university of virginia nursing phd

UVA School of Nursing Ranked Among Top in Country by U.S. News & World Report

The University of Virginia’s nursing school has again earned top national rankings in a prestigious annual report issued by U.S. News & World Report. 

According to U.S. News & World Report’s 2024-2025 Best Graduate Schools guide, the UVA School of Nursing ranks 18 th  overall and 11 th  among public institutions for its master’s degree programs and 31 st  overall and 22 nd  among public institutions for its Doctor of Nursing Practice programs.

“These rankings represent the incredible work being accomplished by faculty, students, and others within the UVA School of Nursing,” said K. Craig Kent, MD, chief executive officer at UVA Health and executive vice president for health affairs at UVA. “I want to congratulate our faculty, students and staff on these rankings, which acknowledge the outstanding contributions being made to patient care, research, healthcare education, and our community.”

UVA Provost Ian Baucom expressed pride in the School of Nursing’s national standing. “It is both the talent and dedication of our faculty and students in the School of Nursing that leads UVA to consistently achieve this level of national prestige,” said Baucom. 

Of note, the UVA School of Nursing’s Nurse Practitioner-MSN Adult Gerontology Acute Care program was also ranked for the first time by U.S. News & World Report and is 7 th  in the nation.

“I am incredibly proud of the environment we’ve built to nurture the next generation of skilled, resilient, compassionate nurses,” said Marianne Baernholdt, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN, dean of the School of Nursing and UVA Health’s dean of Professional Nursing. “Rankings provide a small window into the incredible work that our students and faculty are doing every day to care for patients and contribute to the nursing profession.” 

U.S. News & World Report ranks nursing schools based on factors that include peer assessments, research funding, faculty resources and the selectivity of the programs. 

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University of Virginia Doctor of Nursing Practice

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University of Virginia Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

University of Virginia is a public school. The School of Nursing has an application fee of $88 for U.S. residents. Tuition for the DNP program at University of Virginia is Full-time: $20,682 per year (in-state) and $33,774 per year (out-of-state). The School of Nursing at University of Virginia has 50 full-time faculty members. The total DNP enrollment is 56.

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Full-time: $20,682 per year (in-state) and $33,774 per year (out-of-state)

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• # 31 in Best Nursing Schools: Doctor of Nursing Practice  (tie)

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• nurse practitioner: pediatric primary care nurse practitioner: psychiatric-mental health, across the lifespan
• other majors combined nurse practitioner / clinical nurse specialist

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U.Va. School of Nursing Approved to Offer New Doctoral Program

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The Ph.D. in nursing with a concentration in health care quality research prepares nurse scholars to conduct scientific research on how health care systems and care delivery affect patient outcomes.

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• Home  /  News  / 2024-05-10 Despite National Headwinds, RN to BSN Program Thrives

Despite National Headwinds, RN to BSN Program Thrives

The first time Melissa Neck (BSN ’24) came to UVA in 1998 she was a teenager. Cell phones only made calls. Social media didn’t exist. She hadn’t begun her nursing career—or   any   career—let alone started a family.

+96% Growth in RN to BSN enrollment since 2018

But when she walks the Lawn this spring for the second time, Neck will earn a bachelor’s degree through UVA’s popular RN to BSN program , which enables working nurses a two-year, part-time path to a bachelor’s through once-a-month in-person class and online learning. A labor and delivery nurse for Riverside Health System in Newport News, Va., the program whet Neck’s appetite for more. She has plans to become a nurse practitioner.

“Dropping [my son] off at his campus brought back all those memories. I thought, ‘OK, it’s time for me to go back.’” RN to BSN student Melissa Neck (BSN ’24), a Riverside Medical Center labor and delivery nurse

Despite steep national declines for similar programs (the American Association for Colleges of Nursing (AACN) reported a nearly 17% decline in RN to BSN student enrollments in 2022-23, the fourth year in a row and the first time since 2012 that national enrollment in these programs dropped under 100,000 students), UVA’s RN to BSN program is growing. A decade ago, UVA had 51 RN to BSN students enrolled; this academic year, there are 90 enrolled across three sites. Applications for fall 2024 entry rose nearly 24% over just one year ago.

