CUNY SPH commencement honors resilient class of 2023

Jun. 6, 2023
Graduate in front of Apollo marquee

On May 30, CUNY SPH celebrated the class of 2023 at its seventh commencement. As in past years (with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to the pandemic) the event was held at the historic Apollo Theater in Harlem.

Dean Ayman El-Mohandes welcomed the graduates and their guests, noting that for the third year in a row, the event honored the largest graduating class in the school’s history.

Dean Ayman El-Mohandes
Dean Ayman El-Mohandes

“Graduates, you have prevailed over every challenge and reached your goals,” said Dean El-Mohandes. “Today is your day; we are assembled to celebrate your victory.”

The Dean went on to emphasize the importance of targeted health communications amid a flood of misleading health information.

“Public health professionals have been confronted with new and important roles in the high-speed communications era,” he said. “First and foremost, we find ourselves on the front lines defending the veracity of science. Who knew that such a sacred assignment would be ours! Second, many of us were required to become communications experts overnight, not only to spread truths, but also to counter falsehoods. These roles are here to stay and we as a school will continue to support communication sciences as an essential discipline and competency in public health.”

CUNY Vice Chancellor Mohamed Attalla, CUNY Trustee Dr. Herminia Palacio and CUNY SPH Foundation Board Treasurer Michael Meng delivered opening remarks to the assembled graduates.

Dr. Peter Jay Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, was presented with an honorary Doctor of Science degree and delivered the keynote speech.

Dr. Peter Hotez
Dr. Peter Hotez

“Your public health training and education almost by definition gives you a big window on the world that almost no other degree-oriented training provides,” Dr. Hotez told the 311 graduates. “So the point is, aim high and remember that your public health training is just a start for affecting change and making the world better, or as the 16th century rabbi and Jewish mystic Isaac Luria said, ‘Tikkun olam,’ repair the world.”

Richard N. Gottfried, Retired New York State Assembly member and former chair of the New York State Assembly Health Committee, was presented with the Dean’s Champion of Public Health Award.

Richard Gottfried
Richard Gottfried

“You’ve been blessed with extraordinary knowledge and training in fields of life-and-death importance,” Gottfried said. “My message to you: use that knowledge to teach. Teach your neighbors, teach the public and—especially important—teach your public officials. Because even with the right values and goodwill, there’s no limit to the damage we can do if we don’t have the facts and the science right.”

Valedictorian Julia Greene congratulated her fellow graduates and shared an uplifting outlook for the future of public health.

Julia Greene
Julia Greene

“Seeing you all here today gives me so much hope,” Greene said. “We are here to make change and confront problems head-on, so as we move forward in our careers armed with the skills that we learned here at the School of Public Health, I know that the future of health and health care is in good hands, that we are all committed to improving lives over increasing profits and that even when this work can feel demoralizing and hard, that we all can hold on to that shared vision of a brighter future worth fighting for.”

Champion of Public Health Awardee Richard Gottfried led the graduates in the Public Health Pledge:

I pledge to do all within my power to safeguard human and environmental health

through prevention, protection, promotion, and educational efforts.

I will accept the responsibility to use my talents, training, and professional experience to instill

public trust in all my public health endeavors.

It is my personal commitment to serve my community with integrity and pride.

As in past years, Dean El-Mohandes encouraged graduates to take a selfie to honor the moment.

graduates take a selfie

“Go in peace, go in glory,” said the dean. “You are the future; we believe in you!”

View the full commencement stream here:

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