Thurgood marshall college seal

THURGOOD MARSHALL COLLEGE CLASS OF 2025

COMMENCEMENT EXERCISES
JUNE 14, 2025

At our time in Thurgood Marshall College, we became aware of our place in the long genealogy, in the great story of us; how legacies of resilience and sacrifice culminate into us, the heirs of great lineages of radical hope and love. We bear the faces, names, and histories of lives well-lived, of dreams realized and accomplished.

— Maria Lucilla "Aya" Bernal, Senior Speaker

Thurgood Marshall College

Mission

At Thurgood Marshall College, we are dedicated to empowering students from all majors to become scholars critically aware of the complex histories of ongoing social struggle and of the roles they play in shaping the future. Marshall College furthermore centers mutuality and recognizes that students themselves teach and transform the College through their very presence and participation in it.

History and Philosophy

In 1970, Third College was founded in response to a student movement, to provide a broad liberal arts education to students of all majors, while also helping them to develop as Scholars and Citizens, so that they will excel both academically and as engaged members of their community. The college has been central to the establishment of the university’s academic programs in Urban Studies and Planning, Education Studies, Communication, Third World Studies, Ethnic Studies, Public Service, African American Studies and Film Studies.

In 1993, Third College was named Thurgood Marshall College in honor of a man whose life’s work and philosophy embodied the college’s ideals. Thurgood Marshall became a lawyer and, when he became the director of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, masterminded the strategy that ended legalized racial segregation in the United States. Marshall was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals by President Kennedy, then to the Office of U.S. Solicitor General, and finally to the United States Supreme Court by President Johnson. As an associate justice of the Supreme Court, Marshall left a legacy of tireless commitment to the powerless and the voiceless.

Thurgood Marshall College has been committed to the education of people who traditionally have been underrepresented on college campuses. UC San Diego recognizes that diversity in the student population enhances everyone’s intellectual experience. The college logo of three hands interlocking was selected in 1974 to symbolize the unity and diversity of our college population and the wider community. Introduced in 1991, the required freshman course Dimensions of Culture: Diversity, Justice and Imagination has helped students understand the variety of experiences that people have had in the United States. Thurgood Marshall College aims to expand students’ intellectual horizons and to prepare them to be leaders and engaged participants in society — as scholars and as citizens.

MarStole Tradition

Thurgood Marshall said, “None of us got where we are solely by pulling ourselves up by our bootstraps.” The Marshall Stole of Gratitude, or MarStole, is a Marshall College tradition that celebrates those individuals who have supported students in their journey and achievement. Students wear the stole as they cross the commencement stage and can give it to their special supporter. MarStoles are red satin sashes embroidered in white with the Marshall College logo of three joined hands, which represents the spirit of community.

Thurgood Marshall College Commencement Exercises

Processional

Call to Order

Leslie Carver
Provost

Land and Labor Acknowledgement

Leslie Carver
Provost

Commencement Welcome

Leslie Carver
Provost

Senior Address

Maria Lucilla "Aya" Bernal
Political Science: Race, Ethnicity, and Politics

Commencement Address

Kent Lee '07
Keynote Speaker

Recognition of Award Recipients

Presented by the following

Leslie Carver
Provost

Amber Vlasnik
Dean of Student Affairs

Emily Gonzales
Dean of Academic Advising

OUTSTANDING FACULTY AWARD

Dr. Amanda Solomon Amorao
Dimensions of Culture Director, Associate Teaching Professor

DR. JOSEPH WATSON PROVOST AWARD

Alesia Andrade

THURGOOD MARSHALL AWARD OF ACADEMIC DISTINCTION

Lilian Xia

PROVOST’S ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE AWARD

Pallavi Singamsetty

OUTSTANDING SENIOR AWARD

Samantha Cerrudo Chan

DEAN’S AWARD FOR LEADERSHIP AND SERVICE

Alyssa Helene Haruko Falk

UC SAN DIEGO ALUMNI OUTSTANDING SENIOR AWARD

Samantha Cerrudo Chan

TRANSFER LEADERSHIP AWARD

Jeffrey Michael Chapman, Jr.

DISTINGUISHED SENIOR SERVICE AWARDS

Maria Lucilla "Aya" Bernal
Rebecca Cardona
Kristen Chen-Eng
Jonathan Chanh Trung Duong
Alyssa Huie
Raigan Danielle Johnson
Jessie Subin Kim
Vitasta Mahajan
Nicole Rose Vassar
Annmarie Lyla Vera
Tiffany P. Yuen

Conferral of Degrees

Leslie Carver
Provost

Turning of the Tassel

Samantha Cerrudo Chan
Outstanding Senior Awardee 

Closing

Leslie Carver
Provost

Faculty and Student Recessional

The Class of 2025 requests that families and guests remain seated until the faculty and graduates have recessed.

CONGRATULATIONS CLASS OF 2025!