Princeton CBE honored its 33 graduating seniors in a Class Day ceremony on Monday, May 23, conferring honors and awards for outstanding academic achievement. The ceremony marked a return to tradition, held in person and on campus for the first time in three years.
"Seniors, you have overcome very special obstacles to get to where you are today," said department chair Athanassios Panagiotopoulos, the Susan Dod Brown Professor of Chemical and Biological Engineering. "Kudos to all of you!"
Due to the sharp rise of COVID-19 cases in March 2020, the Class of 2022 pivoted from regular instruction to remote instruction during the spring semester of their sophomore year. This cohort’s junior year was primarily remote, with some students living on campus and carrying out independent work. The whole class completed their senior year and thesis projects entirely on campus.
Panagiotopoulos also emphasized the role of the students' support networks — their families and friends who sustained the graduates throughout four years of personal and academic challenges.
"This is one of the most demanding majors at Princeton," said José Avalos, the department's director of undergraduate studies and an assistant professor of chemical and biological engineering and the Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment. "But many of our graduates here were keen to explore all that Princeton has to offer."
Twenty-seven of the graduates earned certificates in 15 different programs, including neuroscience, music performance, German language and culture, sustainable energy, applications of computing, materials science and engineering biology.
Ten graduates earned honors; seven more earned high honors; and three students earned highest honors.
Twenty-two of the graduates were inducted into one or more honor society: Sigma Xi, for distinguished scientific research; Tau Beta Pi, recognizing outstanding engineering achievements; and Phi Beta Kappa, the nation's preeminent liberal arts honor society.
Ella Feiner received the department's top award, the Overall Excellence in Chemical Engineering Award, recognizing her exemplary coursework.
A ceremony held by the School of Engineering and Applied Science, in the afternoon, recognized the graduating seniors as part of the full BSE program. SEAS honored two CBE graduates: Syndey Hughes won the Elgin Prize, highlighting her work to advance the interests of SEAS in the community at large, particularly in the area of sustainability; Selena Chiu won the Lore von Jaskowsky Memorial Prize, honoring her excellence in research into biofilms and her all-around contributions to campus life, emphasizing her work as a peer mentor.
Princeton CBE's Great Class of 2022
The full list of chemical and biological engineering students graduating in the Class of 2022, along with any honors and awards they received, is below:
Matthew Adler
Anahi Ambrosio
Connie An
Honors, Sigma Xi
Christodoulos A. Floudas Chemical Process Design Award
Grace Bechtel
Honors, Sigma Xi
Taj-Jahnae Brailsford-Forde
Selena Chiu
High Honors, Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi
Lore von Jaskowsky Memorial Prize
Ella Feiner
Highest Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi
Overall Excellence in Chemical Engineering Award
Joanna Georgiou
Honors, Sigma Xi
Christodoulos A. Floudas Chemical Process Design Award
Sydney Hughes
High Honors, Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi
Michelle Goudie '93 Senior Thesis Award, funded by the DuPont Company
Elgin Prize
Shadman-as-sami Jahangir
Brian Kang
Honors, Sigma Xi
Dolly Lampson-Stixrud
Michelle Goudie '93 Senior Thesis Award, funded by the DuPont Company
Jarrad Li
Honors, Sigma Xi
Kimberly Lu
Harsimran Makkad
High Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi
Ernest F. Johnson Distinguished Service Award
Clare Martin
Honors, Sigma Xi
Sophia Martinez
Honors, Sigma Xi
Ernest F. Johnson Outstanding Senior Thesis Award
Satya Nayagam
Honors, Sigma Xi
Chiara Nilsson-Salvati
High Honors, Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi
Jimi Oniya
Monica Patiño
Derek Poletti
Sigma Xi
Sebastian Quiroga
High Honors, Sigma Xi
Sigma Xi Book Prize
Brianna Royer
Sigma Xi
Cristian Ruano Arens
Honors, Sigma Xi
Stephane Sartzetakis
Binglun Shao
Highest Honors, Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi
Richard K. Toner Thermodynamics Prize
Katherine Shelburne
High Honors, Tau Beta Pi, Sigma Xi
Christodoulos A. Floudas Chemical Process Design Award
Alp Tartici
High Honors, Sigma Xi
Grace Wei
Highest Honors, Sigma Xi
SABIC Senior Thesis Award
Grace Xu
Honors, Sigma Xi
Ilya Yatsishin
Kevin Yee