AUA 2011 Commencement Speakers Include Honorary Degree Recipient

AUA 2011 Valedictorian

JASMINE RIVIERE MARCELIN

Jasmine grew up in Dominica and Antigua, before attending Saint Mary’s University in Canada for her undergraduate degree. While studying both Biology and Chemistry, she was placed on the Dean’s List in all four years of her attendance and graduated Magna Cum Laude in 2006. In September of that year, she began her studies at AUA, receiving a full academic scholarship from the government of Antigua and Barbuda. After an outstanding Basic Sciences, she achieved near-perfect grades in her clinical clerkships. She also posted the highest scores possible on the USMLE Step 1 and Step 2 exams. She founded and served as editor-in-chief of Calypso News, a monthly AUA student newsletter, and continues to study piano and French in her spare time.

AUA 2011 Salutatorian

THOMAS TAYLOR SCHOLES

Thomas began his studies at AUA in 2007, after earning placement on the Dean’s list six times while studying Biology at the George Institute of Technology. He completed his Basic Sciences at AUA with honors, earning the Highest Academic Achievement Award, and has a long history of public service, beginning with a church mission to Jamaica at age 16. He has also worked in impoverished and at-risk communities in Zambia, India, and Thailand. He has participated in several research projects as a medical student, and recently had an article he coauthored accepted for publication in the Journal of Arthroscopic Surgery.

AUA 2011 Honorary Degree Recipient

RAJIV K. GARG

Rajiv K. Garg is President and Chief Executive Officer of Wyckoff Heights Medical Center. Prior to that, he was a Member of the Board of Trustees for the hospital. He was recently nominated for Board Membership at the Greater New York Hospital Association Class of 2010-2011. He is a keen advocate of healthcare reform, and author of an influential paper addressing the cost of chronic disease management in the U.S. He has been involved with a number of healthcare reform initiatives in the fields of diabetes, pediatric obesity and risk management.

Garg holds an accounting degree with the Associates of Chartered Accountants of Wales. He began his banking career with Bankers Trust, in England. As the youngest Global Business Manager for Credit Suisse First Boston in London, he was responsible for the creation of the Global Foreign Exchange Division. He subsequently earned the title of Head of Global Market Risk Management there, before moving on to serving as CFO and Executive Vice President of a public medical research company.