Neck considered nursing while at UVA the first time but ultimately majored in psychology. A few years later, she earned an associate’s degree in nursing at a local community college, took the NCLEX, and became a registered nurse. That was enough school, she said—until her own son went off to college in 2021.

“Dropping him off at his campus brought back all those memories,” Neck said. “I thought, ‘OK, it’s time for me to go back.’”

There are a host of upsides to earning a BSN—nurses with BSNs usually earn more, enjoy more professional mobility, and are well-positioned to continue their schooling. Increasingly, hospitals also require that nurses without them earn bachelor’s degree to advance, according to   Malinda Whitlow   (BSN ’07, MSN ’11, DNP ’13), who is both the RN to BSN program’s director, one of the program’s core faculty members, and a graduate of the program.

“We have nurses who’ve been working for five years, or 20 years, and they’re coming back,” Whitlow said. “Often, if you want to go into leadership roles, you have to go back to school.”

+24% RN to BSN program application growth (fall ’24 over fall ’23)

And it isn’t just about checking a box or getting a credential. The Institute of Medicine’s 2010 Future of Nursing Report recommended an “80 by 20” approach (that 80 percent of the nation’s RNs have a BSN by the year 2020; in 2022, nearly 72 percent of American nurses have a BSN, according to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing) citing studies that showed that nurses with bachelor’s degrees give better care, strengthen patient outcomes, and enjoy better professional growth.

“Our program isn’t for a student who just wants to play the game for the degree,” said   Kim Dieber , who recruits RN to BSN students to the program. “We’re going to help them grow.”

“Our program isn’t for a student who just wants to play the game for the degree. We’re going to help them grow.” Kim Dieber, RN to BSN program recruiter

RN to BSN student   Mark Benedict   (BSN ’24), a neurological ICU nurse at UVA Health, said practicing nurses are often tough by design; working in intense settings like trauma ICUs and emergency rooms requires it. But Benedict said the program not only expanded his view of the profession, it made him a better clinician.

“I wanted to have an experience that would build my understanding of what nursing is as a profession,” Benedict said. “I’ve known for a long time that it isn’t just a clinical practice. There’s a cerebral part of it, even a spiritual part of what we’re doing.”

Many students don’t stop after walking the Lawn, going on to earn additional degrees, including Benedict, who will start a graduate program at Johns Hopkins University this fall. He takes the long view.

“Getting your bachelor’s helps you articulate what you want from the system,” Benedict said. “It’s not just going to impact you and your peers; it’s going to impact your children.”

From the spring 2024 Virginia Nursing Legacy magazine.

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• Malinda Lee Whitlow

Watch CBS News

University apologizes after names horribly mispronounced at graduation ceremony. Here's its explanation.

By Caitlin O'Kane

May 10, 2024 / 2:39 PM EDT / CBS News

May V. Lee Zubeth Brotoski. Syer Ovoon Jean June Breenun. Victoria Lee Zubithruss. These are the names announced at the Thomas Jefferson University graduation ceremony – except the graduates were really named Maeve Elizabeth Brostoski, Sarah Virginia Brennan and Victoria Elizabeth Bruce.

At the university's commencement ceremony for nursing students in Philadelphia on Thursday, the person tasked with calling out graduates' names botched several of them – even ones as simple as Thomas.

Video taken by @colleenb415 and shared on TikTok racked up nearly 8 million views and 16,000 comments on the platform in less than a day. It was shared by others across social media platforms and went massively viral. 

The people who recorded the original video couldn't help but laugh, astonished at the horrible mispronunciations. "Milena Zabeth Cop," the woman reads for Molly Elizabeth Camp.

"Tamome," she says, before the graduate says his name is Thomas. She corrects herself and says Thomas, but doesn't even attempt to read his last name, Canevari. 

