University of San Diego Set to Celebrate Law, Graduate and Undergraduate Students During Commencement Ceremonies

The University of San Diego will hold in-person commencement ceremonies over two weekends, beginning this Saturday, May 20. This year, more than 2,300 students will be graduating during five commencement ceremonies at USD’s Jenny Craig Pavilion.

• Saturday, May 20, 9 a.m. — School of Law 
• Sunday, May 21, 9 a.m. — Graduate Programs: School of Leadership and Education Sciences, Professional & Continuing Education
• Saturday, May 27, 9 a.m. — Graduate Programs: College of Arts and Sciences, Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science, Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, Knauss School of Business, Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering
• Sunday, May 28, 9 a.m. — Undergraduate Programs: College of Arts and Sciences
• Sunday, May 28, 2 p.m. — Undergraduate Programs: Knauss School of Business, Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering

A livestream of all of the ceremonies will be available to view online here. 

**The media is invited to attend the commencement ceremonies. Please RSVP to press@sandiego.edu.

2023 Undergraduate Valedictorians:

• Nicolas Harrison is receiving a bachelor’s degree in Finance with a Computer Science minor from USD’s Knauss School of Business. 
• Mychaela Thomas is receiving a bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Neuroscience from USD’s College of Arts and Sciences.
• Nathan Schell is receiving a bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from USD’s Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering.

Graduating Class Highlights:

• The graduating class has secured coveted positions at some of the world's leading companies like Amazon, Apple, Boeing, General Atomics, La Jolla Institute of Immunology, Oracle, Qualcomm and Viasat. 
• Official data for the Class of 2023 will be available in early 2024, but previous outcomes data may be found here: https://www.sandiego.edu/outcomes/careers/.
• Additionally, the Class of 2023 has embraced the spirit of community engagement and some students have joined organizations like the Peace Corps and Teach for America.
• One distinguished graduate, Maddy Domingo, has been awarded the prestigious Fulbright scholarship. Maddy's exceptional academic achievements and dedication to her field of study have been recognized and she will be participating in the English Teaching Assistant program in Thailand.
• 4 McNair Scholars graduates will be continuing on directly into doctoral programs.

Interview Opportunities with Inspirational Students

Email press@sandiego.edu to set up an interview with a graduating student.

