Bryan University leaders gathered for a live-streamed graduation ceremony, honoring more than 200 graduates. From left to right are Jeré Thrasher, Program Director for Court Reporting; William Hamilton, Provost, Vice Chancellor and Director of E-Discovery Programs; Don Gull, President of Bryan University Online; Jonathan Young, Program Director for Advanced Personal Training and Exercise Science; and Donna Estabrook, Program Director of Health Information Technology.
Members of the Bryan University community congregated on campus and online to attend “Graduation 2013: Celebrate New Beginnings,” a virtual event that reached hundreds of graduates, their families and friends via a live stream from the school’s website, Friday, Aug. 23.
Patrick Hanson, Associate Director of Student & Alumni Outreach, opened the ceremony with a warm congratulatory note before turning the microphone over to Bryan University Chancellor, Don Gull.
“This is an important milestone in your professional career, and I applaud your efforts and accomplishments,” began Chancellor Gull. “I know that most of you graduates have achieved this honor under great pressure and challenges. Most of you have spouses and/or children who look to you for support. You have mortgages to pay, cars to maintain, bills to settle. And yet, here you are, having done all that plus the rigorous requirements of a full academic program. Good for you! It will serve you well all your lives.”
Gull advised graduates to continue on their pathway to success by transferring their academic work ethic to everything else they face. “Treat every job, every task, with the attitude that this is the most important job in the world,” he said. “Everything worth doing is worth doing well. A good day’s pay is worth a good day’s work. It is your surest pathway to success …”
Also in attendance and speaking at the ceremony were the university’s program directors, Donna Estabrook, Health Information Technology; Jonathon Young, Advanced Personal Training and Exercise Science; Jeré Thrasher, Court Reporting; and William Hamilton, E-Discovery Project Management.
Hamilton, who also serves as the university’s provost and vice chancellor, recognized students for their achievements, but counseled them to retain a sense of humility as they moved forward in their careers.
“Everything that is done expertly in life appears easy to those who don’t know,” said Hamilton. "Don’t expect others to understand the hard work … you put in to develop your skills. Just smile. Be modest. That’s the reward of being a true professional, of being really good at what you do.”
More than 200 students from 35 states across the country were acknowledged in the ceremony. (See below for a list of names and programs of study.) The Celebrate New Beginnings ceremony marked the first time Bryan University hosted a live-streamed presentation in honor of its graduates, who completed programs between Oct. 31, 2012, and Sept. 13, 2013.
“We are especially proud of our graduates and the degrees and certificates they have obtained through diligence and hard work with the generous support of their family, friends and employers,” said Hamilton. “The graduates leave Bryan University well skilled, ready to advance in their professional endeavors and to provide valuable services to our nation.”
Concluded Chancellor Gull, “My hope for you is that your graduation is a launch pad to the cosmos …. That you will take control of your destiny and fulfill all the rightful desires of your heart. I extend to you my best wishes for a happy future filled with success and enduring memories.”
Bryan University offers several accredited degree and certificate programs in personal training and exercise science, court reporting, e-Discovery, and health management and coding.
For more information about Bryan University’s offerings, visit www.bryanuniversity.edu or call 888.768.6861.
