Diploma Awarding Ceremony 2024
Harvard Divinity School
Diploma Awarding Ceremony
Thursday, May 23, 2024
1pm
HDS Campus Green
Other viewing and overflow room: Sperry Room
Join us on Zoom for the Diploma Awarding Ceremony:
https://harvard.zoom.us/j/91861831245?pwd=QW1QWFFjQ1g3M093aGtqdFVqTXFnZz09
PROCESSIONAL OF FACULTY OF DIVINITY
PROCESSIONAL OF THE GRADUATES
OPENING REMARKS
Marla F. Frederick
Dean of the Faculty of Divinity, John Lord O’Brian Professor of Divinity, Professor of Religion and Culture
STUDENT COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS
Auds Hope Jenkins
Master of Divinity
AWARDING OF DIPLOMAS
Master of Theological Studies
Master of Divinity
Master of Religion and Public Life
Master of Theology
Doctor of Philosophy
Doctor of Theology
PRESENTATION OF THE GRADUATES
Timothy Whelsky
Associate Dean for Enrollment and Student Services
Katie Caponera
Director of Student Life
DOCTORAL HOODING CEREMONY
Candidates will be hooded by the academic dean and members of the HDS Faculty
Janet Gyatso
Hershey Professor of Buddhist Studies, Associate Dean for Faculty and Academic Affairs
Catherine Brekus
Charles Warren Professor of the History of Religion in America, Chair of the Committee on the Study of Religion (FAS)
Baber Johanson
Research Professor of Islamic Studies
James Robson
James C. Kralik and Yunli Lou Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations (FAS), Harvard College Professor
Jon D. Levenson
Albert A. List Professor of Jewish Studies
Giovanni Bazzana
Frothingham Professor of the History of Religion and Professor of New Testament and Early Christian Studies
Francis X. Clooney, S.J.
Parkman Professor of Divinity, Professor of Comparative Theology
Ousmane Oumar Kane
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Professor of Contemporary Islamic Religion and Society, Professor of African and African American Studies (FAS)
David F. Holland
John A. Bartlett Professor of New England Church History
CLOSING REMARKS
Marla F. Frederick
Dean of the Faculty of Divinity, John Lord O’Brian Professor of Divinity, Professor of Religion and Culture
RECESSIONAL
Music under the direction of Christopher Hossfeld, Director of Music and Ritual, Instructor in Sacred Music
Accompanied by Sujin Hwang, Human Resources Coordinator
Pipe Major David Methven
2024 DEGREE RECIPIENTS*
MASTER OF THEOLOGICAL STUDIES
Hassan Ahmad
Hongmin Ahn
Mostafa Amini
Hamza Arif
Jude Terna Ayua
Sakina Kabir Badamasuiy
Andrea Bischoff
Frima Merphie Bubis
Nicole Malte Collins
Ethan Andrew Cowan
Luca Hjort Del Deo ▴
Maria Dueñas Lopez ▴
Juan Durán
Hannah Eliason ▴
Robert Louis Friedman
Suzie Greco
Anna Dorothy Guterman
Tenzin Gyurmey
Olivia Catherine Hastie
Peter William Hoogstraten
Miriam Israel
Samirah Jaigirdar ▴
Rameen Javadian
Sea Yun Pius Joung
Danbi Jung
Shabbos Israel X Kestenbaum
Jamail Ali Khan
Trinidad Margarita Lara Anthony
Shir Lovett-Graff
Betul Maden-Yilmaz ▴
Destiny Sue Magnett ▴
Christian Peter Maloney
Rose Elizebeth Galik Miller
Ciara Shereen Moezidis
Claire Elizabeth Neid ▴
Elyse “Crow” O’Bannon
Rebecca Oreskes
Rajeev Persaud
Cecily Patrice Powell Tolleson
Amin Qureshi
Francesca Reznik
Corinna Sue Maria Robinson
Joe Rosales
Paloma Sitalin Sánchez Acevedo
Philip Bernard Scholer
Noa Sepharia
Brady W. Schuh
Sama Shah
Margret Teckla Sullivan
Lauren Ann Tassone
Mateo Thompson
Nicole Danielle Tjin A Djie
Edwin Torres
A. Mark Vanderveen
R.J. Vasquez
Howard Andrew Vosburgh
Ailih Weeldreyer ▴
Richard Wight
McKenzie Ann Wilkins
Chen Wu
Jane Xie
Anna Cecilia Zuckerman
MASTER OF DIVINITY
Annie Ablon
Theodore Rose Alderson
Joe Archer
Carla Arevalo
Gianluca Avanzato
Twyla Rivalee Barkakoty
Frank Barrett
Lex Berman
Jeffrey Allen Breau
Isaiah James Briggs
Mauricio Bruce
Madeline Grace Bugeau-Heartt
Sharon Rose Christner
Ryan Kaleb Conston
Ben Davidson
Christopher James Diak
Nicholas Joseph Dunham
Ahmaad Jahi Edmund
Sofia Estrada
Nathalie Folkerts
Chris Eugene Fowler Jr.
