See President Riordan’s latest From My Desk message and stories below.
On the first Wednesday of each month, I send out a personal newsletter on a topic that interests me deeply. Here at Adelphi, we are transforming students’ lives, and I have so many stories to tell about how we do that—with our outstanding faculty and diverse and welcoming campus; through life-changing internships and winning athletics and performing arts opportunities; and by our personalized approach to higher learning. The Adelphi community of students, faculty, staff and alumni is making news around the country and the world, and I am thrilled to share these stories with you!
Dear Adelphi family and friends,
One of my greatest honors as our University’s president is welcoming a new class into our close-knit community. Our traditional Matriculation ceremony, pre-COVID, would launch the academic year with inspiring speeches, time-honored traditions and excitement for the promise of an enriching Adelphi experience. This year, like many things, our welcome is different but just as warm. I joined our Class of 2024 on Zoom to install them, officially, as Panthers—presiding over our first-ever new-student pinning ceremony, and encouraging them to “find a path, and a journey, that is their own.”
For Fall 2020, our 1,007 new first-year undergraduate students come to us from 33 states and 21 countries. Academically, the average undergraduate GPA is 3.6, reflecting our credentials as a U.S. News & World Report Best College. Our graduate class is especially strong, with 882 new students joining one of our seven graduate schools or Adelphi Online. Additionally, reflecting our commitment to be a universally welcoming home for students, 42 percent of our new students identify as diverse.
I invite you to meet four of many unique new members of our community:
I hope you enjoy reading about some of our newest Panthers and why they chose to call Adelphi home—no matter where they happen to be!
All the best,
Christine M. Riordan, Ph.D.
President
Christopher Alvarez ’20 never let his rare form of thanatophoric dysplasia stand in the way of achieving his dreams. An activist and social media star, Chris also wrote for The Delphian while earning his Adelphi degree in both journalism and economics. He’s now taking his world-class Adelphi foundation to the Graduate School of Journalism at Columbia University.
La-Keir Morris has devoted her career and life to working with victims of domestic violence and serving as a foster parent. Now she's entered Adelphi's graduate program in social work with a goal of starting her own youth development organization.
Alma Lorena Monreal Munoz is a painter and designer who has been honored as a young entrepreneur in her hometown of Hermosillo, Mexico. She's also a winner of this year's You Are Welcome Here Scholarship, coming to Adelphi for our five-year BBA/MBA program.
Brando Ortiz is coming from nearby Queens, but he's already traveled the globe winning world championships in salsa competitions. He'll study dance and business at Adelphi.
Samantha Meehan loves the wide-open spaces of her native Colorado, but the energy of New York has drawn her to Adelphi, where she'll play on the volleyball team and study chemistry on an academic scholarship.
Can quilting and other crafts traditionally practiced by women help advance the cause of feminism? Research by Courtney L. Weida, EdD, associate professor in the Ruth S. Ammon School of Education and director of graduate art education, shows ways that they can. Read about it in “Feminism in the Arts,” a feature article in our Fall 2019 Academic and Creative Research Magazine.
Adelphi alumni have a great tradition of giving back to society. This month, I want to honor the memory of an alumnus who gave his all. Mark Leighton Bowen ’09, RN, received his Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Adelphi in 2009 and had returned this past December to earn an MS in Nursing Education, continuing to care for his older patients as the pandemic raged.
