Spring 2020 commencement celebrations were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The UNC School of Information and Library Science (SILS) recognized our winter 2019 and spring 2020 grads online and on social media in May 2020, later that year in the fall SILS newsletter, and in the spring of 2021 at the first SILS Virtual Commencement.

Scroll through this page to find links for graduate spotlights, a virtual commencement address, traditional commencement honors, and more.

Class of 2020 graduates who want the chance to celebrate on campus should make plans to attend special events planned by the University for October 2021.

Bachelor of Science in Information Science (BSIS)

Khalaf Nesreen Bassam Abu

Ehinome Jason Akhimien (2019)

Matthew Hyatt Allison

Hasan Asadi

Kyle Robert Ashburn

Ashley Marie Baich

Jeremy Thomas Beeker

Sarah Tucker Bost

Elizabeth Anne Bueche

Rishi Nilesh Champaneria

Chia-Ling Chen

Emily Lynn Clinton

Rosiyah Cordaro

Carson Cy Cutright

Stephen Lawrence Deluca

Haley Anna Dezwaan

Justin Lee Do

AlexanderR. Donovan

Michael Joseph Doucette Jr.

Kayla Rose Dowdy

Solomon Edward Duncan

Torin Edwards

Allegra Ramazani Fiets

Carter Holden Frye

Kyle Nathaniel Gabbard

Jeet Galani

Janavie Gandhi

Kayla Gardner

Alexis Ryan Gaviola

Ian Cooper Goodson

Gauri Nitin Goswamy

Laura Elizabeth Haller

Jade Kiana Hampton

William Berkeley Hayes

Rachael Lauren Head

Riley Thomas Head

Lydia Jeanette Heater

Shane Prashad Heeralall

Marwa Jaafar

Michael Jabar

Radhika Kamleshkumar Jagani

Rahul Jain

Suvrat Jhamb

Matthew John Kind

Joshua Eric Krause

SunJin Lee

Gregory Majeski (2019)

Lucas Maynard

Andrew O'Neil McClenney

Michael McGinniss (2019)

Neil Nainesh Mehta

David Nguyen

Nhi Nguyen

Jwalanta Panthee

Isa Shamir Paschall

Chase Andrew Pasciuto

Saumil Patel

Alfredo Miguel Quiros

Jacob William Ryan

Torrey Hana Salas

Mirabel Thea Salmon

Esha Shah

Mahnoor Siddiqui

Preston Smith

Elizabeth A. Soucaze

Melissa Williams Stewart (2019)

Sarah Jane Stonehouse

Zoe Sandra Strafford-Price

Bryant Alexander Thai

Bryan Edward Truong

Azeem Ahmad Uraizee

Adrianna Vu (2019)

Aylish Wastchak

Karley Wheeler

Hugh White

Vivian Wiktorek

Christopher Graves Williams

Mackenzie Locklear Williams

Jingyuan Zhou

Master of Science in Information Science (MSIS)

Eden Joelle Andes

Lynnee Marie Argabright

Erin Allison Black

Dorothy Lee Blyth (2019)

Neil Patrick Byers

Claire Eleanor Cahoon

Yuru Cao

Julia Elizabeth Cavalier

Bennett E. Chapman (2019)

Cai Chen

Jonathan Clancy (2019)

Emily Claire Crockett

Rucha Hareshkumar Dalwadi

Leah Epting (2019)

Julie Elizabeth Fieldsteel (2019)

Elizabeth McWhorter Ford (2019)

Luzita Francis

Kayla Nikkole Angelique Michelle Gibson

Caroline Goray

Anna Catherine Groves (2019)

Samantha Helen Haughton

Jiesong He

CharlesMichael Higgins

Rui Hou

Andrew Daniel Jacober (2019)

Hyun Seo Albert Kang

Paul Michael Khawaja

Whitney-Jocelyn Badou Aude Ursule Kouaho

Meng Li

Yanan Li (2019)

Zihao Li

Ziyue Liang

Zhangsinong Liu (2019)

Kathleen Diane Lowry

Samantha Rae Gaufo Mandani

Zhaohui Man

Mariesha Rosalita McAdoo

Megan McMahon

Hely Rajendra Mehta

Chenlu Meng (2019)

Lingqi Meng (2019)

My Anh Nguyen

Nkechinyere Nwoko

Nadia Pacheco-Amaro

Suchi Kamal Parekh

James Wyatt Patterson

Carson Nicole Pence (2019)

Guanru Peng

Teresa T. Phan

Deborah Gray Reed

Nicole Robertson (2019)

Diane Judith Rodden

Todd Smith Jr.