Thomas Jefferson University apologized for the mispronunciations of several of the graduates' names.

"This ceremony is a celebration of the significant achievements of our students, and each graduate deserves to have their name honored correctly on this pivotal day," the university said in a statement to CBS News. 

Many people on social media speculated that the woman was reading the phonetic spellings of the names and didn't have the full names written out in their normal spellings. Others had a more cynical explanation – perhaps the woman's name was mispronounced her whole life, and this was her vendetta.

The university confirmed the former to be true.

"The mispronunciations occurred due to the way phonetic spellings were presented on the speaker's cards, which was noted when the presenter apologized during the ceremony," the university said in a statement. "This unfortunate error does not reflect the immense respect we have for our graduates and the value we place on their hard-earned accomplishments."

The school said they "are deeply sorry for any disappointment this may have caused."

Many of the graduates in the video appear to take the botched names in stride – some giggled as they approached to take their diplomas, while others just looked confused. 

Caitlin O'Kane is a New York City journalist who works on the CBS News social media team as a senior manager of content and production. She writes about a variety of topics and produces "The Uplift," CBS News' streaming show that focuses on good news.

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Updated response to Graduate Life Center protest

Mark Owczarski

29 Apr 2024

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Editor's note: The number of individuals arrested Sunday has been updated.

Process for claiming abandoned and lost items collected from the Graduate Life Center lawn.

A message from President Tim Sands to the Virginia Tech community .

Virginia Tech Police can confirm that 82 individuals, 53 of whom are current Virginia Tech students, were arrested and all were charged with trespassing.

The Graduate Life Center is open and all activities that were scheduled are taking place.

Incident at Graduate Life Center has stabilized. Police presence remains. Urgent, avoid area. No further updates unless situation changes.

April 28, 10:50 p.m.

On Friday morning, protestors began to occupy the lawn of the Graduate Life Center. Virginia Tech officials informed the protestors that the gathering was in violation of University Policy 5000 (University Facilities Usage and Events). Virginia Tech values free speech and the protestors’ right to be heard, but only if the rights of others and public safety can be assured.

Through constant dialogue between university officials, the Virginia Tech Police Department, and protest organizers, we were able to maintain a safe and peaceful environment through much of the weekend.

As Sunday progressed, protestors continued to refuse to comply with policy and took further steps to occupy the lawn of the Graduate Life Center and outdoor spaces next to Squires Student Center. Given these actions by protesters, the university recognized that the situation had the increasing potential to become unsafe.

Those who gathered were advised by university officials to remove their possessions and to disperse voluntarily; those who failed to comply were then approached by Virginia Tech Police and were again asked to leave and advised that anyone who failed to comply would be charged with trespassing, in accordance with Virginia law.

At approximately 10:15 p.m., police approached protesters to ask them to disperse within five minutes. Those who remained were subject to arrest.

In the interest of public safety, the university issued a VT Alerts at approximately 10:15 p.m. asking members of the community to avoid the area.

For the safety and welfare of all students, faculty and staff, Virginia Tech requires that all members of its community comply with all university policies and the Code of Virginia.

Original post, April 26

Earlier today, a small gathering of members of the university community and others not affiliated with Virginia Tech convened at the Graduate Life Center and placed tents on the lawn. This gathering was not a registered event consistent with university policy. University officials and Virginia Tech Police responded on site to explain the university’s facility use and event policy ( University Policy 5000 ) and related public safety policies. The university will continue to act in accordance with its policies.

The university has communicated to the participants:

• The current event is not compliant with University Policy 5000 , and members of the community are expected to follow that policy.
• All organized events must be compliant with University Policy 5000.
• Event participants cannot erect temporary structures without prior approval as a matter of public safety.

The safety and welfare of all members of the Virginia Tech community is the university’s primary responsibility while we remain unequivocally committed to upholding freedom of speech and academic freedom . This is expressed and upheld through our Principles of Community .

