Commencement 2025

Commencement

Thursday, June 5, 2025  |  2pm – 5pm  |  Apollo Theater

Commencement orientation recording now available

If you missed the Commencement orientation on May 14, but plan on attending the ceremony, please watch the recording and review this important information prior to Commencement.

Honorary Degree Recipient and Keynote Speaker

Laura Magaña, PhD, MS

President and CEO
Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health

Dr. Laura Magaña is a globally recognized academic public health leader known for her commitment to transformation, innovation, and social justice. She serves as President and CEO of the  Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health (ASPPH), representing more than 150 academic institutions dedicated to advancing public health. Additionally, she is the founding President of the Global Network for Academic Public Health (GNAPH), an alliance of seven regional associations that support public health education worldwide.

Under Dr. Magaña’s leadership, ASPPH has strengthened its role as a catalyst for excellence and innovation across education, research, and practice in academic public health. She has overseen the launch of strategic initiatives, including the Academic Public Health Leadership Institute, the ASPPH Workforce Development Center, and a robust advocacy platform that elevates the voice of academic public health in key policy arenas. She has also expanded the association’s global reach and membership, positioning ASPPH as a central force in shaping the future of public health education.

Dr. Magaña is leading ASPPH’s Vision 2030 agenda, which addresses critical public health challenges through initiatives focused on Dismantling Racism in Academic Public Health, Climate Change and Health, Framing the Future 2030, Gun Violence Prevention, Healthy Longevity, and the Integration of Artificial Intelligence in Public Health.

Before joining ASPPH, Dr. Magaña spent over 35 years transforming public and private universities in Mexico and leading educational, multilateral, and nonprofit organizations across the United States, Central America, and Europe. Most recently, she served as dean of the School of Public Health at the National Institute of Public Health in Mexico. A prolific scholar, Dr. Magaña has authored over 90 academic publications, with a focus on learning environments, educational technology, and the advancement of public health education globally.

Public Health Champion

Michelle Morse, MD, MPH

Acting Health Commissioner and Chief Medical Officer
NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC Health)

Dr. Michelle Morse is the Acting Health Commissioner and Chief Medical Officer of the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (NYC Health). She leads the agency’s work in bridging public health and health care to reduce health inequities and serves as a key liaison to clinicians and clinical leaders across New York City. She previously served as Deputy Commissioner for the Center for Health Equity and Community Wellness where she led place-based and cross-cutting health equity programs.

Dr. Morse is an internal medicine and public health doctor who works to achieve health equity through global solidarity, social medicine and anti-racism education, and activism. She is a general internal medicine physician, part-time hospitalist at Kings County Hospital, Co-Founder of EqualHealth, and Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Morse’s continued commitment to advancing health equity and justice is informed by her experience in leadership roles as Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Partners In Health, as a Soros Equality Fellow launching a global Campaign Against Racism, and as a Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy fellow with the Ways and Means Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 2024, Dr. Morse was named a TIME100Next honoree.