Karina L. Soni

Anusha Suresh

Feyza Aisenur Teke

MarlerSlate Tuttle III

Manhua Wang

Peilin Wang

Qishun Wang

Yuan Wen

Venkatapraveen Wunnava

Lu Xu (2019)

Yuxuan Xu

Ruiting Yang

Yukun Yang

Yuxiao Yao

Wei Zhang

Bo Zhou

Jingyi Zhou

Master of Science in Library Science (MSLS)

Anicka Austin

Taylor Barrett

Christopher S. Bishop (2019)

Yuqiao Cao

Clare Therese Carlson

Alexander J. Chisum

Peter Owen Conlon

Isabel Erin Crevasse

Stephanie L. Crowell

Brooke Csuka

Nicole Cvjetnicanin

Shannon Marie Delaney

Sharon Marie Demorest

Alexandra Deyneka

Rachel Elizabeth Duffus

Leon Sebring Dure V

Macy S. Ferguson

Melissa Ashley Ferens (2019)

Jayna Corinne Fishman

Catherine Gallagher

Courtney George

Cary Gentry

Emily Elizabeth Gering (2019)

Christina Elizabeth Getaz

Graceon Brooke Gordon

Gerald Henry Groon III

Sarah Catherine Guy

Gabrielle Elyse Hale

Alexandra G. Helms

Katharine Herman

Christopher Edward Hill

Olin Johnson

Kathryn Julia Kehoe

Jennifer Lorraine Kirby (2019)

Meredith Lindsey Kite

Hannah Sophia Link

McKenzie Louise Long

Phillip Thomas MacDonald

Mariel Ann MacGowan (2019)

Gillian Mary Mahoney (2019)

Abigail Mann

Brittany N. McCarver

Joseph Allen McGraw

Margaret Christine McGuire

Veronica Dolan McGurrin

Evan Jared Miles

Lydia Jean Neuroth

Katherine Orth (2019)

Austin Riopel

Holly Nicole Roper

Michelle Suzanne Runyon

Erin Melissa Rutherford (2019)

Deane Antonio Rynerson (2019)

Sabine Hua-Wei Schmalbeck

Silvia Louise Sheffield

Anna Lee Spencer

Kristen Helen Stockdale

Marissa Rachel Straw

Tierra Marie Thomas

Allison Thompson

Katherine Elizabeth Trathen

Caroline Lynn Waller

Julia Marie Wiker

Lauren Elyse Wise

Jordan Wrigley

Wuyan Yao

Caitlin Marie Zimmerman

Master’s Papers

Access electronic copies of these and other SILS master's papers through the Carolina Digital Repository

Spring 2020

Graduate Name – Master’s Paper Title (Advisor Last Name).

Eden Andes – Are You Picking Up What I am Putting Down? How Buyers and Sellers on Resale and Secondhand Clothing Mobile Shopping Applications (mis)Communicate (Haefele).

Lynnee Marie Argabright – Open Access in Emerging Scholars’ Journal Choice: A Bibliometric Analysis (Bruckner).

Anicka Austin – Participatory Engagement: Embodied Information Behaviors in Performing Arts Programming (Winget).

Claire Eleanor Cahoon – Lowering the Barrier of Entry: Developing an Online Self-Guided Learning Module for an Information Technology Competency Test (Rawson).

Yuqiao Cao – Collecting the Art of Vocabulary: Investigating the Use of Attributes in Museums’ Collection Management Systems (Lee)

Yuru Cao – Testbot: A Chatbot-Based Interactive Interview Preparation Application (Rajasekar).

Clare Therese Carlson – One Size Does Not Fit All: Exploring Email Archiving Workflows (Lee)

Julia Elizabeth Cavalier – Understanding the Users of the North Carolina Water and Wastewater Rate Dashboard (Bergquist)

Cai Chen – The Impact of 2018 Tariffs on International Trade (Rajasekar)

Alexander J. Chisum – A Content Analysis of Academic Library Gift Policy Statements in the United States (Flaherty).