Virginia Tech Police would like to remind all community members of the following:

• Call Virginia Tech Police at 540-382-4343, or 911 if an emergency, to report all suspicious people and circumstances.
• For additional safety and security resources, visit emergency.vt.edu for a wide range of resources.

Members of the university community who seek support or assistance are encouraged to contact these resources:

• Cook Counseling Center  at 540-231-6557
• Dean of Students Office  at 540-231-3787. Referral to a campus cleric may be made through this office.
• Anthem at 855-223-9277
• Aetna at 888-238-6232
• Kaiser Permanente at 866-517-7042
• Optima Health Vantage HMO at 866-846-2682
• Hokie Wellness  at 540-231-2233 (students) or 540-231-8878 (employees)
• Housing Services at 540-231-6205
• Residential Well-being at 540-231-1139
• Equity and Accessibility  at  540-231-2010
• Women's Center at Virginia Tech at 540-231-7806
• University Ombuds Office  at 540-231-3125
• Graduate Office of the Ombudsperson  at 540-231-9573

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Preparations underway for Liberty University’s 51st Commencement

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May 8, 2024 : By Office of Communications & Public Engagement

Liberty University is gearing up for its 51st Commencement — projected to be one of its largest in its history — with ceremonies running from Thursday through Saturday. Approximately 10,800 graduates have registered to participate in degree ceremonies, and the university estimates about 60,000 graduates, family, and friends will flock to Liberty Mountain over the three-day period.

Last week, crews began setting up the stage and field seats in Williams Stadium for the Commencement Main Ceremony, scheduled for 7 p.m. Friday and featuring U.S. Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) as keynote speaker. Staff from Liberty’s Emergency Management and Community Engagement Office and Grounds Department have been setting up barricades around campus to help with traffic and create safe pedestrian walkways for the events. On Monday morning, the Registrar’s Office kicked off the week with a large planning session for the staff responsible for running all the events.

More than 29,000* degrees will be conferred at 28 individual degree presentation ceremonies set for 2 and 6 p.m. Thursday, 10 a.m. Friday, and 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Saturday. All degree ceremonies and the main ceremony will be streamed live from the  Commencement website .

The university will hold its annual Military Graduate Recognition Ceremony on Thursday at 10 a.m. at Thomas Road Baptist Church. The ceremony honors all service members, veterans, and military spouses who have completed their degree during the 2023-24 academic year. In addition, Liberty will hold two commissioning ceremonies for Army ROTC and Air Force ROTC on Saturday.

Visitors can download a Weekend Guide to the Commencement activities and are encouraged to download the Champion Safe App (on Apple Store or Google Play ) for up-to-date information on activities and safety alerts throughout Commencement. Updates and FAQs are also available on the Commencement website and Facebook page . Additionally, information booths will set up at Williams Stadium, the Vines Center/Liberty Arena, Thomas Road Baptist Church, and the Liberty Multipurpose Center.

“It definitely can be challenging with the large numbers on campus, but I love how I’ve heard President (Dondi) Costin refer to Commencement as our Super Bowl,” said Lori Baker, Liberty’s Senior Associate Registrar for Student Services & Records and Program Manager for Commencement. “It’s our big time to celebrate why we’re here, and for our graduates it’s about celebrating that they’re finishing a major goal and moving along the path to their dreams.”

Returning this year is the Graduate Reception, set for Friday from 1-3 p.m. on the Academic Lawn. The event will be a time for graduates to meet and greet faculty, visit with students and professors from other departments, and enjoy light refreshments and fellowship with their classmates.

“We want to give our graduates more opportunities to connect with the faculty in their program during Commencement,” Baker said. “We anticipate this will be a very highly attended event.”

Tents will be set up for each school and for various campus departments, such as the Alumni Relations Office and Flames Club.

With a large majority of the graduates (more than 24,000) having earned their degrees through  Liberty University Online Programs , Baker estimates that 75 percent of the graduates attending Commencement will be visiting campus for the first time.

