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ImageAurora, New York—Wells College’s 140th Commencement exercises will take place at the Aurora Inn this Saturday, May 24, at 10:00 am. The College will confer degrees on 84 members of the Class of 2008, including nine from the Ithaca area.

The graduates and their guests will hear remarks from Wells trustee Gail Leftwich Kitch, executive director of MacNeil/Lehrer’s By The People. Ms. Kitch’s talk is entitled “What is Possible,” which she intends as a statement rather than a question.

“As these students prepare to graduate from Wells College, the sense is that anything is possible, both for them and for Wells,” said Ms. Kitch. “This is deeply personal for me, and as a board member who knows many of these graduates, I want to explore what is in fact possible for them. I continually reflect on how fortunate I am to have been given the background and skills necessary to take advantage of the many opportunities presented to me, and recognize that the freedom an excellent education provides is a marvelous gift. To me, that is what commencement is – starting out on a wonderful experience with no idea where it will lead, yet knowing one is prepared to face whatever comes thanks to the confidence and knowledge you have gained at Wells. Anything is possible.”

Wells College educates students to think critically, act humanely, and reason wisely in a global society, preparing them to share the privilege of education with others as they seek to improve their communities and society as a whole. Of particular note among this year’s many exceptional graduates is Nicole Riley of Cortland.

Nicole Riley is this year’s senior class president, elected by her peers. She has also served as a resident hall advisor; been a member of Programming Board, the body which schedules and promotes large student events on campus; sat on the Collegiate Constitution review committee; and worked for the campus anti-war network in her sophomore year. She is applying for residence life positions at colleges across the country, and plans to go on to graduate school for a masters in higher education administration after taking a year off. Nicole is the daughter of Larie Riley of Cortland.

Ithaca area graduates are:

  • Diana MacKenzie of Lansing; major in foreign languages, literatures and cultures, concentration in French, minor in art history

  • Mark Broderick of Ithaca (in absentia); major in English, concentration in creative writing

  • Kathleen Kanalley of Moravia; major in economics and management, concentration in economics

  • Emily Marzeski of Genoa; major in English, concentration in literature, minor in elementary education

  • Nicole Riley of Cortland; major in history

  • Maria Rojas of Ithaca; major in sociology/anthropology, concentration in sociology, minor in Italian

  • Jennifer Rossbach of Groton; major in psychology

  • Justine Rouse of Moravia; major in foreign languages, literatures and cultures, concentration in Spanish, minor in secondary education

  • Levi Velez Reed of Freeville; individualized major in international politics and economics

This is the second year that men will graduate from the College; nine male students will receive diplomas this Saturday.

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