1,090 students scheduled to attend May Commencement Ceremonies

NEW PALTZ — The State University of New York at New Paltz will hold its May Undergraduate Commencement Ceremony for 900 undergraduate candidates at 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 20, on the Old Main Quadrangle.

At the ceremony, the college will award an honorary doctorate of humane letters to Thomas H. Kean, former New Jersey Governor and Chairperson of the 9/11 Commission.

Gov. Kean will deliver the undergraduate commencement address after receiving the honorary degree, the highest honor that the State University of New York can bestow upon an individual.

This year’s valedictorian, Jumpei Onozuka of Japan, will also address the undergraduates. Onozuka is a double major in finance and accounting, with a minor in economics. His cumulative GPA is 4.0. During the summer of 2006, Onozuka interned with Ernst & Young LLP in New York City and will begin employment there this summer with the finance services division.

Currently, Onozuka is a resident assistant in Esopus Hall, and the president of the Dean of the School of Business’ Student Advisory Board. He is also a
member of the Accounting & Finance Association and the International Student Union. In spring 2006, Onozuka was inducted into the School of Business Hall of Fame as the Student of the Year. Recently, he earned the State University of New York Chancellor’s Award; recognition from Who’s Who Among Students in American Colleges and Universities; and was inducted into the Sigma Beta Delta Business Honor Society.

The May 2007 salutatorian, Daniel Tzvi Cohen of Monsey, will receive his bachelor’s degree in chemistry. After graduation, Cohen plans to take a year off to attend rabbinical school, after which he intends to apply to graduate school.

The 900 students attending the undergraduate ceremony represent a total graduating class of 1,139.

The college will also recognize two professors at the ceremony, Jonathan Raskin of psychology and Stella Deen of English, who each recently received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award.

Raskin, whose award was for Excellence in Scholarship and Creative Activity, has taught at New Paltz for 11 years and specializes in constructive psychology. He has published dozens of scholarly works, including peer-reviewed journal articles, book chapters and edited books. He has presented more than 40 papers on constructivist psychology.

Deen, who received the award for Professional Service, has taught at New Paltz for 13 years and been chair of the English Department for four years. Under her guidance, the department, which has approximately 25 full-time faculty and more than 50 part-time faculty, is completing a five-year self study and revising the undergraduate major, as well as a number of graduate level courses. Deen also serves on the Academic Affairs Committee and the committees for the Foreign Language Department’s searches for faculty specializing in French.

The college will hold the May Graduate Commencement Ceremony at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 18, in the college’s new Athletic and Wellness Center. The graduate candidates will participate in a formal “hooding ceremony,” where the dean of the department of the degree granted will officially “hood” the students as they walk across the stage. There are 190 graduate candidates scheduled to attend the ceremony out of a total graduating class of 373.

Both commencement ceremonies are ticketed events, and all graduation candidates and spectators must present a ticket to participate. For more information, visit www.newpaltz.edu/commencement.