• Rainier Cardin is a veteran, transfer student graduating from the College of Arts and Sciences with a bachelor’s degree in Biology. While deployed overseas with the Marines, he got his first glimpse at how military operations could have a negative impact on the environment. That insight inspired him to find a solution to those environmental harms through a degree in biology. Prior to joining the Marines, Cardin had dropped out of an undergraduate program, but once he left the military he knew pursuing his bachelor’s degree was a top priority. After applying to USD, he was given a conditional acceptance, which meant that he had to get his grades up and take the necessary science courses before he could get accepted. He took courses at local community colleges and eventually transferred into USD’s biology program. Cardin is also the general manager of USD’s Rugby Team – a community that has turned into a home for him after coming to USD as a 29-year-old transfer student. 
• Adan E. Sanchez is graduating with a PhD in Education and Social Justice and wrote his dissertation on the educational experiences of being an undocumented student, inspired by his own journey as an undocumented student. Sanchez is a first-generation college student and often felt the pressure, and fear of failure, of being the first in his family to pursue a degree. Early on in his educational journey, he had to rescind a college acceptance offer because he couldn’t afford it. At that moment, he questioned the benefit of pursuing a degree as an undocumented student – but he decided to keep going and is now receiving his PhD as a part of the first cohort of students earning a PhD in Education and Social Justice. Adan hopes that he can inspire other undocumented students to pursue their dreams and provide insight to educators, from his research, on how to make the undocumented student experience better.
• Emily Kawahara is graduating from the School of Law and from the Kroc School of Peace Studies with an MA in Peace and Justice, which is a part of a dual degree program at USD. Kawahara’s interest in peace and justice began in high school when two international trips sparked her interest in studying conflict. The first trip took her to Europe as a part of an ambassador program for high school students to help young people gain cultural understanding of other countries. It was created as a response to World War II. In the same year, she traveled with her Japanese American grandmother to Japan, where she learned more about her grandparents’ experience of living in an internment camp in California during World War II, and rebuilding their lives after the war ended. Those trips made her look at the impact of war on her family, and others, and inspired her to pursue this dual degree program. After graduation, she will be working for the Department of Justice and, one day, hopes to work for the Department to prosecute those involved in international violent crimes. 
• Luis Martinez, a captain with the Culver City Police Department, is receiving a masters in Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership through USD’s online degrees program. Martinez has been an officer for decades, and already held a masters in Public Administration. He decided he wanted to return to school to further his education and career, and several of his colleagues, who’d also taken it, suggested the USD program. He says the flexibility of the online program suited his personal and professional life; he could plan reading and assignments around his work schedule as well as his daughter’s soccer games. He also says the way the classes were structured – with some officers his age, and others with just a couple years of experience – created a unique learning environment. He’d teach younger officers things, and learn valuable lessons from them, which he could then take back to his job supervising the patrol unit. 
• Juan Cedillo is currently a Sergeant in the U.S Army Reserve, who’s graduating with a BS/BA in electrical engineering. Cedillo grew up in San Diego, and struggled in school before deciding to join the military at 17. There, he says, he learned a lot of things, including that he may want to become an engineer. After returning home, he gave school another go and excelled in math and science, before transferring to USD – the only school he applied to. Cedillo feels a strong sense of pride in his accomplishments, which he says honor the sacrifices his parents made when they made a dangerous, and lonely, crossing into the United States. He’ll become the first of his family to graduate with a college degree, and will start a job with Boeing next month. Cedillo is available for interviews in English and Spanish.
• Carina Tanaka is graduating from the College of Arts and Sciences with a BA in biology and chemistry. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic turned our lives upside down. Students like Tanaka had just started their college experience, and were now under lockdown. Like many of us, Tanaka struggled during that time with aspects of her mental health, and began exploring ways to manage them – and helping others do the same. She found arts and crafts, for example, to be therapeutic. So she started organizing virtual arts and crafts sessions with some of her peers. Eventually she opened a chapter of the non-profit organization “Active Minds” at USD. In the years since it’s grown tremendously, to more than 100 members. Tanaka is pursuing a PhD at UC Berkeley, where she says she’ll do research on diabetes, a condition she was diagnosed with at three years old.
• Maxwell Botrous is a Fullbright Scholar from Egypt, who’s background attracted him to peace studies and, ultimately, USD’s graduate-level peace and justice program. Botrous grew up in a rural part of Egypt where, he says, he was surrounded by ideological divides and conflicts, primarily rooted in religion. As he grew and left his hometown, he began to question some of the stereotypes ingrained in him. From there he was introduced to the peacebuilding field, and decided that’s what he wanted to dedicate his life to – learning about the psychology behind our divisions and how to build bridges and connect people. Botrous wants to use his education and experience to do some kind of work representing marginalized communities, and advocating for human rights, potentially back home in Egypt.
• Gianna Sbarbaro is graduating from the Knauss School of Business with a degree in both marketing and business management. Sbarbaro grew up in Hawaii, where she says she fostered a strong bond with and appreciation for nature. That drives her interest in volunteering, for both the Surfrider Foundation and Sweetwater Farms, where she works with animals and kids. Sbarbaro says those experiences have influenced her to pursue a career working with nonprofits, or businesses that strive to make a social impact. Sbarbaro is also the captain of USD’s cross country team and has multiple school records. She’s staying at USD to pursue a masters in business administration.

About the University of San Diego

Strengthened by the Catholic intellectual tradition, we confront humanity’s challenges by fostering peace, working for justice and leading with love. With more than 8,000 students from 75 countries and 44 states, USD is the youngest independent institution on the U.S. News & World Report list of top 100 universities in the United States. USD’s eight academic divisions include the College of Arts and Sciences, the Knauss School of Business, the Shiley-Marcos School of Engineering, the School of Law, the School of Leadership and Education Sciences, the Hahn School of Nursing and Health Science, the Joan B. Kroc School of Peace Studies, and the Division of Professional and Continuing Education. In 2021, USD was named a “Laudato Si’ University” by the Vatican with a seven-year commitment to address humanity’s urgent challenges by working together to take care of our common home.