COMMENCEMENT
Pepperdine University
Saturday, April Thirteenth, Two Thousand Twenty-Four Ten Thirty in the Morning
Malibu, California
George L. Graziadio Business SchoolMarshal
MICHAEL L. WILLIAMS Associate Dean, Academic Affairs Associate Professor of Information Systems Technology Management
Processional Pomp and Circumstance (Elgar)
Invocation
Pledge of Allegiance
National Anthem
Presiding
Student Address
MARETNO AGUS HARJOTO Professor of Finance
NATHAN E. MEIROVITZ
Class of 2021, Seaver College Class of 2024
HOLLY J. JACKSON Current Student, Seaver College
JAY L. BREWSTER Provost
AMANDA M. AUCIELLO Class of 2024
Presentation of Distinguished Alumnus Award
DEBORAH F. CROWN Dean
DENISE A. ROBERSON Class of 2014
Commencement Address
Presentation of Candidates for Baccalaureate and Graduate Degrees
Conferring of Baccalaureate and Graduate Degrees
Benediction
DENISE A. ROBERSON C-Suite Executive Board Member
DEBORAH F. CROWN
JAMES A. GASH President
Class of 1993, Caruso School of Law
JILLIAN ALDERMAN
Department Chair of Accounting, Finance, and Real Estate Associate Professor of Accounting
(The audience will rise for the benediction and be seated during the recessional.)
Recessional Pictures at an Exhibition (Mussorgsky)
THE MISSION OF THE GRAZIADIO BUSINESS SCHOOL
The mission of the George L. Graziadio Business School is to develop values-centered leaders and advance responsible business practice through education that is entrepreneurial in spirit, ethical in focus, and global in orientation. As a professional school growing out of the tradition of a Christian University, we seek to positively impact both society at large and the organizations and communities in which our students and graduates are members. Therefore, we affirm a higher purpose for business practice than the exclusive pursuit of shareholder wealth. We believe that successful management seeks collective good along with individual profit and is anchored in core values such as integrity, stewardship, courage, and compassion.
GEORGE L. GRAZIADIO, JR. 1919 – 2002
George L. Graziadio, Jr., benefactor and namesake of the Graziadio Business School at Pepperdine University, enjoyed a long and storied career that continues to positively impact education and enterprise. With his business partner George M. Eltinge, Mr. Graziadio founded and opened in 1963 the first Imperial Bank in Los Angeles, which became a leading financial institution with $8 billion in assets. As a partner in the Eltinge and Graziadio Development Company and other real estate firms, Mr. Graziadio also developed more than 100 shopping centers and stores in 20 states.
During his abundant life, Mr. Graziadio devoted time, leadership, and resources to a host of civic and community causes. He served as international president of the 20-30 Clubs and the World Council of Young Men’s Service Clubs, chairman of the board of trustees of the Hugh O’Brian Youth Foundation, a board member of the French Foundation of Alzheimer’s Research, and a member of the Los Angeles World Affairs Council. He also served on the boards of the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce and was a charter member of the National Italian American Foundation, which awarded him its Lifetime Achievement Award for Humanitarian Service.
Mr. Graziadio was the deserving recipient of many honors, including the Horatio Alger Award, the Albert Schweitzer Leadership Award, the Newcomen Society Award, the Great American Traditions Award of the B’nai B’rith Foundation, the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, and an honorary doctor of laws from Pepperdine University. Other recognitions include the Marconi Award from the Sons of Italy of America, the EDDY Award from the Los Angeles Economic Development Agency, the President’s “E” Award from the US Department of Commerce, the Americanism Award and the Good Scout Award from the Boy Scouts of America, the Humanitarian Award of the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and the Grande Ufficiale Award in the Order of Merit of the Republic of Italy.
In 1996 Mr. Graziadio and his wife, Reva, whose involvement with Pepperdine spanned many years, made a monumental gift to the University’s business school, which gained a proud new identity bearing his name. Mr. Graziadio served with distinction as the founding chair of the Graziadio Board. Today, the beautiful Villa Graziadio Executive Center on Pepperdine’s Drescher Graduate Campus stands in testament to the steadfast commitment of the couple, whose legacy endures at the Graziadio School through the active involvement of their children, Mary Lou, Alida, and Louis, and their spouses.
