Spring Commencement

Gianna Fiduccia Follows in Her Family's Footsteps

admin — Thu, 01 May 2025 12:31:41 +0000

Gianna Fiduccia Follows in Her Family's Footsteps admin Thu, 05/01/2025 - 08:31

Gianna Fiduccia didn’t know much about Georgia Tech when deciding where to go to college, but with an affinity for STEM and two generations of chemical engineers in her family, she instantly felt a connection to the Institute during her first visit in 2021.

Fiduccia’s grandmother, Edita Asuncion, immigrated to the United States 50 years ago from the Philippines before becoming one of the few female chemical engineering students at her university and entering the field as a large-scale manufacturer of chemical products. Fiduccia’s mother, Deanna, also became an engineer, specializing in the production of commercial cosmetic products.

She watched as her role models made their mark in a male-dominated field and wanted to follow in their footsteps.

“They paved the way for me and other women. A lot of young adults choose their career paths based on influence, and so, having two amazing female chemical engineers in my life showed me that the doors were wide open for any opportunity I wanted to pursue. I recognized how special and unique that privilege was and decided to pursue a challenging, meaningful career path because of it,” Fiduccia said.

In high school, she became interested in pharmaceutical research before choosing to study chemical and biomolecular engineering at Georgia Tech. As a student and while completing internships with Moderna and Merck, Fiduccia always felt she “had a seat at the table” because of women like her mother and grandmother.

Eager to explore new biotechnology research on campus, she joined Mark Prausnitz’s lab to assist with developing an mRNA-lipid nanoparticle microneedle patch for vaccine delivery. The project, which could assist in the ease of drug delivery and accessibility, is one that Fiduccia says led her to pursue a Ph.D.

“My time at Georgia Tech has shown me how creative science can be and how to take something you’re curious about, like a new drug-delivery system, and explore it without limitation. I decided to do a Ph.D. because of this freedom of exploration and a deep understanding that early-stage research could one day influence the future of healthcare,” she said.

Fiduccia will attend the University of Pennsylvania for her doctorate, but having attended a small, all-girls high school in her hometown of Yardley, Pennsylvania, she said that meeting people from all over the world has been among the most rewarding aspects of her Georgia Tech experience.

Outside of the classroom, she was a member of Miracle, a student-run nonprofit raising funds for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

With her family as her guide, Fiduccia identified a goal to become an engineer. As she completes her undergraduate degree here, she’ll mark a major milestone on her path toward using her dream “for the betterment of society.”

Subtitle

After watching her mother and grandmother pave the way, Gianna Fiduccia is carrying on the tradition of chemical engineers in her family.

Summary sentence

After watching her mother and grandmother pave the way, Gianna Fiduccia is carrying on the tradition of chemical engineers in her family.

Summary

After watching her mother and grandmother pave the way, Gianna Fiduccia is carrying on the tradition of chemical engineers in her family.

Dateline

Thu, 05/01/2025 - 12:00

Contact

Steven Gagliano – Institute Communications

Associated importer

Keywords

Spring Commencement

News room topics

Campus and Community

Engineering a Day at the (Theme) Park

admin — Fri, 25 Apr 2025 13:41:41 +0000

Engineering a Day at the (Theme) Park admin Fri, 04/25/2025 - 09:41

As a member of a military family, Dennis Velez moved a lot throughout his childhood, but no matter where they lived, whether it was Jacksonville, Florida, or Yokosuka, Japan, the nearest theme park always felt like home.

Velez never tired of the thrill of a roller coaster and other attractions, but the more parks he visited, the more interested he became in their design and operation — most memorably as an elementary school student during a trip to Tokyo Disneyland.

"The more I learned, the more I realized that it's one of the craziest engineering problems you can have. Sending people on these attractions that go for hours on end every single day of the year, they have to be perfectly safe and perfectly designed to make sure they can run efficiently and give the same experience to every guest every day," he said.

