Commencement

There was a dark moment in Monica Lichtenwalner’s college years when things seemed bleak. In fall of her sophomore year, 2021, she got COVID-19 the first week of class and felt “very sick” for two weeks. A month and a half later, she still didn’t feel fully recovered and dropped half her classes, because she was falling behind. She knew this would delay her senior capstone project and cause her to graduate later than she planned. It was disheartening at the time. But Lichtenwalner...

One of the constant elements in Katherine Crouse’s collegiate career has been change. A defensive back on the Georgia College & State University soccer team, she attended two different schools and had three different coaches in her four seasons.  Crouse hasn’t let any distractions interfere as she finishes with a 4.0 GPA in business management, earning a spot as one of Georgia College’s valedictorians at winter commencement. That makes her the ninth student-athlete to achieve that...

Management major Aurelien Arlot of Paris, France, is a member of the Bobcat Men’s Tennis Team at Georgia College & State University, typically playing on the fifth line in singles. Prior to transferring, he was the No. 2 singles player for Riverside City College in Riverside, California, in his freshman season. “We have a very good tennis team at Georgia College,” he said. “It's better than the one in California. I’ve had to work hard to get to a better position on the team.” Arlot...

A native French speaker from Quebec wasn’t responding well to care at a medical center in Madison, Georgia this fall.   She was confused, unreceptive to treatment and not receiving the best care she could. But when graduating nursing senior, Claire Halloran, entered the room with a cheerful, “bonjour madame,” everything changed. “She just lit up,” Halloran said, “it was like night and day. I figured it would help, but I just had no idea how big of an impact it would make.” Immediately...

Jacob Carter bristles at the idea that there are ‘math people.’ Carter, a graduating math major, aspires to teach Advanced Placement Calculus to high school students. He thinks the whole concept of ‘math people’ creates a false dichotomy: that there are math people and people who are not math people. “A lot of people, when I say I'm a math major, immediately launch into this series of horror stories about terrible math teachers and of bright red ink marked all over exams,” Carter said...

On college campuses in late spring, life experiences start coming full circle. Nadira Colbert, a valedictorian in the nursing program, closed one such loop during her pinning ceremony—the symbolic welcoming of soon-to-be-graduated student nurses into the nursing profession. During the ceremony, Colbert’s grandmother, Ingrid Perez, affixed the Georgia College & State University nursing pin upon her lapel signifying a new chapter to the life calling Perez had modeled for Colbert since...

Story and photos developed by University Communications. Environmental science major Michelle Murdock from Winder knew Georgia College & State University was the right choice for her, starting with the Bridge Scholars Program. She began her first year in a residential learning community with an intensive, five-week summer program designed to build a strong academic foundation.  “The Bridge Scholars Program’s resources such as mentorship, tutoring and career guidance taught me to be...

Since the pandemic, many students have experienced increasing rates of depression and anxiety. But this can be doubly felt by nursing students, who encounter stressors in both classroom and clinical settings.   Priya Polanco understands these pressures all too well. She’s a graduating nursing student, a member of the Honors College, valedictorian and student speaker at her commencement ceremony.   When she thought about her own transition from high school to college and then the nursing...

Story and top photo developed by University Communications. Caroline Pedersen From: Marietta, Georgia Major: Special Education Why this major: In high school, I got involved in a nonprofit organization called Miss Amazing. Even after my first year volunteering, I could see there is a need to build support for those with disabilities in the community. A large group of individuals do not feel that they are loved. After a few more years with the program, I wanted to continue to make individuals...

Graduating economics student, Brandon Pascali, is excited to step into his next educational opportunity—and for good reason. The undergraduate student is jumping into a macroeconomics Ph.D. program at Emory University in Atlanta, with a full tuition, $70,000-a-year scholarship. Pascali credits the offer to his hard work at Georgia College & State University, where he minored in mathematics, scored very well on the Graduate Record Examinations and served in the GC Nudge Unit—a behavioral...