AMANDA M. AUCIELLO
Amanda M. Auciello, originally from Toronto, Canada, has become actively engaged in the Pepperdine community. She serves as vice chair of the Graziadio Student Advisory Board, vice president of Student Relations for the Graziadio Women’s Business Association, and vice president of Student Impact for Net Impact. Ms. Auciello has taken advantage of the University’s extensive experiential education opportunities during her tenure at Pepperdine, volunteering mediation services for Los Angeles County Small Claims Courts through the Straus Institute and participating in Pepperdine’s Global Business Initiatives. The latter included a social entrepreneurship-focused trip to South Africa and service as a business consultant to a nonprofit in Kigali, Rwanda. She also earned the SEER Certificate, intending to apply her knowledge to meaningful contributions in her future career.
Amanda Auciello earned her bachelor of arts from McGill University in Montreal, Canada. Today she will receive an MBA with a dual concentration in dispute resolution and entrepreneurship from the Graziadio Business School.
DENISE A. ROBERSON
Denise A. Roberson has been a trusted C-suite executive for more than 25 years. As a purpose-driven leader and change agent, she is leading some of the biggest brands in the world to actuate their business case for purpose as it pertains to building an engine for growth and innovation, driving 21st -century value creation, and using business as a force for good.
As Omnicom and the TBWA agencies’ first-ever chief purpose officer, Ms. Roberson served Fortune 500 companies including: Apple, Google, Sephora, Disney, and PepsiCo, and has been instrumental in helping businesses connect their brands with purpose and sustainability to create global impact across the stakeholder ecosystem. She is a respected speaker, author, and advisor whose expertise has been sought out by Adweek, Forbes, Cannes Lions, HBR , and the United Nations, among others. Ms. Roberson previously led global communications firm Jadi Communications as its chief executive officer for nearly two decades, offering advertising, marketing, and strategic services to a number of high-profile clients such as National Geographic, Procter & Gamble, Sony, and Mazda Motorcars.
Her work exploring how to bridge generational gaps and support women in the workplace was recently featured in Harvard Business Review ’s book Overcoming Ageism as part of the “Women at Work” series. She is currently a doctoral candidate at Switzerland’s Business School Lausanne, where she is researching the links between a corporation’s commitments to sustainability and purpose to the creation of brand value.
In 2018 Ms. Roberson joined the faculty of her alma mater, serving as a professor in the Graziadio Business School’s Presidents and Key Executives MBA program. She also offers her unique guidance to the Pepperdine community as a Graziadio and Center for Women in Leadership board member. Additionally, she serves as a member of the board for Oxford Leadership, HealRWorld, and Marvel Innovations.
Denise Roberson received her bachelor’s degree in business and communications from Chapman University. In 2014 she completed her master of business administration in the Pepperdine Graziadio Business School’s Presidents and Key Executives MBA program.
RECOGNITION OF HONOR STUDENTS
Distinctive caps, gowns, and hoods have been worn at college and university functions since the Middle Ages, when scholarship was usually associated with a church or monastery. Over the years, the simple hooded gown or cassock evolved into a distinctive academic costume.
Baccalaureate students who achieve a grade point average of 3.5 over their entire undergraduate career, their work in residence, and their major are graduated cum laude and wear an orange honor cord. Those with a 3.7 average in each category are graduated magna cum laude and wear a royal blue honor cord, and those with a 3.9 average in each category are graduated summa cum laude and wear a gold honor cord.
The Pepperdine Graziadio Business School recognizes the superior academic performance of its graduate and undergraduate students that have qualified for and accepted membership in Beta Gamma Sigma, the international honor society for AACSB-accredited schools, by awarding the Beta Gamma Sigma honor medallion.
Today’s academic regalia is profoundly symbolic of the reverence that is still held for the pursuit of knowledge and the achievement of scholarship.
PART-TIME PROGRAMS
Bachelor of Science in Management
Heather Alspach*
Paulina Andrade*
Malcolm Paul Mendoza Coronel†
Farah DeGuzman
Ruzanna Demirchyan*
Nia Celine Gastelum
Juan Pedro Gaxiola
Elizabeth Grimaldo
Angela C. Harris
David Jacobs✧
James Nichlaus Kloos
Brent Koo*
Romina Laino
Jasmine A. Logan
Dominique Nicole Lott
Natalie Caroline Malek
Candela Luciana Meza Stieben
Isaiah Edward Moon
Aida Morales*
Korina Lizzett Navarro
Kelly My Ngo
Bernadette Perry
Amanda Perez*
Jessica Ramos Ontiveros*
Laura Rodriguez
Elsy Julia Mercedes Rojas Diaz
George Safar*
Prince Iyiadé Sanda
Andrew Max Santamaria
Dianne Arguilla Shimakura
Kim Smith*
Michael David Steinke✧
Joshua Uzunyan
David M. Valencia
Patricia Ann Van
Master of Business Administration
Emily Marie Adams
Sunaina Agarwal
Edoe Ezra Agbodjan
Xibo Akers*
Gershon Leon Alaluf✧
Octavio Angel Alarcon Jr.
