Commencement
Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology Commencement Ceremony
Friday, May 16, 2025 • 3:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. • Save Mart Center
As we eagerly anticipate this joyous occasion, our faculty, staff, University President, and Provost are excited to join in celebrating the achievements of our students.
Consequently, I wish that every student relishes this significant milestone. We recognize the hard work and persistence demonstrated in 16 or more years of formal education.
On behalf of our faculty and staff, I thank you for choosing to continue your education at Fresno State in the Jordan College. This ceremony recognizes your completion of a university degree that can open so many doors for you. The opportunities ahead will allow you to make a difference in the world.
For those who are family, friends, and well-wishers of our graduates, we recognize you for your support and encouragement.
Thank you for entrusting the education of these graduates to us, and helping us celebrate them as they continue a new journey beyond the university.
Sincerely,
Dr. Rolston St. Hilaire
Dean, Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology
Dr. Steven Rocca
Associate Dean, Jordan College of Agricultural Sciences and Technology
Ceremony
National Anthem and Alma Mater Vocalist
Dr. Erin Stafford Dormedy
Mace Bearer
Dr. Sharon Benes
Dean’s Address
Dr. Rolston St. Hilaire
Associated Students, Inc. Address
Faith Van Hoven, ASI President
President’s Address
Dr. Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, President, California State University, Fresno
Recognition of Honorary Doctorate Recipient
Dr. Dennis Sam Parnagian
Recognition of Jordan College Dean’s Medalists
Recognition of Jordan College’s Outstanding Thesis and Project
Recognition of Jordan College Honors Cohort Members
Presentation of Graduates by Department Chairs/Coordinators
Dr. Srinivasa Konduru, Department of Agricultural Business
Dr. Annette Levi, Department of Animal Sciences and Agricultural Education
Dr. Erin Stafford Dormedy, Department of Food Science and Nutrition
Dr. Arun Nambiar, Department of Industrial Technology
Dr. John Bushoven, Department of Plant Science
Dr. Sonet Van Zyl, Department of Viticulture and Enology
Conferral of Degrees
President Dr. Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval and Dean Rolston St. Hilaire
Graduate Dean’s Medalist
Mauricio Soriano, Plant Science
The Santa Maria native is a first-generation college student with a 3.58 GPA and the son of Salvadoran immigrants who fled during its civil war to the United States. Upon graduating from high school, he enlisted in the U.S. Army as an infantryman and served two combat tours in Afghanistan while stationed at Fort Carson, Colorado. After his honorable discharge, Soriano pursued a B.A. in biological sciences at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, where he discovered a passion for plants. This interest led him to the Central Valley to conduct research with faculty Dr. Sharon Benes that supports the environment, agriculture and the community. Their project uses satellite imagery to estimate forage yield in high-salinity soils irrigated with drainage reuse water — an approach that promotes water conservation but can lead to soil degradation. He was awarded the Gerald O. Mott Graduate Student Award by the American Society of Agronomy, where he also serves as chair of the Military Veterans in Agriculture Specialty Group.
Undergraduate Dean’s Medalist
Vanessa Jauregui-Salgado, Agricultural Business
The Fresno native, a first-generation college student and daughter of Mexican immigrants, earned a B.S. degree in three years with a 4.0 GPA, which included a minor in precision agriculture technology. She competed on student marketing business case study projects at industry conferences, and served as president of the Agricultural Business Club — National Agri-Marketing Association Chapter. She also served as vice president of the Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences Chapter and helped organize the Agricultural Business Department annual banquet and Agribusiness Management Conference. She also participated in a study abroad class in Spain that involved wine market and consumer sensory analysis last summer, then learned about crop, soil, pest and irrigation management as an agronomy intern for Reiter Affiliated Companies. She currently works with the California Agave Council and collects industry research, assists with grants, and develops educational materials to attract new agave growers in the Central Valley.
Outstanding Project
Kaitlynn Linderholm
M.S. Animal Sciences and Agricultural Education
Outstanding Thesis
Katherine Nathania
M.S. Food Science and Nutrition
Standard Bearers
Hannah Chamberlin (Undergraduate)
B.S. Plant Science
Katherine Nathania (Graduate)
M.S. Food Science and Nutrition
Agricultural Business
Kent Harris (Undergraduate)
Animal Science and Agricultural Education
Madeline Henson (Undergraduate)
Hannah Williamson (Graduate)
Food Science and Nutrition
Kaylin Prayitno (Undergraduate)
Katherine Nathania (Graduate)
Industrial Technology
Mauricio Vargas (Undergraduate)
Tanmay Parkar (Graduate)
Plant Science
Hannah Chamberlin (Undergraduate)
Victoria De Leon (Graduate)
Viticulture & Enology
Malia Mora (Undergraduate)
Quinn Cahoon (Graduate)
The Jordan College Honors Program provides accomplished students an opportunity for advanced interdisciplinary study and engagement with a faculty mentor on a research or scholarly project.
