people to seek advice from just last week i called a former ceo of a regional bank who i hadn't spoken to in 20 years he was a volunteer at a non-profit i worked at during my 20s i was dealing with a challenge in my role as a volunteer chairman of a project i knew he had insights and information that i was lacking and needed in order to solve this current community issue he picked up his phone when i called and let me ask him for help even though he hadn't talked to me in so long don't be shy but be polite just ask these special people will become invested in your success and many will stay with you along the way importantly make sure your new path is one that leads you to growth it's vital that you hold yourself accountable on this one growth sounds wonderful but it does require change and change is a very scary word as humans we're conditioned to maintain the status quo through change there's a chance you will hit roadblocks along the way even stumble i certainly have man is this hard especially as others witness it however this is how you grow getting up learning what you don't know trying something you're not good at yet growing through what you go through over my career in life i made several significant pivots each time i made the decision to do so i was motivated by something different the first time was fed by passion and having an impact the second was during the great recession and the whole world was unsure of what was next however the uncertainty of those times gave me the freedom to jump into a startup something i'd been wanting to do for almost a decade the third time was about bringing my non-profit and business backgrounds together now i run five companies three non-profits and two for-profits all focused on making virginia the best place to practice medicine and receive care the world will continue to throw things at you to overcome some are the scope and the size of a great pandemic or a great recession or even a war as other generations have experienced the truth is that even smaller challenges require these same skills to overcome redirect and meet your goals just remember you can do this focus on your goals and life mission updating them as you learn build on the work that you've done and things you've learned your perspective and your relationships will be among the most important treasures you will accumulate don't forget you have to get comfortable being vulnerable and ask for help and finally be brave enough to grow and yes to pivot to meet what life throws your way if you can handle 2020 you can handle anything you are strong you have been forged in fire and i say look out world for the class of 2020. great molina thank you thank you for those excellent and timely remarks you know melina i've known you for some time but i always learned something different that's it and inspires me i didn't realize you stayed in japan so did i so super last year on that last uh last remarks that you made soon thank you again for giving those great remarks to our graduates thank you good luck everybody thank you melina we'll see you at the next board meeting graduates you know this is really a day and your presence here today is evidence that you have met the challenges necessary to obtain a degree at the vcu school of business our school and its curricula are accredited by aacsb international the career accrediting body for business education fewer than five percent of business programs worldwide have this distinction in addition our undergraduate information assistance program is accredited by abet the accrediting board for engineering and technology vcu is one of the select number of schools across the country that has this distinction your degree is a validation that you have both the ability and the motivation to master a rigorous academic program let's see but before we get started with the individual recognition of graduates please join me in recognizing those graduates who have demonstrated outstanding scholastic achievement first we recognize the graduates who have been selected to membership in two honor societies phi kappa phi and beta gamma sigma election to these organizations requires students to be in the top 10 of their class congratulations to all our phi kappa phi and beta gammon cinema members undergraduate degree wallace qualifies for latin honors based on their grade point average to obtain law status a student must have a minimum of 3.3 gpa for magnetic wild a minimum of 3.6 and summa laude a
minimum of 3.9 congratulations to all our students who have received latin honors vcu business competition teams represent our university in competitions with the best and the brightest students across the usa and even better many of our teams win so i would like to congratulate all our students who have participated in these competitions upon graduation from the vcu school of business you will become a member of the vcu business alumni society joining more than 34 000 vcu business graduates that have gone before you the alumni society takes pride in your success and is dedicated to building powerful connections for students and alums throughout their careers now i would like to introduce dr shannon mitchell the associate dean for undergraduate studies to recognize our candidates for bachelor of science and post-baccalaureate undergraduate certificates thank you dean greer i'd like to recognize the candidates for the bachelor of science the post-baccalaureate undergraduate certificate program the posts in accounting the post-baccalaureate undergraduate certificate program in information