Kevin Alexander
Kirkland M. Anderson
Joshua Michael Andrasko✧
Edison Alexander Mazo Arias
Juan C. Arias
Jessica Grace A. Arnaldo
Abigail Arriazola
Karenn A. Ayala Zarate
Erik Babajko✧
Rajpinder Bachra
Wesley Thomas Baker
Matthew Ballew
Rebecca Ann Ballod
Andrew Michael Ban
Jamie Bell✧
Gerald Paul Bennett
Ashley Botty*
Nathan Bunkowske
Matt Burkhart
George Taylor Cain
Paul B. Carroll†
Eduardo Castillo
Ishaan Chhabra
Tony Chhear
Jorge Antonio Chilin
Philip Cho†
Jessica Clayton✧
Rachel Elyse Collins✧
Airika Lee Corley
Cody Jacob Crampton
Jessica L. Davis
Narek Davoodian*
Somony Day
Varinder Dhaliwal
Jeff B. Dollus
Danae Mychel Doub✧†
Alex Shahin Ezhari✧
Matthew Faber✧
Jeffrey Todd Fitzgarrald✧
Mark J. Fitzgerald
Natalie Greer Da Silveira Franks
Lana Nichole Frazier
Jack Carter Freeman✧
Rachel Soleil Furutani✧
Penelope Gallardo*
Anthony Gamboa
Dina Garai
Brianda Garay*
Martin M. Garcia
Morgan Gray Garrett✧
Stephanie Nicole Gershowitz
Eileen Geyer
Justene Gibson*
Lauren K. Gilhooley
Esther Gnanadoss
Matthew Thomas Goebel
Arthur Osnaya Gonzalez
KaDo Gorman
Alexa Sara Greenfeld
Xinru Guo
Christopher Guseinov
Guillermo Guzman Jr.
Nowland Bennett Gwynn III
Qurhan K. Hall
Anthony H. Hanna
Banafsheh Hashemi*
Ashley Hernandez*
Nicolette Marie Hernandez
Liana Herrera
Kaylen Renee Herring
Christopher Hilao-Fierros
William Huang
Grant Edward Humason
Dina Jadallah
Teriti Jahani
Jennifer Kang
Marilyn Yutan Kang✧
Gursharan Kaur
Carson Kelly
Edward Kim
Alicia D. King✧
William Thomas Bernard King
Nathan A. Kolta
Hanna Kropf*
David Williams Lamb
Jayson Bennett Lansford
Lauryn Lawton*
Jason Lee
Wing Lee*
Patricia Kaimi Lemieux†
Michelle Letendre
Alicia Liu*
Anthony LoBasso*
Nicholas LoBasso*
Amanda Long✧
Coby James Marcum
Gabriel Mackay Marriott
Daniel Martinez✧
Justine Mathews
Samuel Joseph Matthews
Marshall Kane Maxwell†
Ahmed Ali Memon✧
Lupe Andrea Mendoza
Carlene Marie Meyer
Peony Angelina Minassian
Damian Patryk Miodek
Jacob Moniz
Adriana Morales*
Theodore P. Morissette
Colleen Charlotte Mullen✧
Jena Catherine Murray
Zachary Paul Myer
Stephanie Elizabeth Naddaf
Diana Nicole Necula
Andrew Alfred Nelson
Anastasia Newark*
Lan Thanh Thi Nguyen
Natalie Brooke Garcia Noyes
Meggan Elena Ochoa
Idiuso Nneoma Okeke
Erika Anayca Olmedo✧
Dianna Rose Valdez Osana
Stetson Trent Palmer
Ricardo Saldivar Parra✧†
Emanuel Partiyeli
Avni Nilesh Patel
Barbara Joycelyn Perez
Laura Elizabeth Perry†
Trang Pham*
Daniel S. Pinar✧
Anise Potjes*
Lorrayne Ellice Reiter
Lourdes Reyes*
Brian Scott Rohm
Samantha Romero
Jeff Rothman
Mahsa Sadr*
Sholeh Salari
Amanda Marie Salmen
Cindy Sanchez*
Cicelyn Pesarillo Santoro†
Penelope Juco Santos
Michael S. Saucedo
Ryan Scott Saunders
Kylie Karen Schapiro
Arthur Felix Schutzberg
Paul Jordan Seah†
Lucas Charles Seufferlein
Victoria Irene Shackelford
Saad Rahamathulla Shaik✧
Robert John Slama✧
Alexandra Michelle Slatkin
Laurie Taylor Smith
Whitney Shantè Smith
Kenya Jamahl Spratt
Alexander J. Stevenson
Bria La’Shae Steward
Brionne Renée Steward
Naomi Marie Stewart†
Douglas Norman Stirling
Erica L. Sylvia
Enjung Tai✧†
Shervin Tajbakhsh✧