Velez arrived at Georgia Tech in 2021 as a mechanical engineering student. He quickly earned the nickname "safety guy" in the Theme Park Engineering Design Club, as he continued to narrow his focus and determine how to use his major in the industry.

"There are insane ideas for rides and how they are supposed to make you feel — like you're flying on a broomstick or traveling through space,” he said. “So, how can we leverage technology that exists to reflect that idea, make sure it works as intended, and run it safely?”

Velez became Georgia Tech's first student representative on the ASTM Committee F24 on Amusement Rides and Devices — a global organization that develops standards and best practices for theme park attractions. Completing internships with Oceaneering's entertainment systems division and Universal Studios, he learned the project management skills to see an idea come to fruition and better understand the teamwork required to execute its delivery.

"When you're an engineer, you're never working on your own. You're always working with a lot of people, and you have to make sure that you can work well with others and integrate your skills with your team,” he said.

Velez sees that same principle of interconnectedness in his role as a trumpet player in the Yellow Jacket Marching Band.

"If you mess up as one of 40 trumpets, people may not notice because other members are there to hold you up. It's another aspect of uniformity and connectedness in a group, and it starts with having a strong connection. For the band, that comes from doing something we love for our school and getting in the heads of the opposing teams at the same time," he said.

His extracurricular activities and internships took him to new places during his undergraduate degree program, but Velez calls the trip to Ireland to kick off the 2024 college football season his "magnum opus" and an experience he'll remember for a lifetime.

Velez will return to campus in the fall to pursue a master's in mechanical engineering before entering the industry. While he admits there were stressful days along the way, he never viewed his time as an undergraduate as a roller coaster, but rather a day at the park.

"Theme parks were always our happy place because we were together as a family, and I'm just excited to one day see the reactions of kids and their families experiencing a ride that I worked on, and giving them that same sense of wonder," he said. “This industry is all about bringing joy to others, and I want to do my part in creating this outlet for all to enjoy."

Subtitle

Theme parks have always felt like home to Dennis Velez. He wants to recreate that feeling for people around the world.

Summary sentence

Theme parks have always felt like home to Dennis Velez. He wants to recreate that feeling for people around the world.

Summary

Theme parks have always felt like home to Dennis Velez. He wants to recreate that feeling for people around the world.

Dateline

Fri, 04/25/2025 - 12:00

Contact

Steven Gagliano – Institute Communications

Associated importer

Keywords

College of Engineering; George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering

Spring Commencement

News room topics

Campus and Community

Mercury ID

682012

Source updated

Fri, 04/25/2025 - 09:40

Meet the Spring Commencement Reflection Speakers

admin — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 16:18:41 +0000

Meet the Spring Commencement Reflection Speakers admin Tue, 04/30/2024 - 12:18

With family, friends, faculty, and classmates looking on, five graduates will address the crowd inside McCamish Pavilion as this year’s Spring Commencement reflection speakers.

The speakers will be Nikhil Iyengar, a Ph.D. aerospace engineering candidate; Stefanny Arcos, an undergraduate economics candidate; Rishit Desai, an undergraduate computer science candidate; Ritvik Ramakrishnan, a master’s computer science candidate; and Kathleen Devlin, an undergraduate industrial engineering candidate.

Ph.D. Ceremony: Nikhil Iyengar

Nikhil Iyengar recalls that he "felt a buzz" inside of McCamish Pavilion when he attended his first Georgia Tech basketball game at the beginning of his Ph.D. program. During Commencement, he'll deliver a message to his classmates in the same arena.

"So much of our academic journey has been forward-looking. We look forward to finishing our classes. We look forward to completing our qualifying exams. We look forward to proposing and (finally!) defending our theses. It's a wonderful feeling to realize that the moment we have awaited has arrived. I hope every graduate takes a short stroll around campus to celebrate and cherish this milestone," he said.

Iyengar immersed himself at Tech by competing in the Three Minute Thesis competition, joining clubs, and participating in campus events. These experiences gave him a sense of community, which he leaned on through the challenging moments and shared the successes with along the way.

