Student Affairs announces 2013 Senior Class Marshals

The Division of Student Affairs has announced the 2013 Senior Class Marshals. Current juniors Stephanie Kranz and Kishauna Soljour will carry the class of 2013 banner to open Syracuse University’s 159th Commencement ceremony on Sunday, May 12, 2013, continuing a longstanding tradition of representing their class on this special occasion. In addition, this year the role is being expanded to more thoroughly reflect the significance of this honor. Kranz and Soljour will now have the unique opportunity to participate in the following experiences:

• meeting with senior-level University administrators to share and offer feedback on the SU experience;
• engaging in exclusive networking opportunities with alumni;
• representing the 2013 class at special University-wide events; and 
• helping to select the 2013 Commencement speaker.

Kranz is a double-major in mathematics and policy studies in The College of Arts and Sciences, and Soljour is a double-major in television-radio-film in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, and African American Studies in Arts and Sciences. Junior Mallory Ringham has been selected as the alternate senior class marshal. She is a double-major in physics in Arts and Sciences, and chemical engineering in the L.C. Smith School of Engineering and Computer Science.

“This year’s applicant pool was outstanding,” says Sylvia Langford, associate vice president for Student Affairs and chair of the selection committee. “Our committee’s task was as inspiring as it was challenging. All three students who were selected represent the breadth and depth of the class of 2013.”

Senior class marshals are among the most prestigious honors at SU. They are distinguished individuals who have excelled during their time on campus and who exemplify the spirit of the senior class. The criteria used to determine qualified nominees include scholarship, academic honors, student organization involvement, campus service and community service. An essay and a copy of an official SU transcript are also required.

Highlights of Kranz’s accomplishments and involvement include being a recipient of the Founders’ Scholarship and nominated as an Emerging Student Leader. Franz has served as co-executive director and treasurer of Habitat for Humanity and as a Western NY AmeriCorps member. She has also committed her time and talent to Syracuse University Ambulance—among other organizations—as an EMT, personnel supervisor and dispatcher. It was through her classes, public service experiences and interactions with other students on campus that she began to recognize the importance of not just acquiring skills, but identifying the application of her skills to make a change.

“My level of involvement was once measured by the quantity of my activities, but has now transitioned into being measured by the quality and effectiveness of my work,” says Kranz. “Even more importantly, I have developed a passion for finding a way to help others.

“When I entered high school, I was encouraged to ‘get involved’ by teachers and students. Four years later, I listened to Chancellor Cantor emphasize the same message during convocation, describing Scholarship in Action. Syracuse University has provided me with an experience that has made me a more engaged and concerned individual. I am so excited and thankful to be able to represent the class of 2013, and look forward to becoming even closer with my class through this position.”

Soljour, a member of the Renee Crown University Honors Program and a Golden Key International Honor Society Scholar, is the president of the Syracuse University chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). She is also a passionate advocate of education through the SU Literary Corps and a member of the Black History Month committee. It is Soljour’s sincere belief that if minority students knew their history they would have a better grasp of their identity and choose to embrace education and revolutionize their individual communities.

“Kishauna’s scholarship is purposeful, guided by genuine curiosity and passion for sharing, exchange of ideas and community building,” says Janis A. Mayes, associate professor in the African American Studies Department. “She knows how to pose important questions and has a refreshing ability to not only identify certain voids and gaps in a given situation, but to seek to fill them.”

“It is an honor to be selected as a senior class marshal,” says Soljour. “I am sincerely humbled to represent Syracuse University’s Class of 2013.”

For more information on senior class marshals, contact Langford at stlangfo@syr.edu.