Peter Owen Conlon – The Health Information Seeking Behavior of IFC Fraternity Men at Two Universities (Flaherty).

Isabel Erin Crevasse – Once Upon a Scheme: Conceptualizing Digital Fairy Tale and Folklore Classification Systems for Extra-Academic Professionals (Sturm).

Emily Claire Crockett – “DAM Becky, Look at the Asset” Digital Asset Management in Cultural Heritage Institutions (Bauer).

Stephanie L. Crowell – Exploring Outreach in Community Archives (Tibbo).

Brooke Csuka – Effects of Historical Contextualization of Confederate Monuments in North Carolina (Rawson).

Nicole Cvjetnicanin – Within and Without: A Content Analysis of First-Generation American Narratives in Young Adult Literature (Rawson).

Rucha Hareshkuma Dalwadi – Analyzing Sessions Laws of the State of North Carolina:  An Automated Approach Using Machine Learning and Natural Language Processing (Rajasekar).

Shannon Marie Delaney – Buy, Borrow, or Steal: Patterns in Searching for Scholarly Literature (Hemminger).

Rachel Elizabeth Duffus – Outcomes-Based Evaluations in School Libraries: Developing an OBE Tool for Elementary School Libraries (Rawson)

Leon Sebring Dure V – Interconnectedness: A Case Study of Revolutionary War and War of the Regulation Battlefields in North and South Carolina (Winget)

Macy S. Ferguson – “But Why Can I Only Check Out Five Items?”: Policy Making for Public Patrons in Academic Libraries (Bergquist).

Christina Elizabeth Getaz  – “I Mean, I Think It Still Works?”: How Do Library Staff Develop Expertise and Support Users in Circulating Audiovisual Production Equipment (Sturm).

Kayla Nikkole Angelique Michelle Gibson – Investigation Check: Studying the Information-Seeking Behaviors of Dungeons & Dragons Players (Thomson).

Caroline Goray – What Makes a Notification Important? A Survey on Personalized Mobile Notification Systems (Rawson).

Gerald Henry Groon III – Torches, Thieves, and Tinder: Recurring Themes in Mythical Origins of Fire (Sturm).

Sarah Catherine Guy – Streaming Media Collection in A Changing Environment: A Content Analysis of Academic Library Collection Development Policies (Vargha).

Gabrielle Elyse Hale – Fantastic Beasts and How to Find Them: An Examination of How Historians Search for Animals in the Archives (Lee).

Samantha Helen Haughton – Efficiently Exchanging Environmental Data (Capra).

Jiesong He – Understanding And Evaluating A Text Classification Model Using Interpretable Machine Learning Methods (Wang).

Alexandra G. Helms – Dispatches from the 200's: A Case Study in Religious Representation in the Wake County Public Library System (Hughes-Hassell).

Charles Michael Higgins – Comparing Usability of Text-Based and Image-Based CAPTCHAs (Shaw).

Christopher Edward Hill Extinction or Evolution? Examining the Changing Face of Research and Reference Librarianship in the Digital Age (Winget).

Rui Hou – Development of a Web Application of Social Networking for College Students (Shaw).

Kathryn Julia Kehoe – Evaluating Health Information on Infertility Forums: Can Online Peer Health Forums Provide Accurate Health Information (Flaherty).

Paul Michael Khawaja – A Software Tool-Based Accessibility Assessment of Public Library Websites in the United States (Capra).

Meredith Lindsey Kite – Telling Stories, Building Alliances: Advocacy for Audiovisual Archive Preservation (Tibbo).

Meng Li – Machine Translation Application with Recurrent Neural Network (Rajasekar).

Zihao Li – Trinity Relationship Among Web Servers, Database Servers and Humans in Different Roles and Settings (Jones).

Ziyue Liang – An Exploration of Collaborative Information Seeking Processes in Graduate Student Group Projects (Capra).

Hannah Sophia Link – How Well Do North Carolina Public Library Websites Facilitate Access for Spanish-Speaking Users? (Bergquist).

Zhangsinnog Liu – Evaluating the Teams that Comprise Billion-Dollar Companies (Jones).