“This is such a great opportunity for our university and our community to show off our campus and everything it has to offer,” she said. “It’s very exciting to see a lot of these graduates and guests on campus because they are just happy to be here, see campus, and meet people face-to-face who have worked with them over the course of their time with Liberty. We want them to have a great experience while they are here.”

While on campus, guests are encouraged to take a campus tour (start at the Hancock Welcome Center), the Legacy of Faith Historic Walk around campus, and visit Lynchburg’s tallest landmark, the Freedom Tower. For those arriving early, Liberty Baseball  will be hosting Virginia Tech tonight (Wednesday) at 6 p.m.

Commencement festivities officially begin today (Wednesday) with a Commencement Welcome Fair from 1-5 p.m. in the Montview Alumni Ballroom, where graduates can pick up their honor or military cords, reader cards, purchase a T-shirt, and have formal regalia photos taken. The fair will continue on Thursday and Friday as graduates arrive to campus.

For the Main Ceremony, gates at William Stadium will open at 3 p.m. Friday. Metal detectors will be at all gates, and Liberty’s  clear bag policy  will be in effect.

The university has announced several road closures throughout the events. Guests should anticipate heavy traffic on Friday leading up to the Main Ceremony and between degree presentation ceremonies on Thursday and Saturday. Parking and shuttle services will be available at multiple campus locations throughout Commencement.

2024 Commencement Facts

Total Liberty University and Liberty University Online Academy Graduates –  29,359*

•   LUO Graduates – 24,217 (83%)
• Resident Graduates – 3,866 (13%)
• Online Academy Graduates – 1,276 (4%)

Degrees conferred

• Associates – 1,279
• Bachelors – 11,471
• Certificates – 2,274
• Masters – 10,054
• Juris Doctorate – 111
• Osteopathic Medicine – 146
• Doctoral – 2,967
• High School Diploma – 1,276
• Interdisciplinary Studies
• Business Administration
• Criminal Justice
• Clinical Mental Health Counseling
• Master of Business Administration
• Master of Arts in Executive Leadership
• Doctor of Education: Educational Leadership
• Master of Arts in Teaching: Elementary Education
• Business Administration: Finance
• Biomedical Sciences
• Juris Doctorate

Top states represented by graduates: Virginia, North Carolina, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, California, Tennessee

Top countries represented by graduates: United States, Canada, Korea, Germany, Bahamas, United Kingdom, Japan, China, Bermuda, Nigeria

Military graduates

• Military – 6,066
• Military Spouse Only – 2,536
• Active Duty – 2,162

Family pairs

• Married – 25 pairs
• Parent/Child – 69 pairs
• Siblings – 186 pairs
• Twins – 22 pairs
• 4,094 with a perfect 4.0 GPA
• 5,770 graduating with honors

Top 5 degree programs

• Bachelor of Science: Interdisciplinary Studies
• Master of Arts: Clinical Mental Health Counseling
• Bachelor of Science: Psychology
• Bachelor of Science: Business Administration

Average age: 35

Oldest graduate: 81, earning a graduate degree in aeronautics

Youngest graduates: Liberty has two graduates who are 15, one earning an associate’s and one earning a bachelor’s degree

Male/female ratio: Male: 40%, Female: 60%

*All data reported is based on preliminary numbers for the 2023-24 academic year.

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Thomas Jefferson University apologizes for viral mispronunciations of nursing graduates' names at graduation

Thomas Jefferson University is apologizing after the names of some graduates from the nursing program were unrecognizably pronounced at their commencement, as seen in videos from the ceremony that have since gone viral.

The mispronunciations at the Jefferson College of Nursing commencement ceremony, which occurred May 9, according to the university's website , were attributed to the phonetic spellings written on the speaker's cards, the school said in a statement on X Friday.

For example, graduate Sarah Virginia Brennan's name was pronounced "Sayer Oo-voon Geen-goo Bree-none," according to a video from the ceremony. Maeve Elizabeth was pronounced "May-vee Lee Zu-beth." A Stephanie's first name was pronounced "Eff-uni," and a Jessica, "Jay-sic-u."

