{"686806":{"#nid":"686806","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Meet the Fall Commencement Reflection Speakers","body":[{"value":"\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAcross all majors and degrees, every graduating student shares the accomplishment of completing a journey. At each of this fall\u2019s ceremonies, a student reflection speaker will address the crowd with their perspectives on how Georgia Tech has shaped them and parting words of advice to their classmates.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe speakers will be Alison Jenkins, Ph.D., mechanical engineering; Jocelyn Kwarteng, B.S., computer science; and Justin Huang, M.S., analytics.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EAlison Jenkins, PhD Ceremony\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA prototype is the result of hard work, iteration, and continued belief in an idea, but as Alison Jenkins graduates with a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering, she wants to remind her classmates that completing a prototype is not the end of the journey.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Keep experimenting. Stay curious. Innovation needs a spark of fun. The world is counting on you to develop new technology to improve the human condition,\u0022 she said. \u0022Every great engineer starts with the belief that something can work, even before knowing how. Our optimism keeps us iterating. When a prototype breaks or a simulation diverges, that\u0027s not failure \u2014 it\u0027s data.\u0022\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EJenkins served in various leadership and mentorship roles as a graduate student, and she implores her classmates to engage with their local communities, find time to connect with themselves, and rely on the support systems around them.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHer journey at Tech took her to the skies as a member of the Yellow Jacket Flying Club and to the sea as a volunteer for the Georgia Tech Scuba Program\u0027s Rescue Diver certification. After graduation, Jenkins will continue to work on engineering and flight-related projects for the U.S. Air Force. Having recently joined the NASA Analog Astronaut roster, she hopes that her work and that of her fellow graduates will one day take Yellow Jackets to Mars.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EJocelyn Kwarteng, Bachelor\u2019s Ceremony\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EJocelyn Kwarteng remembers the nerves she felt attending New Student Convocation at McCamish Pavilion, signing her name inside a RAT cap. As she prepares for the \u0022full circle moment\u0022 of Commencement in the same venue, she wants her classmates to know that, if the walls across campus could talk, it\u0027s their stories they\u0027d tell.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022Every challenge conquered, every discovery made, every late-night breakthrough, they\u0027re all built into you. The transformation these walls would talk about? That\u0027s you. That\u0027s your story,\u201d she said. \u201cI don\u0027t know about you, but I want my life to echo the story these walls would tell, one of resilience, brilliance, and impact. And maybe it\u0027s the confidence this Institute gave me, but I know we can all do it. We already have.\u0022\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EA student ambassador, member of the Student Government Association, the African Student Association, and other organizations, Kwarteng embraced opportunities to immerse herself in campus life and never let uncertainty stop her from stepping out of her comfort zone \u2014 a lesson she put into practice by stepping into the spotlight as a reflection speaker.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cI\u0027ve wanted to speak at Commencement for a long time, but I almost didn\u0027t submit because I didn\u0027t think my speech was good enough. I pushed myself because I knew I\u0027d regret not trying. This opportunity is a testament to pursuing your goals even when you feel unsure. It shows me that sometimes you have to do it scared, because taking the chance can lead to something bigger than you imagined,\u0022 she said.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAfter Commencement, Kwarteng will move to Washington, D.C., to work at IBM.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Ch3\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EJustin Huang, Master\u2019s Ceremony\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/strong\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/h3\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EJustin Huang knew that earning a master\u0027s degree in analytics from Georgia Tech would help him in his career, developing large language models and cybersecurity tools for the healthcare industry. However, the goal that kept him going through the sleepless nights was the chance to earn \u0022the ultimate dad brag.\u0022\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0022The kind of leverage I can pull out when my kids complain about grades: \u2018Listen, kids, your old man was a straight-A student at Georgia Tech. What\u0027s your excuse?\u2019 Pure, motivational leverage,\u0022 he said.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHuang hopes his message will resonate with graduates as they celebrate their achievements and share their own motivations. Throughout his time at Tech, Huang became a mentor to his classmates and was quick to share his expertise in specialized areas like natural language processing and machine learning.\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E\u003Cdiv\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAfter Commencement, Huang intends to continue his career and celebrate his achievement with his family at the soon-to-open Pok\u00e9mon Park at Yomiuri Land in Kawasaki, Japan.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/div\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":[{"value":"These three students will share their experiences with the crowds at Commencement."}],"field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EThese three students will share their experiences with the crowds at Commencement.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"These three students will share their experiences with the crowds at Commencement."}],"uid":"36418","created_gmt":"2025-12-09 18:50:52","changed_gmt":"2025-12-09 19:00:11","author":"sgagliano3","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","location":"Atlanta, GA","dateline":{"date":"2025-12-09T00:00:00-05:00","iso_date":"2025-12-09T00:00:00-05:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"678808":{"id":"678808","type":"image","title":"New-Reflection-Speakers-Fall-2025.jpg","body":"\u003Cp\u003EThe fall 2025 Commencement reflection speakers. From Left: Alison Jenkins, Jocelyn Kwarteng, and Justin Huang.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","created":"1765306538","gmt_created":"2025-12-09 18:55:38","changed":"1765306538","gmt_changed":"2025-12-09 18:55:38","alt":"Fall reflection speakers","file":{"fid":"262891","name":"New-Reflection-Speakers-Fall-2025.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/12\/09\/New-Reflection-Speakers-Fall-2025.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/2025\/12\/09\/New-Reflection-Speakers-Fall-2025.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":140979,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/2025\/12\/09\/New-Reflection-Speakers-Fall-2025.jpg?itok=_UaODTgr"}}},"media_ids":["678808"],"related_links":[{"url":"https:\/\/commencement.gatech.edu","title":"Commencement Information"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"193157","name":"Student Honors and Achievements"}],"keywords":[{"id":"190493","name":"Reflection speakers"},{"id":"40171","name":"fall commencement"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:steven.gagliano@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ESteven Gagliano\u003C\/a\u003E \u2013\u0026nbsp;Institute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}