McKenzie Louise Long – The Delicate Art of Portraying Your Archivist:  A Textual Analysis of Mass Media Portrayals of Archives, Archivists, and Archival Materials in the Twenty First Century (Anthony).

Kathleen Diane Lowry – Organizing System for AYA Resource and Service: Descriptive Schema for Categorizing Resources for the AYA Cancer Population (Capra).

Phillip Thomas MacDonald – “Pop-Up” Archive: How to Get the Public into Archives, by Taking the Archive to the Public (Melo).

Samantha Rae Gaufo Mandani – Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself: Evaluating for Inclusive and Equitable Themes in Online Resources for Information Technology Competency Tests (Rawson).

Mariesha Rosalita McAdoo – Re-envisioning Data for Impact: A Case Study of a Durham Nonprofit Organization (Gibson).

Brittany N. McCarver – A Historical Case Study of the Pullman Palace Car Company Library (Shaw).

Joseph Allen McGraw – Faculty Use of Interlibrary Loan Services and Their Confidence That Their Information Needs Can Be Met     (Gilliland).

Margaret Christine McGuire – From Concept to Practice: Themes of Diversity Within the Strategic Planning of Academic Libraries (Hughes-Hassell).

Megan McMahon – A Makerspace of One’s Own? An Exploratory Study of Women and Gender Non-Conforming Individuals Experience of an Academic Makerspace (Melo).

Hely Rajendra Mehta – Validating Medical Queries with Literature from PubMed Using Topic Modelling (Gotz).

Chenlu Meng – Detecting Depression on Reddit with Textual Data (Haas).

Evan Jared Miles – Impact of Shared Discovery on Consortium Borrowing: Analyzing TRLN Discovery and TRLN Direct (Hemminger).

Lyida Jean Neuroth – Using Records about Slavery Tutorial:  A Project of the Wilson Special Collections Library (Rawson).

Suchi Kamal Parekh – Quantitative Analysis to Compare Smart Cities (Rajasekar).

James Wyatt Patterson – Automating the Human Factors Analysis and Classification System (HFACS): An Initial Investigation Based on Error Reports in Radiation Oncology (Mazur/ Wang).

Guanru Peng – Aspect Based Rating Prediction for Yelp Customer Review (Haas).

Teresa T. Phan – Barriers to Access or Simple Disinterest?  A Study of Use of QR Codes Among College Students (Capra).

Holly Nicole Roper – Representing the Romance: Diversity and Inclusion in the Romance Collections of Public Libraries (Hughes-Hassell).

Michelle Suzanne Runyon – Bills, Bills, Bills: An Investigation of How Libraries and Archives Seek Disaster Recovery Funding (Flaherty).

Sabine Hua-Wei Schmalbeck – Making Policies: An Analysis of Makerspace Policies at Academic Institutions (Melo).

Todd Smith, Jr. – Hello, Are You Listening To Me? An Analysis of the UNC University Libraries’ Chat Reference System (Haefele).

Karina L. Soni – Walking on Eggshells: Experiences of Students of Color within Library and Information Science Master’s Programs (Gibson).

Anna Lee Spencer – A Study of African American Research Guides Created by State Archives (Anthony).

Marissa Rachel Straw – Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Related (LGBTQ+) Young Adult Fiction Anti-Bias Selection Tool and Core Collection (Sturm).

Anusha Suresh – Topic Modeling for Email Subject Line Analysis (Lee).

Tierra Marie Thomas – A Case Study of Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library Conscious Editing Steering Committee (Winget).

Allison Thompson – Coq au Catalog: An Analysis of the Description of Additions and Annotations in Manuscript Recipe Collections (Winget).

Katherine Elizabeth Trathen – Archives in Context: A Content Analysis of how Archives’ Websites Explain Finding Aids (Shaw).

Marler Slate Tuttle – Declarative Retrieval: Assessing User Trust in AI-Created Visual (Re)presentation of Web Search Content (Capra).

Caroline Lynn Waller – Capitalizing on Collections and the Crowd: What Needs to be Considered Before Embarking on a Digital Crowdsourcing Project (Tibbo)

Manhua Wang – Does Artificial Intelligence Really Benefit Reviewers with Reduced Workload? A Mixed-Methods Usability Study on Systematic Review Software (Yu).