Media Contact: Drew Whitney, 602.384.2587, drew.whitney@bryanuniversity.edu
Mark Abarquez
Krystal Adair
Samuel Aguilera
Jay Algiere
Christian Alvarez
Nicholas Arnold
Joshua Avila
Maria Aziere
Brittany Balderson
Lynnea Barry
Aaron Beaubier
Robert Benson
Julie Bodine
Michael Boyett
Amanda Breidenbach
Markkus Brinson
Timothy Britt
Jamie Burdick
Hannah Burns
Rachael Campbell
Adam Clark
Jessica Clickner
Deborah Conklin
Christian Craig
Tim Crumb
Kendrick Dean
Nickolette Dean
Paul Desabetino
Dillon Doak
Laurie Edwards
Damon Endel
Heather Evans
Vicente Flores
Ashleigh Frye
Francisco Garcia
Audrey George
Dennis Gibbs
Brenna Gray
Alex Hansen
Chris Harris
Tamara Hekkema
Jason Hennig
Ernest Henry
Judith Hernandez
Stephan Hicks
Mark Holderness
Jody Holman
Crystal Huffman
Amanda Jenkins
Derek Jent
Elisha Johnson
Trevor Johnson
Scott Johnson
Jonathan Kloo
John Landrey
George Lawson
Amber Lopez
Valerie Manuel
Jennifer Marino
John Marquez
Amy Matarazzi
Alan Maynard
Nevin McCaskill
Mark Mickens
David Mills
Greg Morris
Alexander Mosley
Kevin Murphy
Steven Newhouse
Lupe Peters
Nikolaus Reel
Sherry Roberts
Steven Rohrbach
Heidi Root
Jennifer Rowe
Rafael Ruiz
John Ryan
Steven Santuci
Alexaundria Scott
Juan Servin
Jason Southern
Cheryl Sprung
Marisa Stallings
Jonathon Stevens
Sandy Stevens
Vincent Strange
Tyler Struckhoff
Jason Sullivan
Lashon Swiggins
Amy Szwerluga
Tyrone Talley
Jason Tibbs
David Tingley
Timothy Turpin
Justin Valicenti
Darnell Walls
April Warren
Tonya Watson
Alisha Webb
Megan Wells
Rebekah Westerlund
Jasmine Wheaton
Yvette Wiggins
Charles Williams
Lee Woods
Shaun Yanulaitis
Allie Young
Jessica Croxford
Michelle Hernandez
Lindsay Jagich
Kelsie Medrano
Kristina Papenfus
Lori Wessely
Miguel Alliegro
Laurie Ault-Sayan
Linda Bailey
Denise Beasley
Gail-Anne Bobik
Rolesha Brown
Lisa Crall
Gerard Curtis
Chioma Deere
Melissa Denktash
Ernest Destin, Jr.
Giselle Edwards
Candace Ellis
Riaan Engelbrecht
Merle Gould
Michelle Hager
Ethel Halpern
Jeffery Haynes
Azure Hicks
Chester Horton
Gwendolyn Humphrey
Brian Ivey
Moira Jamieson
Anthony Johnson
Marsha Klimek
Craig Kraus
Maxine Laws
LeJon Lozada
Martin Lynch
Antoinette Maynard
Rebecca Mieszkowski
Jeannine Moore
Denise Moore
Velkis Moreno
Karen Mueller
Emily Navarro
Andrew Pitt
Soraya Purvis
Myra Reed
David Robertson
Omar Ruffin
Parnell Speed
Yasmin Thomas
Sarah Vindigni
Robyn Voss
Sebrenia Webber
Shana Williams
Thomas Zacharia
LaToya Aiken
LaShawn Anderson
Janelle Braun
Paula Brown
Justine Burgess
Janet Chaney
Chantelle Chapman
Crystal Clickner
Edwina Davis
Leah Drayer
Melissa French
Melissa Gomez
Jennifer Gorin
Melissa Guzman
Laura Haholy
Veronica Hardy
Allison Humphrey
Andrea Jackson
Jayme Johnson
Denise Johnston
Joyce Jones
Dolores Keeler
Crystal Lawrence
Constance Mac Fadyen
Jazmin Martin
Julie McCulloch
Staci Medendorp
Alonzo Middleton
Sabtecha More-Shaw
Stephanie Nicholson
Cheryl Nixon
Khristina Noble
Erin Oberholzer
Saralyn Pace
Tiffany Patridge
Denise Portillo
Denise Ratliff
Natasha Reed
Shelby Reed
Kelly Richards
Vanessa Rua-Barcia
Shineice Smith
Amanda Sparks
Holly Stemm
Yvette Swayne
Tracey Turrubiate
Miriam Velasquez
Thomas Wallace
Hayley Weller
Lisa Wood
Melanie Works
Janet Yost