Originally from Mumbai, India, Iyengar grew up in Valley Stream, New York, and will join Sandia National Labs in San Francisco to develop climate change models and forecast the impact of environmental policies on climate. As a passion project, he plans to pursue a pilot's license, saying, "If I know why a plane flies, I should also learn how to fly it."

Friday Morning: Stefanny Arcos

One grade in one class doesn't define an academic career. After a disappointing grade on her first differential calculus exam, Stefanny Arcos wondered if she was cut out for Georgia Tech, but help from her advisors and friends gave her a new mindset that powered her through to Commencement — and it's one she intends to share.

"I think imposter syndrome is real, and I want to help remind my fellow graduates that they are enough. It's so important to focus on celebrating our small daily victories just as much as the big ones," she said.

This opportunity gives Arcos a chance to thank those who helped her throughout her journey, and that support is what she'll miss the most. "I have met incredible friends and mentors, and I will always be thankful for my time here. Even at my lowest lows, I was always surrounded by people who comforted and cared for me.”

The Douglasville, Georgia, native will graduate with a degree in economics, and before starting law school, she will take some time off to visit family in Ambato, Ecuador.

Friday Afternoon: Rishit Desai

Rishit Desai dreamed of becoming a Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket since he was a child, and from the moment he arrived, he was determined to make the most of his time on campus. Participating in numerous clubs and student organizations, Desai was searching for his “why,” and he hopes to inspire his fellow graduates to find theirs.

"We all have our own journeys toward reaching our goals. Find what makes your journey unique to you. Be open to exploring new aspects and opportunities. Discover your passions and strive to make the biggest impact you can make with them. This is something we can carry with us wherever this next chapter takes us," he said.

Like many in the Class of 2024, the computer science graduate began his degree program at the onset of the pandemic. He believes it instilled a "historic resilience" into the student body that will shape their work ethic for years to come.

Desai, who hails from Columbus, Ohio, will miss the student section of Bobby Dodd Stadium, but when he joins Manhattan Associates' Atlanta office as a software analyst, he'll be close by to attend future home games.

Saturday Morning: Ritvik Ramakrishnan

A speech impediment kept Ritvik Ramakrishnan from finding his voice until middle school. The ability to overcome obstacles is a lesson the Stamps President's Scholar will share from the podium.

"My message to my fellow graduates is to embrace their strengths, persevere through challenges, and use their voices to make a difference,” he said. “I want to encourage them to view setbacks as opportunities for growth, trust the process, and never underestimate their potential as Georgia Tech graduates. Just as I found my voice and learned to embrace my strengths, I know each of them will find their path to success, paved with the white and gold of Georgia Tech."

Ramakrishnan is looking forward to seeing his classmates' faces as he delivers his speech after his high school graduation speech was delivered virtually. A member of Startup Exchange, a CREATE-X Scholar, and a master's candidate in computer science, Ramakrishnan believes the collaborative energy across the Institute is unmatched, especially in its entrepreneurial endeavors.

Before joining McKinsey & Company as a business analyst, the Frisco, Texas, native will participate in a six-week spiritual retreat.

Saturday Afternoon: Kathleen Devlin

Before college, Kathleen Devlin lived in Mexico, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, and New Jersey, but she found a sense of belonging at Georgia Tech. Like many of her peers, the industrial engineering major likes to find solutions with data, but between the number of all-nighters, football games attended, or time spent at the CRC, she knows not everything fits into an equation.

"I want to share with my fellow graduates that our college experience cannot be defined. It cannot be simply quantified or boiled down to just one particular moment. It is, rather, all-encompassing," she said.

Analyzing the numbers of Commencement, Devlin has calculated that it takes an average of 32 seconds to cross the stage, shake President Cabrera's hand, and exit, so she encourages all graduates to enjoy every moment of that experience.

After Commencement, she will head to her "happy place" at the beach and take a European vacation before moving to New York City in August to start as a sales and trading analyst at J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.