Peilin Wang – A Study of Review Helpfulness Prediction Using Text from Different Domains (Arguello).

Yuan Wen – Factors Influencing Drivers’ Trust in Navigation Systems (Hemminger).

Julia Wiker – From Indisputable Reality to Conscious Contention:  Moving Beyond Modernist Conceptions of Evidence to a New Post-Postmodern Conception of Archival Evidence (Lee).

Jordan Wrigley – Millennium Development Goal 5 Maternal Health Publications:  An Open Bibliometric Mapping and Analysis (Gollop).

Venkatapraveen Wunnava – Exploration of Wikipedia Traffic Data to Analyze the Relationship Between Multiple Pages (Arguello).

Yuxuan Xu – Twitter Stance Detection with Textual, Sentiment, and Target-specific Model (Arguello).

Ruiting Yang – Predicting the Popularity of TED Talks (Wang)

Yukun Yang – Friends or Foes: Understanding Communication and Interaction Patterns of Homogeneous and Cross-Cutting Spaces in Online Activism (Arguello).

Wuyan Yao – Digital Humanities Pedagogy in Academic Libraries in the Research Triangle (Shaw).

Yuxiao Yao – Development of an Administration System for a Social Networking Website      (Shaw).

Wei Zhang – Sentiment Analysis and Web Development of Movie Reviews Using Naive Bayes and LSTM (Rajasekar).

Bo Zhou – The Design and Development of a New Interactive Publication Management System for Renaissance Computing Institute: Project Report (Shaw).

Jingyi Zhou – An Analysis of the Allergy Comments on Twitter Using Data Mining Approach A (Arguello).

Caitlin Marie Zimmerman – Give Queer Kids Books (Hughes-Hassell).

August 2020

Catherine M. Gallagher – Yet Another (Mis) Representation of Disability: A Critical Content Analysis of Blindness/Vision Impairment in Young Adult Literature (Rawson).

Cary Gentry – Shifting the Narrative: A Content Analysis of First-Generation Student Portrayal in Library and Information Science Literature (Bergquist).

Graceon B. Gordon – How Public Libraries Perceive Makerspaces Impacting Youth Development (Sturm).

Whitney-Jocelyn Badou Kouaho – Black Activist Mobilization and Police Surveillance in the Triangle (Shaw).

Abigail Mann – Through Rain, Through Snow, Through Quarantine: An Environmental Scan of Academic Library Messaging During COVID-19 (Rawson).

Julia Wiker – From Indisputable Reality to Conscious Contention: Moving Beyond Modernist Conceptions of Evidence to a New Post-Postmodern Conception of Archival Evidence (Lee).

December 2020

Neil Patrick Byers – Applying Supervised Clustering to Archival Appraisal of Email (Lee)

Sharon Marie Demorest – An Exploration of the Search Behaviors of Children When Using an Online Library Catalog  (Rawson).

Alexandra Deyneka – Tracing Artists’ Research Practices (Sturm).

Teke Feyza  – Virtual Reality as a Diagnostic Tool: A Systematic Review of Studies Using Virtual Reality Technology for the Assessment of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Dementia (Yu).

Jayna Corinne Fishman – Libraries, Weeds, and Other Things That Grow: Libraries as Ecologies and the Philosophy of Librarianship (Hughes-Hassell).

Katharine Herman – What is Open if not Open Access? Tracing a Genealogy of “Open” in Anthropology (Solomon).

Olin Harper Johnson – Comparison of Ku Klux Klan Collections at Four American Universities (Rawson).

Hyunseo A. Kang – Correlating Cryptocurrency Price with Twitter Sentiment (Wang).

My Anh Nguyen – University Student Health Websites: Navigating Information During COVID-19 and the Start of a New Semester (Gibson).

Nadia Pacheco Amaro – Examining Durham’s Latino/Latine Population and its Relationship to Durham One Call (Gibson).

Deborah Gray Reed – A Content Analysis of Natural Disaster Discourse on Twitter (Wang).

Austin Riopel – Keeping an Ear to the Ground: Investigating the Practices, Attitudes, and Interests of Triangle-area Music Venue Operators Regarding Preservation of Local Music Culture (Winget).

