Congratulations to the Spring Class of 2021!
On behalf of the Department of Materials Science & Engineering and the Nuclear Engineering Program – CONGRATULATIONS! You’ve taken on the most incredible and amazing journey to becoming an engineer, and you’ve succeeded.
You are moving on to a new and exciting chapter in your life, and we wish you all the best for the future that lies ahead. Be safe, take care and please keep in touch.
GO GATORS!
DOCTORATE, MATERIALS SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
Dylan Michael Anstine, Ph.D.
Shangradhanva Eswara Vasisth, Ph.D.
“Be tenacious, persevere, and maybe try to have some fun along the way.”
Bryan DANIEL BARRET James, Ph.D.
“It has been a terrific four years at the University of Florida Materials Science & Engineering department working under the fantastic Dr. Josephine Allen! I’ve been happy to call the MSE department home and I’m going to miss the incredible staff and faculty on my next journey as a postdoctoral scholar at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Reflecting back on my Ph.D. experience, the best advice I can offer to incoming graduate students is: be proactive, take initiative, and communicate.”
Venkata Surya Chaitanya Kolluru, Ph.D.
“To be free is to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”
– Nelson Mandela
Jamie MARIE Murbach, Ph.D.
“Thank you to my family, friends, and lab family for all of their help and encouragement throughout the last few years. It has all been worth it, and I couldn’t have done it without their support and guidance.”
Linyuan Shi, Ph.D.
“Diligence is the path to the mountain of books, and hard work is the boat to the ocean of knowledge. Go Gators.”
Prabal Tiwari, Ph.D.
Emily M. Turner, Ph.D.
Vishal Vignesh, Ph.D.
“Great knowledge comes from the humblest of origins.”
– from the movie The Man Who Knew Infinity
DOCTORATE, NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
Zhenyu Fu, Ph.D.
MASTER OF SCIENCE, MATERIALS SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
Lichen Bai
“An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.”
Riley J. Bassett
Quote: “Work smarter, not harder.”
Sujit Dinesh DesaiDesai
Noah D. Ferson
Binru Han
“Always be happy. If not, just go and get some strawberries.”
Camille ELYSHA Hernandez
“I am very grateful for all of the support I received from my family, my mentors, and the Brotons. Here’s to a bright future!”
Veronica L. Hubbard
Abigail R. Hyde
Kevin Padinjarakara John Mathew
Lydia Kuebler
Arianne Nicole Lazaro
Runze Li
Eric B. Marks
“If you ever think about giving up, remember why you held on for so long.”
– Hayley Williams
Marah L. Mukhtar
“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”
-Newton
Nathan ANDREW CONNER Shinn
Hamza Silmi
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.”
– Winston Churchill
Alexander GEORGE Smith
“Love and blessings to everyone who helped me along the way in making this possible. Mom, Dad, and Ben, this one’s for you!”
Mariia Stozhkova
Guanlin Zeng
“In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity.”
– Albert Einstein
Peng Zhou
“The beautiful thing about learning is that no one can take it away from you.”
– B.B. King
Mingxuan Zhu
“Don’t be afraid. Be focused. Be determined. Be hopeful. Be empowered.”
—Michelle Obama
MASTER OF SCIENCE, NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
Clay French
“I’d personally like to thank Dr. Assel Aitkaliyeva, my team members in MANATEE, my friends and colleagues, my professors, and finally my family for all their support through these two years. It has been stressful and difficult, yet they always stood by me and supported me along the way. They taught me new and interesting topics and life lessons that I will carry with me throughout the rest of my life.”
Jameson Tockstein
“I would like to thank the MSE/NE Faculty, Staff, and Students for making my time at UF an educational and enjoyable experience, all things considered. It wasn’t easy, but it was worth it.”
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE, MATERIALS SCIENCE & ENGINEERING
Ian Bennett Arndt
ZenaH BAKER
“Don’t be afraid to ask questions! Thank you to all of the wonderful teachers, classmates and staff who helped me find the answers.”
Jonathan Connor Balent
“It’s been a great four years, thank you to my parents, my sisters, and Colleen for all the help along the way. Best of luck to my friends and fellow graduates. Go Gators!”