Subtitle

Five speakers will address their fellow graduates as they complete their Georgia Tech journeys.

Summary sentence

Five speakers will address their fellow graduates as they complete their Georgia Tech journeys.

Summary

Five speakers will address their fellow graduates as they complete their Georgia Tech journeys.

Dateline

Tue, 04/30/2024 - 12:00

Steven.gagliano@gatech.edu

Contact

Steven Gagliano - Institute Communications

Keywords

Reflection speakers

Spring Commencement

News room topics

Campus and Community

One in a Million

admin — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 13:17:41 +0000

One in a Million admin Tue, 04/30/2024 - 09:17

In the weeks after Commencement, Andrew Rogers, a master's medical physics candidate, will begin looking for a place to live in Texas for his residency, take a family vacation to Alaska, and return to his hometown of Augusta, Georgia, to pack for his big move.

But a busy travel schedule is nothing new for Rogers. Diagnosed with hepatoblastoma at the age of 3, he spent over a decade traveling between Augusta, Philadelphia, and Atlanta, with lengthy hospital stays in between, undergoing treatment for the rare childhood liver cancer.

Given a prognosis with a "one-in-a-million" chance of survival, Rogers had two liver transplants before the cancer spread to his lungs and brain. In total, he endured 50 surgeries before his 13th birthday, and it was during the countless trips to Atlanta that he dreamed of two things — attending Georgia Tech and making a difference for kids facing similar struggles.

Unlike chemotherapy or other procedures, Rogers found radiation therapy to be a painless experience, in part thanks to the radiation therapists administering the treatment.

"They may not have thought much of it at the time, but in those moments, by playing with me, making me laugh, making me a Spiderman radiation mask, they helped me forget — even for a second — that I had cancer and helped me enjoy life. I think about that every day. I hope to one day change a child's life like my therapists did for me,” he said.

Now 18 years cancer-free, Rogers earned a bachelor's degree in radiation therapy from Augusta University. A program director told him about Georgia Tech's medical physics program, and, since arriving at the Institute in 2021, he has sought hands-on experience in the field. Completing the clinical portion of the program through a partnership with the Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Rogers learned each role within the rotation.

"From booting up machines and checking on patients to everything else, I just started wanting to come in every day. I'd go in for free just because I love what I'm doing," he said.

Rogers wasn't immune to the stresses of everyday college life, but he approached them with a positive perspective.

"My parents told me that there's always a light at the end of every tunnel, and it's always going to be worth it in the end. So, I will keep telling myself and everybody else that when they're going through a hard time, keep pushing,” he said. “Things may be painful and stressful now, but think about what you will achieve in the future and the people you will help get through battles of their own. That will always keep me motivated."

Rogers isn't done with medical appointments, but with each yearly checkup, he never tires of hearing the words he hopes to deliver in his career: "All clear."

Subtitle

Andrew Rogers was given a week to live at 3 years old. Now cancer-free, he wants to make sure no child with cancer goes through it alone.

Summary sentence

Andrew Rogers was given a week to live at 3 years old. Now cancer-free, he wants to make sure no child with cancer goes through it alone.

Summary

Andrew Rogers was given a week to live at 3 years old. Now cancer-free, he wants to make sure no child with cancer goes through it alone.

Dateline

Tue, 04/30/2024 - 12:00

Steven.gagliano@gatech.edu

Contact

Steven Gagliano - Institute Communications

Associated importer

Keywords

College of Sciences

Spring Commencement

Cancer research

News room topics

Campus and Community

Spring Commencement

Gianna Fiduccia Follows in Her Family's Footsteps

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Engineering a Day at the (Theme) Park

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News room topics

Meet the Spring Commencement Reflection Speakers

Ph.D. Ceremony: Nikhil Iyengar

Friday Morning: Stefanny Arcos

Friday Afternoon: Rishit Desai

Saturday Morning: Ritvik Ramakrishnan

Saturday Afternoon: Kathleen Devlin

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One in a Million

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