{"id":49327,"date":"2017-12-11T09:00:47","date_gmt":"2017-12-11T14:00:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/?p=49327"},"modified":"2022-09-26T13:55:17","modified_gmt":"2022-09-26T17:55:17","slug":"nearly-1900-students-to-graduate-at-wright-states-fall-commencement-ceremony","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/12\/11\/nearly-1900-students-to-graduate-at-wright-states-fall-commencement-ceremony\/","title":{"rendered":"Nearly 1,900 students to graduate at Wright State\u2019s fall commencement ceremony"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_49356\" style=\"width: 470px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/12\/11\/nearly-1900-students-to-graduate-at-wright-states-fall-commencement-ceremony\/17422_281-2\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-49356\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-49356\" class=\"size-large wp-image-49356\" src=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/files\/2017\/12\/17422_281-508x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"460\" height=\"272\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-49356\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Wright State University\u2019s 2017 fall commencement ceremony takes place Saturday, Dec. 16, beginning at 10 a.m. in the Wright State Nutter Center.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Nearly 1,900 students are expected to graduate during Wright State University\u2019s 2017 fall <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wright.edu\/event\/commencement\">commencement ceremony<\/a> Saturday, Dec. 16.<\/p>\n<p>The ceremony begins at 10 a.m. in the Wright State Nutter Center. Tickets are not required.<\/p>\n<p>The class includes summer and fall graduates with 1,083 bachelor\u2019s degrees and 681 master\u2019s as well those awarded associate degrees and post-master\u2019s certificates.<\/p>\n<p>The class features graduates from 58 Ohio counties, including 1,171 from the 16 counties anchored by Wright State\u2019s Dayton and Lake campuses. Graduates hail from 34 total states.<\/p>\n<p>The class also includes 365 international students from 30 different nations. India boasts the largest number of foreign graduates with 187.<\/p>\n<p>The graduating students from the class range in age from 19 to 72.<\/p>\n<p>Graduates by college:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>College of Education and Human Services: 308<\/li>\n<li>College of Engineering and Computer Science: 440<\/li>\n<li>College of Liberal Arts: 323<\/li>\n<li>College of Nursing and Health: 113<\/li>\n<li>College of Science and Mathematics: 228<\/li>\n<li>Raj Soin College of Business: 353<\/li>\n<li>Lake Campus: 40<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The ceremony will be broadcast live on WSU-TV on Time Warner Cable channel 21.105 in the university dorms and Fairborn and regionally on AT&amp;T Uverse channel 99 in the Dayton tab.<\/p>\n<p>The ceremony can also be seen online at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.wright.edu\/streaming\">wright.edu\/streaming<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Notable graduates<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_49331\" style=\"width: 470px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/12\/11\/nearly-1900-students-to-graduate-at-wright-states-fall-commencement-ceremony\/19554-jim-hannah-nursing-student-vicky-lindsey-10-17-17-3\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-49331\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-49331\" class=\"size-large wp-image-49331\" src=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/files\/2017\/12\/Vicky-Lindsey-19554_016-1-508x362.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"460\" height=\"328\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-49331\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Vicky Lindsey will graduate from Wright State with a bachelor&#8217;s degree in communications studies.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Declaration of independence<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>She has been in and out of foster homes since she was just a baby and began living alone at 16, struggling to keep food in the fridge and get herself to work and high school.<\/p>\n<p>Today, Vicky Lindsey\u00a0will graduate from Wright State with a <a href=\"https:\/\/liberal-arts.wright.edu\/communication\">bachelor&#8217;s degree in communications studies<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>She plans to pursue master\u2019s degree in public administration at Cleveland State University, where she hopes to champion foster students like herself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTo be passionate enough to continue my voice in helping foster youth is something I want to do,\u201d she said. \u201cI want to be a face for foster youth who may be discouraged.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>A major reason for Lindsey choosing Wright State was the university\u2019s Independent Scholars Network, an innovative program that nurtures, educates and graduates emancipated foster students.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt helped a lot,\u201d Lindsey said of the program. \u201cJust having these people in my life, constantly pushing me to be better, to do better; it\u2019s just like a third family, honestly. If you need something, they\u2019re there. They\u2019re there to talk and help you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>During her time at Wright State, Lindsey has been actively involved in the Black Student Union and was named an WSU Emerging Leader and WSU Established Leader in 2015 and 2016, respectively. As part of the Independent Scholars Network, she was honored with the ISN Most Volunteered Hours 2014-2015, the ISN Jet Setter Award 2014-2015 and the ISN Academic Excellence Award 2014-2015 and 2015-2016.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Breathtaking<\/strong><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_49334\" style=\"width: 470px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/12\/11\/nearly-1900-students-to-graduate-at-wright-states-fall-commencement-ceremony\/ryan-rakoczy-18414_227-3\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-49334\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-49334\" class=\"size-large wp-image-49334\" src=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/files\/2017\/12\/Ryan-Rakoczy-18414_227-508x327.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"460\" height=\"296\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-49334\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Graduate student Ryan Rakoczy researches treatments for prematurely born infants, like his son.