Rayven Dawn Tate
Andrew Thomas*
Evan Gray Tomer
Kyle Anh Tran
Larry Tsai
Megan A. Tsuruda
Dylan Sidney Turcios†
Colin Taylor Turner✧
Edmund Michael van Eyck✧
Sean Varjoy
Denise Velazquez*
Briana Verham✧
Danielle Janeen Villafana
Caroline Vivas-Durham
Rohan Vora✧
Tiffany Vuong✧
Sahar Wahidi
Shawon Lanye’ Walker
Angela M. Widhalm
Le’Kieah Williams
Jason Michael Wolfe
Jessica Zulema Woodard
Christie K. Yamabe†
Michael Ye
Master of Science in Business Analytics
Shannon Marie Allen
Monique Astorga
Gabriela A. Bravo
Julia Christo Syrdahl
Gabriela Cortes
Garvin Jentry Davis
Ainsley Fogarty
Helun Gao
Brian James Hom
Rhoneil Bautista Hormigas
Brad Sterling Howell Jr.✧
Queenie Huang*
Ray Jung
Christopher James Karman✧
Mark McLellan✧
Jesse Mejia
Kendall Ann Mullen✧
Anh Viet Nguyen
Denise Ogranovich✧
Angelica Liliana Peres
Gabriel Junior Rodriguez
Rebecca Rutherford
Omar Serrano*
Amanda Eleanor Shankwiler
Cary Tai
Karla Carina Torres Martinez✧
Michael Hagop Turpanjian
Master of Science in Human Resources
Jenna Nicole Aranki
Maria Artine
Elise Rhianne Berlied
Jashanna Nicole Bowen
Kourtnie De’Ann Bowen
Kailah Cassandra Cazares✧
Shannon Joy Cloney
Hannah DeCew*
Amy Leigh Ehlers-Norton
Kaitlin Bailey Chang Gentile†
Micah Collin Hadley
Amber Harris✧
Samantha Kendall Hee
Steven Holt✧
Linda Hosler
Federico Jimenez Jr.
Camille M. Johnson✧
Rene Kousari
Sarah Jean Liebel
Jonathon Michael Martinez
Mallory Jayne Myers✧
Ashley Alicia Origel
Hannah Dee Louise Patch
Cindy Pena
Caitlin Perez
Zuleyma Perez
Sophia Roberts
Petite Silvey✧
Margaux Gabriella Stern
Erika Swanson
Erica Jamie Todhunter✧
Karen Marie Ulitt
Master of Science in Management and Leadership
Bobak Afrasiabi✧
Ruth Esohe Ajayi
Mahala M. Bain
James Alan Beaver
Craig Dale Benson✧
Victoria Rose Bowman✧
Staci Nicole Byrnes
Candice JeVon Carver
Michelle Condon✧
Ashley Elma
Kurtis Ray Griffis
Donna Pilger Korn✧
Englesia Leggett*
Brandon Kyle Lewis
Drew Li✧
Jacqueline Magana
Amanda Isabel Maldonado
Imee Mamitag
Nathan Edward Meirovitz
Michelle Nicole Mekikian
Marcelo Andres Montalvan
Angela Lee Newman
Amelia Reiling†
Angel Armando Reyes†
Gregory Byron Ritchey✧
Heidi Bianca Roddenberry✧†
Kayla Sidenstricker✧
Priya Sumal✧
Rayford Don Tate
Jeannette Yie-Gin Toews
Laura Tortora
Adam Mark Wilkinson
Brittany Fallon Winkelman
FULL-TIME PROGRAMS
Master of Business Administration
Amanda Madeline Auciello
Shahaf Bartal
Luke Gannon Bowers✧
Benjamin Samuel Shapiro Castillo
Joseph J. Ceglia
Karolina Anna Czaplicka
Anita Emtiaz✧
Paige Anne Fontes
Elizabeth Marilyn Gessford
Sarah Howell
Zahra Kamel
Aaron Yousef Kashanirokh
Andre Raynor Lawrence†
Leonard Lamax Long III
Asher B. Low
Cody O. Maly
Abigail Maxson†
Ervin Niza Mercado†
Amelia E. Neumann-Samek
Erika Maria Daniela Perez
Alec Michael Petersen
Jacob Philip Piccuito
Michelle Elise Rho✧
Darlene N. Sritapan
Austin Hurley Wilson
Chase Douglas Wonders
Yiting Yan✧†
Isabel Cristina Zelaya†
Lanxi Zhang
Master of Business Administration, International
Paige Anne Fontes†
Ning Cai
Leonard Long III
Master of Science in Applied Finance
Jiayi Du