Silvia Sheffield – Language of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility in Academic Library Job Advertisements (Rawson).

Kristen Helen Stockdale – Defining Modern Outreach in North Carolina Public Libraries (Hughes-Hassell).

Lauren Elyse Wise – Outcome-based Evaluation of Preschool Storytimes: Understanding Youth Public Librarian Perception (Sturm).

Doctor of Philosophy in Information and Library Sciences (PhD)

Heather Lynn Barnes 
“Conceptualizing and Curating Digital Documentaries.” 
Advisor: Helen Tibbo

Anita Marie Caywood Crescenzi 
“Adaptation in Information Search and Decision-Making Under Time Pressure.” 
Advisor: Rob Capra

Elliott Ayers Hauser  
“Making Certain: Information and Social Reality.” 
Advisor: Ryan Shaw

Colin Christopher Post 
“Networked Alternatives: Digital Curation and Artistic Production on Artist-Run Platforms.” 
Advisor: Cal Lee

Emily Elizabeth Roscoe
“Potential Risks of Legal Liability for Collecting Institutions: An Empirical Study of Legal Claims and a Comparison with Legal Issues Included in LIS Graduate Curricula.”
Advisor: Cal Lee

Megan Vaness Threats
“Information Behaviors and Engagement Along the HIV Prevention and Care Continua.”
Advisor: Amelia Gibson

Yinglong Zhang
“Beyond Searching: Understanding How People Use Search To Support Their Creative Endeavors.”
Advisor: Rob Capra

Carolina Health Informatics Program (CHIP)

PhD in Health Informatics 2020 Graduates

Terika Lakeisha McCall

Emily R. Pfaff

Rachel Amy Stemerman


Master of Professional Science in Biomedical and Health Informatics 2020 Graduates 

Muhammad Osama Ali

Aaron Bohlmann

Tia Janaye Carmon

Susmitha Chilukuri

Eric Roger Cui

Rekha Darshan Divakaran

Allison Roya Gartland

Dale H. Henion

Timothy Ryan Hensley

Farrah Hermes

Roshan John

Halina Malgorzata Krzystek

Adnan Mustansir Lakdawala

Nicole Alexandra Mathews

Eman Mahmoud Mohamed Metwally

Lindsay S. Soo

Jeffrey Stocker

Trusha Taneja

Erin K. Wallace

David Zablocki

Liyuan Zhu

Awards and Achievements

Dean’s Achievement Award
Meg McMahon - “A Makerspace of One’s Own? An Exploratory Study of Women and Gender Non-Conforming Individuals’ Experiences of an Academic Makerspace.” Advised by Maggie Melo

Jon Clancy - “Breakdowns in Human-AI Partnership: Revelatory Cases of Automation Bias in Autonomous Vehicle Accidents.” Advised by Mohammad Hossein Jarrahi

Elfreda Chatman Student Research Award
Lynnee Argabright
Lauren Wise
Jordan Wrigley

Outstanding Service to the School Award
Katie Kehoe

SILS Undergraduate Honors Thesis - Highest Honors
Preston Smith - “Human AI Partnership In Underwriting: A Task-Centered Analysis of the Division of Work.” Advised by Mohammad Hossein Jarrahi

SILS Diversity Advocate Certificate
Stephanie Crowell
Sharon Demorest
Catherine Gallagher
Meg McMahon

Archives and Records Management (ARM) Concentration
Yuquiao Cao
Clare Carlson
Stephanie Crowell
Leon Dure
Gabrielle Hale
Meredith Kite
Tierra Thomas
Katherine Trathen
Caroline Waller

Adams Apprenticeship Program (2018-2019)
Nkechinyere Nwoko

ALISE Jean Tague-Sutcliffe Doctoral Student Research Poster Competition First-Place Award
Megan Threats

American Library Association Spectrum Scholar
Karina Soni 

Association of Research Libraries Kaleidoscope Program Diversity Scholar
Phillip Thomas MacDonald

Mittie Barnwell Scholarship
Kayla Dowdy

Beta Phi Mu Epsilon Chapter Scholarship
Alexander Chisum
Paul Khawaja
Nkechinyere Nwoko

