May 13, 2023

Spring 2023 Commencement Recap

Vice President for Student Affairs Michael Luciani's Invocation at the Spring 2023 Commencement ceremony, held on Saturday, May 13 in the Click Family Sports Center, noted that the 56 graduating students "transformed from 'Can I do this?' to 'I'm doing this' to 'I'm done'" during their time at Landmark College. And many of the students echoed that sense of accomplishment during their own remarks that the podium. 

 

Man with brown bushy beard wearing black graduation cap and gown smiles while standing at podium
Among the many special moments that took place was Michael Vittum earning the first Bachelor of Science in Life Science with an Environmental Studies focus.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Man with bushy beard and dark rimmed glasses wearing black graduation cap and gown smiles while shaking hands with someone off camera

 

B.A. in Liberal Studies receipient James Wood's remarks honored the memory of his father, Coach John Wood, after whom the gymnasium was recently named.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two women in graduation regalia smile while posing for an on-stage photo during graduation

 

Landmark College Trustee Ana Maria Mellado (left) conferred shared a special moment on stage with her graduating daughter, Carolina (right). 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Male student with glasses and black graduation cap and gown stands a podium waving at audience with a gray flipper on his hand

 

Daniel Molster wore the flippers for the "Finn the Shark" costume, revealing that he had been portraying the school's mascot during his time at Landmark College.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Watch the Video Replay

 

Program (click cover image for PDF)

The cover for the Spring 2023 Commencement Program, which is blue and includes the college seal along with the date of the event, May 13, 2023

 

Academic Awards

 

At left, headshot of woman with long black hair tied into pony tail and falling on her right shoulder. At right, headshot of male student with short brown hair and dark rimmed glasses

The Community Service Award is given to the students who have unselfishly given of themselves and to the activities of the Landmark College community.

 

 

 

 

WINNERS (left to right): Carolina Mellado and Daniel Molster

 

 

 

 

At left, headshot of woman with shoulder length brown hair holding a certificate that says writing excellence award. At right, headshot of male with short black hair and beard smiling

The Academic Deans’ Award is given to the student who has best demonstrated the qualities that define academic success at Landmark College. These qualities include hard work, seriousness toward learning, intellectual development, and measurable achievement, such as grades.
 

WINNERS (left to right): Claudia Sherman (Associate) and Andrew Barrows (Bachelor's)

 

 

 

 

 

At left, Claudia Sherman standing on stage accepting Undergradaute Research Award while Dr. Adam Lalor speaks at the podium. At right, Michael Vittum in a classroom gesturing at a poster graphic

The Undergraduate Research Award is given to students who exhibit active engagement in a research project in any discipline under the supervision of a faculty/staff member for at least one semester or intersession term. 

 

WINNERS (left to right): Claudia Sherman and Michael Vittum

 

 

 

 

At left, Will Johnson smiling at camera. He is wearing a yellow baseball cap and a red jersey. At right, a headshot of James Wood. He has bushy brown hair and beard and is wearing glasses

The Charles Drake Award is given to a student who has inspired the community by his or her personal qualities. This student is not a quitter and lives in the tradition of Dr. Charles Drake, whose vision and courage helped found the College. This student gives 100 percent, goes the extra mile, and perseveres in pursuit of his or her goals. This student helps the rest of us realize that we have more resources to draw upon than we think, and helps us keep going when we feel discouraged.
WINNERS (left to right): Will Johnson and James Wood

 

 

 

 

Image of woman with black hair with blue streaks facing camera and smiling

The President’s Award is given to the student who has best exemplified the principles we believe in here at Landmark College. The student is talented and energetic, meets difficulties head on, works hard, and is dedicated to his or her studies. This student also finds time to contribute to the well-being of other persons and to the life of the Landmark College community as a whole.
 

 

WINNER: Yar Deng

 

 

 




Class Gift

A female student stands at podium making remarks while a male and female hold an oversized check made out to Landmark College in the amount of $1,522.23
The Class of 2023 presented Landmark College President Dr. Peter Eden with a class gift in the amount of $1,522.23, designated for diversity and inclusion programming and dedicated in the memory of Coach John Wood.

 

Spring 2023 Graduates 

 

Associate of Arts in General Studies
Zach Arzt Julian Bond Gregory Despines Matthew Judge
Otto Kauffman Nina King Gretchen Ladner Ethan Leonard*
Andrew LePera Lukas Pelletier Madison Perkins* Hudon Pons
AC Skarimbas Gavin Wieland Yair White  

 

Associate of Arts in Liberal Studies
Own Baum Jack Carani Tamar Cohen Aidan Colberg
Robert Connelly Bret Crane Alicia DeCoff Timothy Dyer
Sophie Glew Charlotte Mazur* Holly Kasten Celia Lewis*
Claudia Sherman* Jack Shine Olivia Visser Justin Wade*
Sidney Waller Amelia Withington* Marion Yager  

 

Associate of Arts in Business Studies
Sarvesh Bubna Audrey Burch*    

 

Associate of Science in Computer Science
Luke Hensel Peter Rushton    

 

Associate of Science in Life Science
Rebecca Lynch Dylan Sullivan*⧫ Gabrielle Woolgar Fernando Zavala*⧫
Luke Zdankiewicz      

 

Note: Each Baccalaureate student was required to complete a capstone project of their choosing. 

Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Entrepreneurial Leadership
Charlie Frost Breaker Spaces for Stress Relief and Anger Managment
Lyla Kelley Make Women's Sports at LC Equal to Men's Sports
Daniel Molster LC Voices Marketing and Exposure
Petar Petrovic Expanding the Online Presence of Landmark College Athletics

 

Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies
Carolina Mellado° Neurodivergent LatinX College Students and Mental Health
Chloe Rogers The Subculture of Lolita Fashion
Zackary Roy The Ethical Implications of Zoos
James Wood That Third Place: A One Act Play

 

Bachelor of Arts in Psychology
Ariana Ruddy CBT and Trauma Informed Care for Students Who Have Experienced Abuse and/or Neglect

 

Bachelor of Arts in Studio Art
Lana Deane° Symbols & Systems: What We Send Forward
Lucas Hendler° Disabilities in the Dark
Will Johnson Seeing the World Through My Eyes
Ethan Meeder Humanity vs. Inhumanity and the Role of Resilience

 

Bachelor of Science in Computer Science
Andrew Barrows⧫° Manahawk: A Trading Card Collection Management System
Maddie Krampitz° Space Trio: An Arcade Style 2D Game

 

Bachelor of Science in Life Science
Yar Deng⧫ Are Owls Raptors?
Michael Vittum⧫ A Census of Large Animals in Botswana's Okavango Delta
Benjamin Wright Making Landmark College More Energy Independent

 

Certificate in Learning Differences and Neurodiversity: Specialization in Executive Function
Eileen Bosco Indira Cope Deborah Hoelper Mansi Khanna
Jennifer LeDuc Casey McCormack Stewart Pienaar Deanna Sanders
Mara Scarbrough Lisa Sookochoff    

 

Symbol Key

°Golden Key Honor Society
* Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society
∞ Natural Science
^ Communication
Ω Psychology
ʮ Humanities
€ Environmental Science
¤ Education
⧫ AIE-STEMPLOS scholars are a group of students at Landmark College that receive scholarship funds from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and participate in cohort activities related to identifying and participating in internship activities. Students are in the A.S. or B.S. Life Science or Computer Science programs.