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>It was kind of interesting \u2014 how breathing is controlled by tiny carotid body organs that detect oxygen in the blood. For Wright State University graduate student Ryan Rakoczy, it was a curiosity that became the focus of his master\u2019s thesis.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/01\/12\/breathtaking\/\">But then it suddenly became much, much more<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>On March 9, Rakoczy\u2019s son, Lennon, was born extremely prematurely \u2014 nearly three months early \u2014 and his underdeveloped lungs were gasping for the air needed to keep the 2-pound, 7-ounce infant alive. In fact, Lennon was immediately put on a ventilator and for the next 50 days would live in a hospital intensive care unit.<\/p>\n<p>Rakoczy\u2019s world suddenly tilted on its axis, and his research took on a whole new intensity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAt home I\u2019m living respiratory physiology, and at Wright State I\u2019m working on the stuff my son\u2019s experiencing. It\u2019s really crazy,\u201d he said. \u201cI became completely obsessed with respiratory physiology.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Rakoczy wants to continue his research and is now in Wright State\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/science-math.wright.edu\/biomedical-sciences-phd-program\">biomedical sciences Ph.D. program<\/a>. The research not only holds promise for developing better treatments for prematurely born infants, but also for prevention of sudden infant death syndrome, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and sleep apnea, a disorder characterized by pauses in breathing or periods of shallow breathing during sleep.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_49452\" style=\"width: 470px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/12\/11\/nearly-1900-students-to-graduate-at-wright-states-fall-commencement-ceremony\/18178_019\/\" rel=\"attachment wp-att-49452\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-49452\" class=\"size-large wp-image-49452\" src=\"http:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/files\/2017\/12\/18178_019-508x339.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"460\" height=\"307\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-49452\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Tasha Fox graduated from Wright State in 2016 with a bachelor\u2019s degree in French and at fall commencement will receive her MBA in international business from the Raj Soin College of Business.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Going places<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Sleeping in the Sahara Desert, teaching in China and witnessing political violence in Jerusalem were just stops along the way for Tasha Fox, a Wright State University <a href=\"https:\/\/business.wright.edu\/master-of-business-administration\">MBA student<\/a> who turned her undergraduate career into a priceless lesson in world geography and culture.<\/p>\n<p>And this of a student who nearly cut short her first trip overseas after being overwhelmed by the language challenges and trying to fit in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI got to travel the world while getting my degree,\u201d said Fox. \u201cIt challenges you to look at the world in a different way. It challenges you to look at yourself in a different light. I think I\u2019ve learned more about myself traveling than anything.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Fox graduated from Wright State in 2016 with her <a href=\"http:\/\/liberal-arts.wright.edu\/modern-languages\">bachelor\u2019s degree in French<\/a> and at fall commencement will receive her MBA in international business from the <a href=\"https:\/\/business.wright.edu\/\">Raj Soin College of Business<\/a>, where she worked as a graduate assistant.<\/p>\n<p>Fox\u2019 84-year-old grandfather, Attley Bundy, is also expected to walk at Fall Commencement. One class shy of graduating, Bundy is poised to receive his bachelor&#8217;s degree in finance in the spring.<\/p>\n<p>In her final semester of grad school, Fox studied abroad in Salamanca, Spain. She is not sure about her career path.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m really interested in peaceful conflict resolution after going to Israel,\u201d she said. \u201cInternational law is really appealing to me. Working with refugees or immigrants in the United States would be amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In the meantime, Fox will work in Madrid, Spain, as an au pair for six months or so to improve her Spanish before heading to China to look for work with a nongovernmental organization and to learn Mandarin.<\/p>\n<p>Fox credits Wright State with giving her the chance to see the world and learn about other peoples and cultures.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been blown away by the number of opportunities that they have had for me to study abroad and the scholarships they offer,\u201d she said. \u201cEverything is there; you just have to go for it.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Wright State University\u2019s 2017 fall commencement ceremony takes place Saturday, Dec. 16, beginning at 10 a.m. in the Wright State Nutter Center.  <a href=\"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/2017\/12\/11\/nearly-1900-students-to-graduate-at-wright-states-fall-commencement-ceremony\/\" class=\"morelink\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":49356,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[722,733,729,748,2107,743,711,2060,2017,744,725,2045,731,747,715,746,2119,2061],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-49327","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-alumni","category-around-campus","category-business","category-commencement","category-engineering-computer-science","category-faculty-staff","category-graduate","category-nursing-health","category-education-human-services","category-home-news-sidebar","category-honors-program","category-lake-campus","category-liberal-arts","category-news","category-science-mathematics","category-university-college","category-undergraduate"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49327","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49327"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49327\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49498,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49327\/revisions\/49498"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49356"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49327"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49327"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/webapp2.wright.edu\/web1\/newsroom\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49327"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}