Beta Phi Mu Eugene Garfield Doctoral Dissertation Fellowship
Megan Threats

Lottie & Marvin Boykin Scholarship
Kayla Dowdy

Lisa Burmeister Computer & Information Science Fellowship
Lynnee Argabright
Mariesha McAdoo​

Chancellor’s Doctoral Candidacy Award, UNC Graduate School Initiative for Minority Excellence
Megan Threats

Community Workshop Series Coordinator
Katie Kehoe

Environmental Protection Agency Library Internship
Brooke Csuka
Macy Ferguson
Sarah Guy
Margaret McGuire

Carolina Academic Library Associate
Anicka Austin
Claire Cahoon
Alex Chisum
Samantha Rae Gaufo Mandani
Lydia Jean Neuroth
Todd Smith

Carolina Technology Associate
Kathleen Diane Lowry 
Mariesha Rosalita McAdoo

Ardis Kipp Cohoon Scholarship
Rachael Head

Grail-Valkyries Scholarship
Kayla Dowdy

Michael Hooker Fellowship
Anusha Suresh

Horizon Award, UNC Graduate School
Megan Threats

Humanities Professional Pathway Award
Emily Claire Crockett

International P.E.O. Scholar Award
Megan Threats

Leadership in Education in Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (LEND) / University Center of Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDD) Trainee/Fellowship
Nkechinyere Nwoko

Margaret Ellen Kalp Fellowship
Evan Jared Miles
Michelle Suzanne Runyon
Jordan Wrigley

Medical Library Association Scholarship
Jordan Wrigley

Kathleen Moore Fellowship
Katie Kehoe

Amy Elizabeth Morgan Assistantship
Isabel Crevasse

Litwin Books Dissertation Research Award
Elliott Ayers Hauser

J. Stanley Tucker London Honors Scholarship
Kayla Dowdy

Phi Beta Kappa
Chase Andrew Pasciuto

The Hayden B. Renwick Academic Achievement Award 
Kayla Dowdy

Shuford Study Abroad Scholarship
Kayla Dowdy

Student Vision Scholar, Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Medical Library Association
Jordan Wrigley

Society for Scholarly Publishing Student Fellow 
Lynnee Argabright

Lurraine Tansey Travel Award
Emily Claire Crockett

Garneta Taormina Memorial Student Travel Award
Emily Claire Crockett

UNC-Chapel Hill Dissertation Completion Fellowship
Megan Threats

University Dean’s List Honoree
Kayla Dowdy
Neil Nainesh Mehta

UNC School of Information and Library Science Undergraduate Scholarship
Elizabeth Anne Bueche
Solomon Duncan
Rachael Head
Lydia Heater
Karley Amanda Wheeler

Something missing? Something wrong? Please let us know if you spot any errors on these pages, and we’ll correct them as soon as possible.


20+ SILS 2020 Graduates

Read some short reflections from more than 20 of our doctoral, master's, and undergraduate program 2020 graduates.


The SILS commencement ceremony traditionally includes the presentation of the Teaching Excellence, Distinguished Alumni, and Good of the Order awards. Congratulations to all the 2020 award recipients!

2020 Deborah Barreau Award for Teaching Excellence

  • Marijel (Maggie) Melo (Faculty Award)
  • Emily Roscoe (Adjunct Award)

2020 SILS Distinguished Alumni Award

2020 For the Good of the Order Award

  • Aaron Brubaker, SILS Information Technology Director
  • Brian Nussbaum, Desktop Support and Help Desk Manager

Portrait of Jason GriffeyListen to a recording or read advice for graduates from SILS alumnus Jason Griffey (MSLS'04), who had been invited to deliver the SILS spring commencement address. Griffey is the Director of Strategic Initiatives at the National Information Standards Organization (NISO).


Watch a special message from SILS faculty and staff to 2020 graduates.

Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower at night, illuminated in blue with 2020 on the side.

Above: photo of the illuminated Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower by John Gardiner, UNC-Chapel Hill.

Top image: Photos of 2020 Carolina graduates, including Libby Soucaze (BSIS ’20) who appears in the picture leaning against the camera, sit on the bleachers at Kenan Stadium in May. University Photographer Johnny Andrews captured the initial images via Zoom and then used a vintage Polaroid 195 camera to create a unique photo essay that was published online.