Lehigh Doctoral Students Honored at 2017 Hooding Ceremony

Main Street Brass played the joyful soundtrack to an equally joyful event on Sunday: Lehigh’s Doctoral Degree Hooding Ceremony. Family, friends and members of the Lehigh community filled the Zoellner Arts Center’s Baker Hall with cheers and applause as they recognized more than 100 graduate students, each of whom completed the extensive coursework, research, exams and dissertation required to earn a doctoral degree.

Earning this degree, said President John Simon in his introductory remarks, is no small feat.

“I know from experience that it takes a great deal of perseverance to earn a doctoral degree,” said Simon. “I’m sure there were times when you wondered whether the sacrifices were worth it, but you have hung in there and conquered your doubts, and as a result, tomorrow you will be the recipients of the highest academic degree, a distinction that marks you as an expert in your chosen field and a person of high intellect and achievement.”

Simon acknowledged the support graduates received from family, friends and faculty members and encouraged graduates to take risks and use their talents to make a difference in the world.

“Know that we expect spectacular things from you,” he said.

One graduate from each of Lehigh’s four colleges was presented with the Stout Dissertation Award, which recognizes significant scholarly achievement in dissertation project. The award was endowed by the late Robert Stout, former dean of the graduate school and professor emeritus of materials science and engineering, in memory of his wife, Elizabeth V. Stout.

This year’s recipients were:

• Rajeswari Banerji, who received a Ph.D. in cell and molecular biology, for “The Regenerating Fin as a Model to Examine the Skeletal Defects of Roberts Syndrome.”
• Ekaterina A. Ponomareva, who received a Ph.D. in economics, for “The Health and Labor Market Effects of Spouse Choice, Maternity Leave and Parental Work.”
• Carin Margriet Molenaar, who received a Ph.D. in counseling psychology, for “Masculinity: Exploring Relevant Cues to Promote Help Seeking Intentions in College Men.”
• Aditi Chakrabarti, who received a Ph.D. in chemical engineering, for “Elastocapillary Phenomena in Soft Elastic Solids.”

Teri Jean Price, who earned a Ph.D. in physics, received the College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Dissertation Award for “Rotationally Inelastic Collisions of Ground-State Helium or Argon with NaK.”

Provost Pat Farrell explained the “distinctly American” tradition of the doctoral hood, which dates back to 1895. The velvet trim of the hood indicates the graduate’s field of study, while the lining represents the university or college where his or her degree was granted.

“Yours will always be Lehigh brown and white,” said Farrell.

The hoods presented to the candidates by their faculty advisors, said Farrell, represent “a long and venerable tradition in American higher education.” They are also “symbolic of the work accomplished and the promise for future creative thought. It is our hope that they also hold warm memories of your time spent at Lehigh University.

“... During the process of completing your doctoral degree, you were creating new knowledge, and your scholarship will influence future directions in your field,” said Farrell. “You who receive your hoods today are the intellectual leaders of tomorrow. That is no small responsibility, but I think it is one that you are well equipped to bear.”

The candidates were presented by Donald E. Hall, Herbert J. and Ann L. Siegel Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences; Georgette Phillips, Kevin L. and Lisa A. Clayton Dean of the College of Business and Economics; Gary M. Sasso, dean of the College of Education, and John Coulter, associate dean for research and operations of the P.C. Rossin College of Engineering and Applied Science.

A celebratory reception followed in the Zoellner Arts Center Atrium and Fowler Black Box Theatre. 

Photos by Christa Neu