The latest generation of Payne family lawyers — Beckley native Chris Payne — will walk across the West Virginia University College of Law Commencement stage at 9 a.m. May 15. Also the president of the WVU Law Class of 2026, Payne may be among the first, fourth-generation Black lawyers in the country.
For Reilly Rollman, a senior civil engineering major with a minor in applied mathematics at West Virginia University, an early exposure to construction helped shape a long-term academic and professional path in engineering.
Inspired by his own family tragedy, West Virginia University School of Medicine graduating senior Jonathan “Tucker” Bennett is on a mission to save others through emergency medicine.
In recognition of their dedicated service in the health, retail and legal fields, West Virginia University will award honorary degrees to Arthur Gabriel, co-founder of Gabriel Brothers, Tom Jones, former WVU Health System president and CEO, and former West Virginia Supreme Court Justice Beth Walker during May Commencement.
West Virginia University senior and Glen Dale native Isabella Linton chose neuroscience because it’s a new and rapidly changing field. As a student, she’s gained vast experience in research and learned more about the role stress plays in women’s health. Linton plans to work in the field for a year after her May graduation before enrolling in a clinical psychology graduate program.
When Molly Watterson enrolled in the business data analytics master’s program at West Virginia University, she found what had been missing for her professionally since she started working for major retailers.
At West Virginia University, Sarah Giles learned the part that rarely makes it on the brochure — there isn’t a straight line into the music industry. You build your way in — through relationships, hustle and long nights. Most importantly, you just keep showing up.
West Virginia University Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources graduate student Noah C. Parsons’ advanced aerospace engineering research has garnered international attention and recognition as one of 20 emerging leaders worldwide who are shaping the future of aviation and aerospace.
For Brianna Hodak, a fourth-year Doctor of Dental Surgery student in the West Virginia University School of Dentistry, a myriad of opportunities to serve others through rural health care drew her to the University. Since enrolling at WVU, the native of Spring Church, Pennsylvania, has immersed herself in communities across the state and followed her passion for improving access to care.
Elkins native Clare Talbott, a sophomore at the West Virginia University Davis College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, packed her bags for a semester abroad at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, one of the foremost natural science universities in Europe.