CONNOR BANDEL
“I couldn’t have done this without you, Heather Benson.”
Noah Daniel BaughmaN
Benjamin Alan Benson
RACHEL MEREDITH BLAYDES
“There are three C’s to building any strong relationship: communication, communication, communication.”
Caleb Aidan Byrd
Jacquelyn Shannon Cetola
“The past four years have had lots of ups and downs, and I am so grateful for my family and friends that supported me through it all. I couldn’t have gotten this far without you!”
Jacqueline Alexandra Cicalese
Sophia Marie Codispot
Tristan Collins
Kaitlyn Oluwashola Daramola
Carina Jilda Diaz
Joshua Murray Edelkind
Nina Isabel Erwin
“Thanks to my friends and family for the support and fun over the past few years. Go Gators!”
Madison Jean Eudy
MARSHALL BLAKE FRYE
TRISTAN H. GAINEY
MARIANA GOMEZ RAVE
SYDNEY GREENOUGH HIGGINS
BRIDGET ISENBERG
RACHEL G. JOHNSON
ALEXANDER QUINN KANE
RILEY PATRICK KICKER
DARIUSH KIM
LOGAN JAMES KRAUS
JOHN DAVID LANGHOUT
Valentina Martinez Padron
“Put your heart, mind and soul into everything you do, that is the secret of success….Gracias a mi familia por siempre apoyarme, todos mis logros son por y para ustedes.”
Bobbi-Ann S. Matheson
Josh William McDonald
Ana Patricia Michelena
“Thank you MSE for the best and most difficult years of my life. Thank you mom and dad for everything. I wish you could be here.
As always, Go Gators!”
Isabela Maria Miulescu
Valeria Niebles
Kaitlyn ROSE O’Malley
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.” – Winnie the Pooh
“Thank you, UF, for helping me find a chosen family that I will carry with me forever.”
Jakub ROBERT Pepas
“Being a part of the outstanding MSE community at the University of Florida has been a great privilege. I would like to give special thanks to Dr. Scott Perry, Dr. Jiangeng Xue, Dr. Nancy Ruzycki and Dr. Ryan Need, whose teaching and guidance were invaluable in shaping my research interests and career goals.”
Jason Saul Richman
RICARDo ANDRES RIVERA CORTES
“Every step you take in life, right or wrong, is necessary for self‐improvement.”
Delfina AGUSTINA Rodriguez Briozzo
“I would like to thank the MSE faculty, my peers, and my family who have provided unconditional support in my journey towards becoming a Materials Science Engineer. Go Gators!”
Leslie Rodriguez
“I’d like to say a huge thank you to the MSE department for giving me the support and resources to be successful in my college career. I’d also like to give a special thank you to Dr. Ruzycki for being an amazing mentor and teacher and for believing in me all these years.”
Nicholas Joseph Rogers
“I would like to thank God for the opportunity to transfer to the University of Florida to pursue my goal of creating a better tomorrow for everyone. And I would like to thank my support group of friends, my parents, siblings, and lovely fiancé Joslyn for walking along beside me during my tenure at UF. Go Gators!”
Natalie Elizabeth Starr
Emma KATE Steinebronn
Michelle Tanzi
WALTER DANIEL TARR
Madeline Margaret Thompson
John Mark Luc van den Broecke
Nikolas Max Vega Michalak
Siyue Zheng
BACHELOR OF SCIENCE, NUCLEAR ENGINEERING
Jonathan Simoes Arnaud
“The point of school is to teach yourself how to teach yourself.”
Jacqueline MARIE Golabek
STEVEN D. LESTER
CINDY MARIE MCCABE
“Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less.” – Marie Curie
KUSH PATEL
CESAR ARTURO POZAS
“
Thank you to everyone who has believed in me and contributed to my overall success in my studies. I couldn’t have achieved my dreams without your help!”
Mustafa HASSAN Siddiqi
MICAH RAY TROYER
“My time at UF has been both challenging and fulfilling. I am deeply grateful to the NE faculty and my classmates for making this time truly memorable. I would especially like to thank Dr. Don Wall for making nuclear engineering seem so exciting, even if it is a mere two-letter transposition of the words ‘unclear engineering’.”