Ariella Gayotto Hohl ▴
Paul Gillis-Smith
Talia Goldberg
Kenton Thomas Goldsby
David Holden
Stephanie Hollenberg
Auds Hope Jenkins ▴
Ebony Joy Johnson
Oorja Joshi
Sultan Khan
Alexandra Bray Kinsella
Nathan Knutson
Daniel Kramer
Frances Lee
Ezra Garey Levine
Harriet Alice Lindeman
David Hubel Livingstone
Kristen Maples
Charlotte McAdams
Kenneth Herbert Moales III ▴
Iuliana Mogosanu
Cassandra Arissa Montenegro Perez
Nicole Gonda Newell
Bianca Mariam Padova
Tracie Palmer
Marissa Mira Perea
Rachael Petersen
Zia Pollis
Claire MacKenzie Rensunberg
Francesca Rubinson
Cara Christine Snajczuk
Crow Stacy
Emma Jacquelin Thomas
George Vicente
MASTER OF RELIGION AND PUBLIC LIFE
Jeremy William Barber
Mario Cader-Frech
Alice Hoffman
Sara Jin Li
Daniella Marie Malfi
Brittany T. Paschall
Mary Alice Proffitt
Sara Smirin
Shenandoah Anthony Titus
Raisa Tolchinsky
Joshua Wolfsun
MASTER OF THEOLOGY
Christopher Siuzdak
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
Latifeh Aavani
Carleigh Beriont
Rong Huang
Allison Hurst
Nougoutna Norbert Litoing
Luan Ribeiro
Eric Stephen
DOCTOR OF THEOLOGY
Erik Kim Nordbye
Young Ra Rhee
▴ Indicates Graduates who have earned the Certificate in Religion and Public Life
*This list of 2024 degree recipients is not an official record of degrees awarded.
We congratulate members of the Class of 2024 who have been recipients of the following honors during their time at Harvard Divinity School:
Class Speaker for the Graduating Class of 2024
Auds Hope Jenkins, MDiv ’24
Finalists:
Mauricio Bruce, MDiv ’24
Ahmaad J. Edmund, MDiv ’24
Ciara Moezidis, MTS ’24
Class Marshals for the Graduating Class of 2024
Francesca Rubinson, MDiv ’24
Maria Dueñas Lopez, MTS ’24
Frances Lee, MDiv ’24
John E. Thayer Scholarship for Meritorious
Students, est. 1857
Sama Shah, MTS ’24
Billings Prize for Excellence in Preaching
2024 Winner: Auds Hope Jenkins, MDiv ’24
2024 Finalist: Nicole Marie, MDiv ’24
2023 Winner: Sharon Christner, MDiv ’24
2023 Finalist: Stephanie Hollenberg, MDiv ’24
2022 Winner: Mauricio Bruce, MDiv ’24
2022 Finalist: Sharon Christner, MDiv ’24
2021 Finalist: Cassandra Montenegro, MDiv ’24
Massachusetts Bible Society Scripture Reading Prize
2023 Winner: Nicole Marie, MDiv ’24
Buechner Prize for Excellence in Writing
Nathalie Folkerts, MDiv ’24
Francesca Rubinson, MDiv ’24
The Hopkins Shareholders Prize, est. 1657
2023 Winners:
Ahmaad J. Edmund, MDiv ’24
Ariella Gayotto Hohl, MDiv ’24
Sultan Khan, MDiv ’24
Tracie Palmer, MDiv ’24
Zia Pollis, MDiv ’24
Emma Thomas, MDiv ’24
Stendahl Symposium Presenters
Hannah Eliason, MTS ’24
Anna Guterman, MTS ’24
Olivia Hastie, MTS ’24
Miriam Israel, MTS ’24
Shir Lovett-Graff, MTS ’24
Kristen Maples, MDiv ’24
Brady W Schuh, MTS ’24
Lauren Tassone, MTS ’24
Ailih Weeldreyer, MTS ’24
Thanks & Acknowledgements
Lauren Jung, Student Services Coordinator
Sam Reeve, MDiv ’25
Eve Schwartz, MDiv ’25
HDS Office of Facilities and Operations
HDS Office of Communications
HDS Office of IT & Media Services
HDS Office of Academic Affairs
And very special thanks to all of the HDS staff who provided support throughout today’s ceremony, especially Pedro Vidinha, Wilfredo Galdamez, Noemy Tejada, Jessica Henry, Sammy Perez, Jonattan Munoz, Olivia Henriquez, Olga Alas, Lixandra Rodriguez, RuiJorge Moreira, Djamilo Lopes, and Jaden Daniels
If you would like to view live captions of today’s ceremony in English, Spanish, or French, go to our streamtext page. You can change the caption language displayed via the dropdown menu at the top of the page.
Please visit the HDS news page to view profiles of our graduates as well as read the remarks of all of your Student Commencement Speaker Finalists