Master of Science in Business
Ellie Mae Jackson
Master of Science in Business Analytics
Jacobus Adriaan Eksteen
Giovanni Gonzalez
Zhanqi Huang
Rui Kong
Kuangzheng Li
Nan Lou
Yisi Luo
Yun Luo
Adam Sulaiman Malik
Benafsha Mannan†
Jesús Alberto Rivera Hernández
Yifan Sheng
Illona Virginia Widjaja
Yao Xiao
Rentian Xu
Han Yan
Haojie Zhang
Shengfei Zhang
Zijun Zhang
Yiyuan Zuo
Master of Science in Global Business
Abdalaziz Abaalkhail*
Danah Abdulrasoul
Farah Abdulrasoul
Farrah Abu Seif
Bader Aljabri*
Bader Aladsani
Rakaan AlAjmi
Ahmad Alenezi
Abdullah Alhajeri*
Saleh Almatouq
Naser Aloraifi
Abdulatif Raed AlShehab
Razan A. M. E. Alwazzan
Ao Cheng
Xuerou Cheng
Raymond Cho
Yun Du
Leticia G. Gabino
Nicole E. Gabino
Yuxuan Guan
Luer Hao
Xiangning He
Zhenfeng He
Ningjun Huan
Xutong Huang
Yancheng Jiang
Zhiye Jin
Able Kusaloka
Boyang Li
Jinao Li
Qiwen Liu
Xingzhou Liu
Danni Long
Junyi Lu
Lauren A. Luna
Zhipeng Wang†
Chuan Wang
Jiliang Wang
Xinyu Wang
Zihan Wang
Jingwei Wu
Zhenghua Wu
Ziqian Xu
Jing Yang
Jiangke Yao
Chien-Wei Yeh
Dongyou Yu
Chenxi Zhang
Xinyuan Zhang
Zhixing Zhao
Junyu Zhou
Zixu Zhou
EXECUTIVE PROGRAMS
Master of Science in Organization Development
Katherine V. Ai Le
Kristina D. Banfield
Thomas Mark Draper
Paul David Gowin
Henry M. Hughes IV
Hossannah Majuelo†
Megan Elizabeth Malave
Lleni N. Sandoval
Golnaz Tahsini
Angela Dixon Williams
Master of Business Administration, Executive
Lindsay Anastasio†
Anthony Thomas Bretti III
James Christopher Caldwell
Michael Joseph Clemenza✧
Patrick Joseph Dawson✧
Brandon Linton
Agnes E. Morgan
Robert Anthony Navarro
Kelly Hanh Nguyen
Junior Oqueli Ramirez Euceda
Mary Catherine Saralegui
Valerie Denise Shaw
Dale James Zimmerman
Master of Business Administration, Presidents and Key Executives
Veronica Alcaraz
Erika Estudillo De Ponce
Jamaal Jackson
Douglas Edward Meyer
Nicole Moorer
Christian John Pass
Sravani Patel
Congcong Qian†
Steven Raubolt
Darlene Marie Salas
Damon Way
Toby Nicole White†
DOCTORAL CANDIDATES BY HOODING FACULTY
Doctor of Business Administration
Dr. Christina Gibson
ALBA RUTH PRATO
The Latina Leadership Journey: Experiences of Latinas in Accounting
*Graduate of a different term.
†Student donor
✧ Member, Beta Gamma Sigma Honor Society.
Note: This is not an official graduation list.
NOTES
NOTES
Accessible Seating
SERVICES
Drinking Water
First Aid
Lost and Found
Restrooms
Sun-Sensitive Seating
Blue chairs indicate the area for accessible seating plus one accompanying guest. Please find posted signs or ask an usher for assistance.
Drinking water is available in dispensers in various locations on Alumni Park.
First aid is available at the first aid/ information tent near the entrance of Alumni Park. If an emergency occurs, please ask the nearest usher for assistance.
Please visit the information tent regarding any lost or found items.
When facing the stage, restrooms are located to the left of the graduation ceremony area.
A small area of shaded seating is located to the left of guest seating.
To view a live broadcast of this event, scan the code or go to go.pepperdine.edu/commencement