The program consists of a three-semester commitment, beginning with a 3-unit honors seminar taken in the second semester of junior year.
This is followed by a 3-unit independent study with a faculty mentor to work on a research project in the first semester of senior year.
Finally, a 3-unit honors colloquium in the second semester of their senior year serves as a culminating experience where they make a public presentation of their research or scholarly project.
We are proud to honor our 10th cohort at today’s convocation.
They are listed here with their faculty mentor and the titles of their research projects.
Chelsea Castillo Najera (Pre-Veterinary, Mentor: Dr. Katy Tarrant): Impact of Environmental Enrichments on Litter Moisture.
Hannah Chamberlin (Plant Science, Mentor: Dr. Florence Cassel): Evaluation of the Efficacy of a Cytokinin-Based Biostimulant on Yield and Quality of Processing Tomato Subject to Deficit Irrigation.
Daniella Garcia (Agricultural Education, Mentor: Dr. Sam Rodriguez): Pre-Service Agriculture Teachers’ Perceived Self-Efficacy in Teaching Agriculture Mechanics at California State University, Fresno.
Donnel Gray (Pre-Veterinary, Mentor: Dr. Gayle O'Bannon): Evaluation of Corn Supplementation in a Fixed-Formula Diet for Sheep.
Cameron Ivy (Agricultural Education, Mentor: Dr. Sharon Freeman): Evaluating Soft-Skill Development for Students Participating in the Agricultural Career Readiness Skills Certificate Pathway for the 21st Century (ACRS21) and FARMS programs.
Rachel Mancebo (Agricultural Education, Mentor: Dr. Steven Rocca): Examining the Sustainable Agriculture Values and Demographic Characteristics of Gen Z Undergraduates in an Agriculture College.
Paige Ounesavath (Human Nutritional Science, Mentor: Dr. Shabnam Pooya): Melanocortin 4 Receptor Gene Variants and Their Impact on Metabolic Health in Overweight and Obese Fresno State Students.
Kaylin Prayitno (Food Science and Nutrition-Culinology, Mentor Dr. Jamie Levitt): Assessing the Educational and Training Needs of U.S. Dairy Processors.
Mallory Sutherland (Agricultural Business, Mentor: Dr. Serhat Asci): Consumption of Fresh Produce and its Correlation to Food Insecurity in the Central Valley.
Emma Tripp (Agricultural Education, Mentor: Dr. Sharon Freeman): Evaluating the Effectiveness of a Marketing Campaign for the Agricultural Career Readiness Skill Certificate Pathway for the 21st Century (ACRS21).
Jordan College Graduates 2025
Honors:***Summa Cum Laude
Red/Blue/Gold Cords
3.90 - 4.00 GPA
**Magna Cum Laude
Red/Blue/Silver Cords
3.70 - 3.89 GPA
*Cum Laude
Red/Blue Cords
3.50 - 3.69 GPA
+ Master’s Degree With Distinction
3.9-4.0 GPA
Bachelor of Science
Agueda, Anthony***
Aguilar, Alejandro
Aguilar, Alysa M*
Alizaga, Joaquin***
Andrade, Byron
Arroyo, Andrew***
Babagian, Aram
Balakian, Thomas
Bonomi, Nathaniel
Broderick, Patrick***
Brown, Joshua
Burgin, Madison
Buriel, Bianca***
Corbo, Aidan
Cranmer, Ethan
Devine, Carson
Dodge, Trey
Donnelly, Katelyn
Dunaway, Richard
Ecker, Grant
Escobar, Starr*
Flores, Paul
Friesen, Jacob***
Gallagher, Chase*
Garcia, Osvaldo
Garcia, Oswaldo
Garduno, Israel
Godoy Quintero, Daisy*
Gomez, Itzel*
Gretlein, Caleb
Hall, Allison
Hall, Samuel
Harris, Kent***
Hartwig, Blake