At one point, the speaker mispronounced “Thomas” as “Tom-mu-may” — before the graduate can be heard correcting the pronunciation.

"The leadership and faculty of Thomas Jefferson University extend our sincerest apologies for the mispronunciations of the names of several of our graduating nursing students during our recent commencement ceremony," the university said in the statement. "This ceremony is a celebration of the significant achievements of our students, and each graduate deserves to have their name honored correctly on this pivotal day."

Graduates seemingly walked across the stage in alphabetical order. A nearly five-minute video of the speaker announcing graduates with last names that start with "B" or "C" had more than 370,000 views by Friday afternoon. Another video, seemingly taken from the crowd at the ceremony, has received more than 2.4 million views, 230,000 likes and 2,000 comments.

"I can honestly say ... The Grads will never forget this moment ...," one commenter said.

"This can’t be real. If so SNL needs to re-create this," another added.

"Sarah was like … do you mean me?" a TikTok user wrote, with several crying-laughing emoji.

The ceremony saw a change in speaker once the last names reached "L," and the original announcer apologized to the crowd, as seen in another video of the ceremony shared to TikTok.

"And my apologies for the phonetic spelling or pronunciation of the names that was on the cards. I would have been better just reading from the book. My apologies, graduates," they said.

The university reiterated the cause of the errors, stating, "the mispronunciations occurred due to the way phonetic spellings were presented on the speaker's cards, which was noted when the presenter apologized during the ceremony."

"This unfortunate error does not reflect the immense respect we have for our graduates and the value we place on their hard-earned accomplishments," the statement concluded.

Thomas Jefferson University, located in Philadelphia, has three more commencement ceremonies scheduled, set for May 21 and 22.

Maddie Ellis is a weekend editor at TODAY Digital.

‘Let us in!' Howard U. nursing graduation cut off after venue reaches capacity

“i didn’t get to walk. i graduated magna cum laude and i didn’t even get to walk. i’m the class of 2020. i didn’t get to walk for my high school graduation and i didn’t get to walk for my college graduation", by walter morris, news4 reporter • published may 10, 2024 • updated on may 10, 2024 at 3:34 pm.

A graduation ceremony for nursing students at Howard University ended abruptly Thursday after the auditorium reached capacity.

Families filled Cramton Auditorium to watch students in the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences walk across the stage. But as they walked, dozens of loved ones were locked out, with some trying to push their way in.

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“Let us in! Let us in!” some chanted.

“While they were doing the keynote speaker, there was, like, loud banging, even before that, for like 10 minutes straight,” graduate Bria Flowers said. “Just like boom, boom, boom, boom, boom.”

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“Because of the size of the room and because our relatives sometimes do not know how to act, the fire department is now here to shut us down,” Dr. Gina S. Brown, dean of the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences, told the crowd to a chorus of boos.

But D.C. Fire and EMS denied shutting down the ceremony.

"D.C. Fire and EMS did not shut down tonight’s event,” the department said in a statement. “At 6:42 p.m., we responded to the Cramton Auditorium for a medical local at the request of campus police. The patient was evaluated and refused transport, and D.C. Fire and EMS departed."

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“I’m confused why it got so crazy, how it got so quick, so bad so fast,” graduate Kiana Hamilton said.

A glass door broke during the commotion.

“Glass started getting broken,” graduate Halle Ragoonanan. “One of my classmate’s hands got cut.”

Howard said security removed someone from the building prior to the ceremony. That person returned and broke a window.

"This incident led to a disturbance among guests outside of the facility, resulting in a disruption of the program,” Howard’s statement said. “Guests in attendance were immediately dispersed following this incident."

One student was treated for a cut.

Ragoonanan said her heart was broken as she and her family looked to make up for moments they missed because of the pandemic.

“I didn’t even get to walk,” she lamented. “I didn’t get to walk. I graduated magna cum laude and I didn’t even get to walk. I’m the class of 2020. I didn’t get to walk for my high school graduation and I didn’t get to walk for my college graduation.”