systems and the undergraduate baccalaureate certificates in venture creation and product innovation abdul ahad abbasi asan tamina akbar george kobler kafui akpakli jr hamad al ghaneen al-hashem kashaif ali laude maria ali laude allen spotswood alner majed salah al-mari tammer al-musam jonathan alphonse laude blanca alvarez martinez bilal zachary jason legaspi amores magna laude yo sung on elena victoria anderson magna laude ryan cole anderson mark anthony and designer ivana noel o apareo nemer taser aramine emmanuel askadome nadia ashuri magna laude robert kenneth obushon jonathan j bearcat keshavi barrel jeffrey m barnhouse mar victor baruel iv i am bastola alonso baylor ii kayla marie beale orlando beale jr kimberly rose badawski arellano sorophel binium caleb michael bennett david a beardish olivia louise hope berghous laura ann black charles michael blaha melanie bonner jessica both william jefferson brew jr ethan orion brewer lamica brown jordan parker allen bruce mallory bullock summa laude ruji torador mundu rashima montis star virgo erica yvonne berson michael d virgin jordan william bushing jonathan campbell summa laude tijuana vanessa carter joshua casey laude felix james castro chantice the asia captain kevin jude caulfield jr magna laude caitlyn arroyos cayetano stover coleman chaffin anthony singh chan andrew min jay chang tyler chang yi zhu chen nippen chabra anya kobe chinevang daruni chit santiwarara ashley cavillo kayla diane cleveland samantha colandria sabrika cole michael wayne compton laude james calvin cooper laura grace cooper jason k coveny jessica jessica marie cox ian cravella laude christopher raymond cruz malik naquan cyprus devin davis robert blackman davis magnet laude logan t dawkins laude caleb jordan dawson igor c d olivier magna laude stephen de long andrew hanson dempsey melissa dinisco maurici summa laude sheil pingal desai laude joseph edward dingman kaylee kenneth dodson elsie jin li dong laude neil nimish doshi ian charles drennan nasim trees elizabeth pauline duff lucas dupuis timothy alan duran seneca durfee laude maya aikens magna edmonds brian m edwards nicholas i edwards magna laude michael joseph elliott nicole page elliott noah braden engel fernando arowa garcia brian evans corey allen everett el galli fariq faria verouge peter conrad adegboyega valetti stephen m fan you chain fan jennifer p ferguson guadalupe fernandez alvarez hassan malik fields damien thomas floyd ii kenyatta morphis folly sadiq mcrae ford summa laude edward foo miriam weasel fuentes thomas edward fuller carlin alexandra gamble katya garcia justin luke jignak magna laude caber a gill johali gonzalez escalara magna laude chaz jr goodman declan thomas goodwin magna laude jacqueline gore matthew edwin graves jessica maribel guevara annie guo kyla selena guzman-kanos dustin hall affan hamid bonita t harlow magna laude zachary harrell pamela renee harris kasim abdullah hassan magna laude kevin edgardo hernandez laude zachary stephen height john wilson honeycutt ade hossein timothy savage houton muhammad huli sarat elizabeth houston laude drew howell mickey huang margrit hudson magna laude sarah ann huffman magna laude imani hughes anthony huelis brandon oliver hutchinson brianna marie jackson bundy magna laude rougine jafari rashika jane travis jasper johannes jamire kiana johnson olivia pearl johnson richelieu obed johnson tierra johnson laude zoe mae johnston magna laude cameron jones joseon joseph j young haley kaczynski magna laude santa cadell ki jo kang elise marie karcher laude anki creek core laude connor hill cavanaugh khan sydney j curry nathan kim laude erica j kinder harrison m king sachami kirk eric aaron click magna christina kualia labon deja lang laude christopher warner laravey eric a latioles patrick evan lawless sofia teresa loscano ann t lee caitlin lee summa laude vin din win lee tiffany kelsa kelsey leva michael j lesseev kevin lynn haley tracy loftertoon laude charles lowe laude michael victor lowry ii sean vin tran lee margaret m leiden jared zachary david marshall damaya m martin quintez mason laude sarah borrow laude christopher neal mccann tucker terrance macleod thomas james mccown shannon lee mcdowell matthew edward mcguigan nicole mckinney abraham mcconan walter a mezza ross j miller justine monet milner carleo e mitolo noah abdi rasheed muhammad anand mohammed andrea camille mariano montemayor mackenzie austin moore josh alexandra moresi nicholas andreas nadalski faith haley naman ibrahim s muhammad neburi justin nedwick caleb nagusi martin lucas neo magna laude dylan nguyen elizabeth tuong young nguyen hill laude justin quang nguyen fuk huang nguyen laude victoria nguyen jaleel nickens magna laude himacha chowdhury nimagada kevin eras norizada laude wycliffe morenga yangena stephen robert oakes odoom carolyn marie olynyk jocelyn oyares radha wayne s ambura fred g or ropesa huerta estuardo palma esron nicholas palmer laude roshni parish alicia patel magna laude mayank patel siobhan patel by poole powdell hassan reza paycar stacia lavette perry justin carey petzer feilong watt anvoo fan grant david phillips shane phillips justin l pines jacqueline eleno fortio palacios anime pudiao ethan c b powell teresa amira kuratam amira rahman santosh rajani jessica christina ramirez casey michelle robley thomas nicholas s reardon adam liguez redman daphne e relvas belliadis aaron kate rinker charlotte louise roberson tunisia s roberson tamara ikea roberts corey joseph rogers laude josephine grace woodleaf roebuck laude jalon jalon j ross pamela stephanie rubinos laude