Hernandez-Chavez, Maribel***
Hicks, Garret**
Howison, James
Iest, Brayden*
Infante, Kayla
Iniguez, Melissa
Irigoyen, Taryn*
Jauregui-Salgado, Vanessa***
Jimenez-Saldana, Angelica
Jimenez, Jesus
Kahlon, Jayraj*
Kunkle, Hannah***
Lopez Serrato, Anthony
Lugo, Jennifer
Machado, Michael**
Magana Quezada, Natalia
Mann, Haden
Martinez, Uciel
Matias Chavez, David
Milavich, William
Miranda-Gutierrez, Fabiola
Montes, Alyza*
Moreno, Carter
Nabors, Jack**
Orozco, Emily
Pimentel, Mandy**
Ragsdale, Teddy
Redfeairn, Wilson*
Reichmuth Jr., Gregory
Roberts, Percy
Rodriguez, Ixtlaly
Salcedo, Alyssa***
Sandlin, Ashley
Santos, Zachary
Simas, Katie
Soto, John-Michael
Stone, Hunter***
Struckmeyer, Julyessa
Tidwell, Brooke*
Todd, Adison
Torres Garcia, Abelardo
Torres, Gabriela
Trujillo-Carbajal, Rogelio
Urbina, Roberto
Vang, Aaralyn**
Vargas, Cesar
Verdin, Francisco*
Walker, Kyle
Ward, John
Watson, Chace
Winton, Lucas*
Wlasiuk, Courtney**
Xavier, Gracie
Zambrano, Bernardo
Zarate, Maria*
Master of Science
Cumming, Eleanor
Hernandez Tapia, Brenda
Hirschler, Maggie+
Linderholm, Kaitlynn+
Suarez, Amy+
Swall, Lindsey+
VanScoy, Stacy+
Bachelor of Science
Aguilera, Arianna
Allen, Haley
Allmon, Karissa***
Andrade, Yuliana**
Arevalo-Mercado, Alejandra**
Armstrong, Abigayle
Arreola, Sinhue
Azevedo, Alayna*
Azzaro, Nicolas
Banuelos, Gema
Barajas Cortez, Carolyne
Barrera, Aliza
Bedolla, Paulina
Bejines, Madison
Bettencourt, Janie
Blankenship, Jordyn
Blevins, Kaitlyn
Boatz, Catherine**
Borba, Vivian*
Boxley, Hunter*
Briseno Velazquez, Silvia
Bullard, Shalyee
Burns, Gabriel
Carpenter, Torrance
Carreno Zetina, Pedro
Carrera, Leila
Castillo, Amaya*
Castillo, Yailin
Chandler, Andria*
Chanthapany, Peter
Coito, Courtney*
Contreras, Daisy
Copland, Kimberly***
Cortes, Lorena|
Cuellar, Darlene
De Anda, Nicole*
De La Cruz, Artemisa
De Leon, Alexander
Degerli, Anisa
Diaz, Luz
Doyle, Calie**
Dutra, Victoria**
Echeverria, Alijah
Enrriquez, Ana
Farley, Jacob
Flores, Daira
Fortney, Gillian**
Fortunato, Gemma
Fowler, Braden*
Fransen, Dale***
Garcia Rivera, Sandra
Garcia-Martin, Ilse
Garcia, Daniella***
Garcia, Kinnedy*
Giang, Amy
Gonzalez Garcia, Roxanne
Gonzalez, Crystal
Gonzalez, Daniela**
Gonzalez, Jamilynne
Goupil, Rachel
Graziano, Arianna*
Gross, Katelyn**
Gutierrez, Clarice
Haller, Austin***
Hanchen, Maren
Hara, Holly
Hatfield, Danielle
Henson, Madeline***
Her, Lisa
Hill, Brogan**
Holland, Larynne***
Huizar, Vanessa
Jackson, Kaylilah**
Jacobson, Justin***
Johnson, Toi
Katz, Kayla**
Kim, Lola*
Kulikov, Macie
Lemm, Allison*
Lopez, Evelyn
Loquaci, Rebecca
Lowry, Hannah
Loyd, Moria**
Lucchini, Sara**
Madrigal-Madriz, Elizabeth
Magdaleno Mendez, Viviana
Mancebo, Rachel***
Martinez, Sierra***
Martinho, Brandee
Mata, Hayley
Mayall, Emily
Medina, Alexis
Mendoza, Jorge
Mendoza, Noemi
Molina, Mateo
Morales, Jeanette
Morales, Justin*
Moreno, Jocelyn
Neal, Kyle*
Neves, Jordyn
Oberti, Dominic
Ochoa, Brisana
Olvera, Williams
Ornelas Vieyra, Mailin*
Pamplona Quiroz, Dafne**
Paredes, Monserrath
Pastori, Kortney
Payan, Vanezza
Plascencia, Angel
Porter, Sarah
Prado, Maris***
Price, Saydie
Pullin, Emma
Reyes, Cinelli
Reynoso, Mia*
Rios, Cynthia
Rios, Daniel
Rodriguez Guzman, Mario Alberto
Rodriguez, Liseth
Rodriguez, Michelle
Rogers, Kiana