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“All the money we spent,” another graduate said. “My father and grandmother came down from North Carolina.”

Some of those students will get to walk this weekend. The university’s main commencement ceremony is scheduled for Saturday.

The school plans to give individual awards to students Friday.

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Nevada Today

Father and son set to receive doctoral degrees May 17

College of Engineering will graduate Jay and Nathan Thom with Ph.Ds in Computer Science & Engineering

Interest in computer science runs in the family.

There’s nothing like 700-level computer science classes to bring on the father-son bonding: just ask Jay and Nathan Thom.

Jay will be receiving a doctorate in Computer Science & Engineering at the May 17 Engineering graduation ceremony, and so will his son, Nathan.

“Graduating with a Ph.D. is a really satisfying accomplishment for me, but graduating with one of my sons will make it one of the most memorable experiences of my life,” said Jay, who also works in the College of Engineering’s Computer Science & Engineering Department as a senior information security engineer.

The two studied together, supported each other and maybe once or twice Jay kept Nathan on track.

“He was a good influence,” Nathan, who goes by Nate, said. “He was the friend you needed to have.”

When Nate joined the University of Nevada, Reno in 2015, Jay helped him with calculus. Years later, Nate would return the favor when Jay needed help with the math in a game theory class. The two have shared lab space and even co-authored two conference papers about Internet of Things (IoT) device identification.

Additional co-authors on those papers were Professor Shamik Sengupta and Assistant Professor Emily Hand, each of whom served as Ph.D. advisors for Jay and Nate, respectively.

“Jay and Nate have been extremely helpful, cooperative and hardworking people,” Sengupta said. “They are extremely friendly and always ready to help on a moment’s notice.”

Sengupta added that Jay will be his 10 th   Ph.D. student to graduate; for Hand, the experience of mentoring a Ph.D. student through graduation is new.

“Nate has been wonderful to work with,” she said. “He and Jay both have been an asset to the (CSE) department and college. They serve as our resident IT guys, helping with anything and everything in our labs.”

Anomaly in the data set

Parent-child graduations are somewhat unusual, but not for Jay. In 2015, he received his Bachelor of Science degree alongside his son Ben. 

Also out of the ordinary: Jay was a teaching assistant for a class in which his two other sons, Max and Nick, were students.

Nate, the youngest, remembers hanging out with his brothers on the University campus even before he enrolled as a student. When he was 13, Nate was homeschooled by Jay, and would tag along with his father to the University and study on campus. His three older brothers also were students at that time, and as Nate remembers, “Mom had just graduated.”

“Mom” is Shendry Thom, who earned bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in nursing from the University.

And of course, the University is where Shendry met Jay, back in the 1980s.

The campus has been somewhat of a stomping ground for the Thom family.

“It feels like home,” Nate said.

Family affair

If campus feels like home, computer science is where everyone seems to gather: Nate’s older brothers Ben, Max and Nick are software engineers in the Reno area; Nate’s wife Kathleen currently studies computer science at the University; and Nick’s fiancé, Maddy, is pursuing a master’s degree in computer science, also at the University. Jay might be responsible for this family trend, according to Nate.

Jay originally studied electrical engineering in the 1980s, but when he returned to the University to study computer science, Nate said, “that was the same year Max had started college. That influenced him and me. We’re all in computer science.”

Their areas of expertise vary, however. Jay’s dissertation, “AI Enabled IOT Network Traffic Fingerprinting with Locality Sensitive Hashing,” deals with training smart devices to communicate with each other securely. Nate’s dissertation, “Attributes in Face Processing: Novel Methods for Explanation, Training and Representation,” is about improving AI systems that recognize faces.

What they have in common — besides genetics — is a strong interest in advancing the field of computer science.

“We’re really good at coming up with big ideas,” Nate said. “One of the things we say is ‘create value.’ Every time we show up somewhere, we try to create value.”

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