jose michael rubio miguel adrian salas mehmed salkeets benjamin allen coy mina samwell marcus sanchez johnson babik nitin sangavi frankly rafael santana jr sarah m scarborough cade schreiber austin t shu alex james seidnitzer magna laude eric harold seigle jordy selma jr nicholas robert senecal minelli cineviratne j bupendra shaw priyage shaw zi swan xiao ama prakash p singh sing anthony sledge william sletza magna laude brent williams smith carter j solis not nail a antonina soyfer alison noel squibs django c sterling daniel robert stothoff amanda lee sullivan laude olivia deshwana sweeney mary lynn swift laude deja janae taylor summa laude john arthur thomason kendall thompson jr magna laude tremaine l thompson alex k thorpe luke sebastian trong elizabeth carolyn tucker miles turner isaiah michael tyler hina upretti tikka upretti elizabeth n upton laude jacob michael urban morgan utrecht debbie vadodi sylvia stella verdicchio colin ryan versa michael viola summa laude andrew john wacker elizabeth lee wade laude federico grant waldron ii alexandra peyton walker jeffrey allen walker laude jordan nicholas walker su yuan wang matthew thomas ward justin andrew washington magna laude andrea j wattwood maya weber william joseph whites nadjia yasmin westri spencer white ayanna williams joshua williams khalia deshawn williams riley deacon williams akeem wilson alex woods laude gregory lloyd woody david faraday worknay solomon worknay solomon werkney magna laude irfan yakup brianna lee suckerman graduates graduates i wish you continued success and happiness all right thank you dr mitchell excellent job as always and now i would like to introduce dr janet mcquade assistant dean of graduate studies to recognize the candidates for graduate certificates and master's degrees thank you dean greer i would like to recognize candidates for the following graduate degree programs graduate certificate master of accountancy master of business administration master of decision analytics master of science in business master of science and information systems master of product innovation master of sport leadership master of supply chain management and doctorate of philosophy and business al machina nicholas amuna samson our mousier peter erminio antonetti anthony g balsamo elliot mitchell barnett kelly christian barney nabil nail barkari mark bauer cody ryan bell william simmons bellows septimus boshoff isabella braga antoinette felicia burton braxton bradley hartford john brookins miles quentin brown mamuna renee bruce uzell megan elizabeth bryant rachel bougaie madison brever burns xena bird sierra calhoun pollard walter a camacho dominic lewis cappuccelli mary carbino benjamin t carter rosette joycelyn cesar nicholas g cacholo corrine young clasby rebecca collin christina piez cundiff kelsey cute evan d davis jamie alyssa dampier margaret s edwards britney nicole ellis richard m s boyet tucker wiley evans nicholas l everett jason anthony farneth justin fedorek sean fezenden gina marie fischetti caitlin maria flores samuel marcus frankfurt eric christopher frund tyrone lamont frye jr adam benjamin gaynor benjamin gardner jasmine samantha gordon gentian guo isaiah james harvin dylan r hendrickson amy herzing hay kenzie allen higurita morgan s hoff harry william holtzclaw alexis carol howitt jalen jackson amna ikram ata isakovic danny gibatto pauline jeannette jankowski matthew thomas jarson carlos david jiminez morales rachel ann johnson brett bailey jones christopher jones nathaniel william jones george kelly rafa kiari john patrick kilroy caitlin may keshall colin thomas kleimowski jonathan thomas kodedek danielle elizabeth corner david kraft daniel scott lachance timothy sean ladwig teresa ann lang arnold lauhakan chana siri lauren ann lemieux john edward les jr bailey ray leanne eugene wade lillywood iii ebu evo liu bradford r lowry matthew gray mcdonald annie e malecki joshua douglas malibura alexis janae mallory colaiselvi mari norker kumar christina moreno rebecca p montage dana michelle mayo michael makautri ryan edward mctavish nicole p meader gregory james meinweiser william jarrett mustaine christina grace nally morgan ray newton dai bo nguyen douglas nover ashley michael nussbaum patrick o'hare benjamin m o'keeffe bridge house mukbai pada dia nicholas c fab adarsh rishi ramakrishnan georgina rayo andrew morris rhodes anthony scott rigg marissa k robinson adam j rolick shantae l rose taylor dylan roy shang cynthia ann scala melanie leanne smith jeffrey st germain jeffrey m zaberski jr michael warren talley joseph ralston teichmann rachel shaw thompson diane cedarburg tidwell michael michelle l tingler aaron trapp matthew james turner kyle j wade junior peter walls ryan j walters diamond joyce welton boxley joshua lee wanger clarissa k white jason l williams jasmine samira wise nathan theodore wise zachary temple wolf lee again congratulations to all of our graduates from everyone in the school of business all right thank you dr mcquaid excellent job on behalf of our entire faculty and staff congratulations now as official graduates of the vcu school of business please stay in touch with us this will allow us to continue to celebrate your career and life accomplishments today and into the future be especially proud of your vcu business degree it is held in high esteem and you have worked hard to earn it again i would like to thank the family and friends of our graduates for joining us in today's celebration we salute you the class of 2020 congratulations so you
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