Rojas-Vasquez, Leslie
Romero, Daniela***
Rosales, Ilse
Silva, Chloë**
Smith, Lindsey
Sneath, Clayton
Sollecito, Taylor***
Townsend, Taryl
Tran, Justin
Twisselmann, Schanell
Vaca, Lisset***
Van Ness, Stephanie
VanderPoel, Ava
Vang, Alia
Vang, Shiney
Welch, Sabrina
Williams, Kalilah
Williams, Katelynn*
Wise, Gianna
Wolf, Melanie***
Zarate, Elisa*
Zipser, Alyssa**
Zurita, Lourdes
Master of Science
Adlard, Thomas+
Andrada, Jamaila
Cruickshank, Bonnie+
De Castro, Neeca+
Delgadillo, Arturo
Linares, Trinity+
Nathania, Katherine+
Page, Richard+
Peretto, Kimberly
Sanghera, Navdeep
Walker, Diymond+
Zarate, Leslie+
Bachelor of Science
Andrade Bedolla, Guadalupe
Avila, Cesar
Awad, Yasmine
Bates, Samuel***
Bedolla-Ramirez, Maria
Cajero, Zulema
Carranza-Duran, Yann
Cernansky, Hannah***
Chavez-Valdez, Yesenia
Daily, Sydney**
Felsted, McKenzie***
Garcia, Crystal*
Guerrero, Rosa Patricia
Hagerty, Jenna
Hernandez, Areanna
Holman, Patrica**
Madeja, Bryana*
Madrigal, Marissa*
Montijo, Lillian
Morales, Martha
Moreno, Alexis
Orozco, Francisco
Prayitno, Kaylin***
Qualls, Casey**
Ritter, Mark
Rosas, Emily
Shehadey, Abigail***
Silva, Skyler*
Valdez, Patricia**
Vasquez, Joshua*
Wilcox, Samuel
Winfrey, Marissa***
Zarak, Timothy
Master of Science
Martinez Jr., Juan+
Morales, Andy
Pawar, Mansi
Singh, Amitoj
Bachelor of Science
Almaraz, Efrain**
Amaral, Logan**
Arceo, Jesus*
Bockman, Evan***
Bolanos Gutierrez, Maurisio
Campos, Fermin
Duran Guerrero, Adriana
Gonzalez, Jose
Jackson, Jake
Jackson, William
Koesterer, Dane*
Kuykendall, Seth
Miller, Charles*
Naranjo, Emilio***
Silva, Jesus**
Smith, Kalem
Vargas, Mauricio*
Vivanco Morales, Sergio
Master of Science
De Leon, Victoria B.
Hatem Squiapati, Pedro
Soriano, Mauricio
Bachelor of Science
Alfaro Garcia, Ramon Ignacio
Alves, Brady
Ambriz Maldonado, Jorge
Ayala, Anna
Bernabe Hernandez, Juana**
Bustos, Alonso
Camacho, Keyla
Campos, Jacob
Campos, Jared
Carrillo, Brian
Chamberlin, Hannah***
Chavez, Jose
Coelho, Jordon
Coker, Ricky
Dabbs, Isaiah*
Delgado, Aaron
Dias, Baylee
Dowling, William
Duft, Nicholas
Espinoza, Lorent**
Estrada, Osvaldo
Flores, Jazmin
Gaona, Juan
Garcia, Alejandro
Gervacio, Juan
Gonzalez, Juan
Granados, David**
Gutierrez, Adrian
Gutierrez, Lilyanna
Guzman-Mendoza, Yasmin
Hall, Iliah***
Hernandez, Christian
Hernandez, Desiree
Horwitz, David**
Krueger, Andrew***
Lawrence, Tanner*
Ledesma, Axel
Lucatero-Avila, Yadira**
Magana Gonzalez, Juan*
Mata, Luis
Miranda Rodriguez, Oscar
Morado, Daniel Edward**
Morales, Haydee
Moreno, Joseph
Narez, Daniel
Ortiz, Tonantzin
Ozuna, Tanner*
Paredes-Aguilera, Jaqueline
Phillips III, Jacob***
Pimentel, Joseph
Quezada, Jimena
Ramos, Jose
Rios Martinez, Juan
Rios, Gabriela
Rivera, Adina
Sandoval, Jose
Santiago, Alexis
Santiago, Hulise
Serrano Vargas, Fernando**
Shergill, Eric*
Thompson, Jared
Tiscareño, Ashley
Vazquez, Alfredo
Weatherson, Kristyn
White, James*
Wilson, Caleb**
Young, Cobe*
Master of Science
Cahoon, Quinn+
Fitzgerald, Jedediah+
Parker Wong, Deborah
Salie, Marnelle
Bachelor of Science
Farr, David
Granados, David**
Guzman Torres, Edgar
Hutchinson, Jacqueline
Jenkins, Preston
Maldonado Castro, Erik
McVicker, Keara
Minjares Munoz, Violeta
Mora, Malia**
Saldivar Vela, Benito
Silva Ibarra, Antonio
Solis, Adan