This May, the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine celebrated its newest group of veterinarians, scientists and public health professionals as they embarked on the next stage of their careers.

Recognizing Ph.D. grads

The first celebration took place on May 13, with the Biomedical and Biological Sciences (BBS) graduate program honoring its December 2025, May 2026, and August 2026 Ph.D. graduates at the college. Dr. Paula Cohen, associate dean of research and graduate education, gave remarks to the audience, and Dr. Gunther Hollopeter, director of graduate studies, distributed gifts to each graduate. The ceremony honored the members of the BBS Graduate Student Society and Diversity & Inclusion Council volunteers, as well as student awardees of five notable awards:

• NIH F31: Abigail Louks
• NIH F30: Anna McKane
• NSF GRFP honorable mention: Taylor McGee
• NSF GRFP: Eliza O’Donnell
• NSF GRFP honorable mention: Sam Sanderson

All of the college’s Ph.D. graduates were also recognized in the university-wide hooding ceremony in Barton Hall on the evening of May 22.

M.P.H. celebrates its largest graduating class

On the morning of May 22, the college’s graduating M.P.H. class gathered in Yarnell Lecture Hall, welcomed by Lorin D. Warnick, D.V.M., Ph.D. ’94, the Austin O. Hooey Dean of Veterinary Medicine. “In my experience, looking outward to see the needs of other people and to be in service to others is one of the keys to a happy and rewarding life,” he said. “As public health graduates, you will have the good fortune to be in a profession that offers rich opportunities to serve and make the world a better place.”

Dr. Alex Travis, director of Cornell Public Health, addressed the class next. “The world needs public health more than ever, and we need you now more than ever,” Travis said before welcoming commencement speaker New York State senator Leah Webb to the podium. “You have chosen a profession that is an act of love for strangers who you will never meet, whose lives will be better because of what you do — and that, my friends, is not a small thing,” Webb said.

Next, Class of 2026 student speakers Daniel Addo and Jordan Deskins both addressed their classmates, speaking to their gratitude for the support they received on their academic journeys. “This degree is not mine, it’s not yours, it is shared by everyone here today,” said Addo. Deskins echoed the sentiment, adding how her support network helped her through some of her program’s challenges. “They carried my dream for me when I couldn’t carry it myself.”

Next, Dr. Gen Meredith, associate director of Cornell Public Health, led the graduates in the Public Health Pledge before the students received their diplomas, sang the Alma Mater, and celebrated with family, friends and colleagues at the completion of this milestone.

Hooding honors new veterinarians

Later that day, the D.V.M. Class of 2026 gathered in Bailey Hall for the college’s hooding ceremony, crossing the stage before loved ones and mentors to don their ceremonial hoods and accept their diplomas as veterinarians. 

Warnick greeted the crowd, thanking the college’s leaders, faculty and staff for their dedication to the success of their students. “This large enterprise would not succeed without the dedicated work of my colleagues throughout the college and many others across the university,” he said. “Thank you for being here and for all you do every day in support of our students and college programs.” 

The dean next congratulated the graduates and offered advice on how to navigate their future as veterinarians. “Much of your future success will depend on the communication skills you have learned and practiced, your ability to understand and be understood, and resolving differences with civility," said Warnick.

Following his remarks, Dr. Jeanne Best, president of the New York State Veterinary Medical Society, led the graduates in taking the Veterinarian’s Oath before Jai Sweet, Ph.D. ’96, assistant dean for veterinary student services and admissions, then called each graduate to the stage to be hooded.

Patrick Carney, D.V.M.’06, associate professor with the Community Practice Service and the 2026 recipient of the Alexander de Lahunta Teaching Award, delivered the charge to the class, noting that his primary hope for the class was to prioritize quality of life. “Our clients bring their animals to us to assess and improve quality of life, and we provide important and profound guidance in those situations. But a great irony is that we, as a profession, are often surprisingly poor at our own quality of life. Fortunately, the process is really no different, and applies equally to the personal and professional,” he said, going on to list the foundational aspects of self care, such as safe space, the opportunity for play and social interaction. “Don’t be so focused on caring for your patients and clients that you forget to take care of yourselves,” he said. “You are so much more than just veterinarians; you are amazing humans, and working with you has given me so much hope for this world. Thank you for that.”

 Next, associate dean for education Jodi Korich, D.V.M. ’97, presented student awards, including:

• Horace H. White Prize: Christy Joy Santons, D.V.M. ’26
• Malcolm E. Miller Award: Stephanie Lynn Jones, D.V.M. ’26
• Nicholas E. Leonard Pearson Veterinary Prize: Cheng Ma, D.V.M. ’26

After this, Warnick welcomed the college’s acapella group, Ultrasounds to the front of the stage to sing the university’s evening song and Alma Mater, encouraging faculty to join on stage to join in. Together, they led the audience of friends and family in a heartfelt chorus to conclude the ceremony.

All graduates of the college’s degree programs would gather the next day, May 23, to participate in Cornell University’s commencement celebration at Schoellkopf stadium, where friends, families and university members gathered to commemorate the occasion as one community.

Written by Lauren Cahoon Roberts