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Jennifer Flanz finally had the chance to celebrate her Harpur College graduation — 27 years after earning her bachelor’s degree in English.

Back in the spring of 1998, the Rockland County, N.Y., native had just landed a production assistant job at The Daily Show, Comedy Central’s late-night TV news parody.

“Because I had already gotten my job at the show and took it so seriously — some would say too seriously — I didn’t want to take a day off for my graduation,” she said. “So, this is actually the first time my parents get to ’see me graduate.’ Thanks, Mom and Dad!”

She remained with the show ever since, rising through the ranks to become an executive producer, showrunner and writer. Along the way, she’s won numerous awards, including the Primetime Emmy, Peabody, Gracie and Television Academy Honors, and played a role in major decisions, including the choice of hosts.

At the first of Harpur’s three Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, she added another: the 2025 Harpur College Distinguished Alumna Award for her exceptional work in the television industry.

“Jen’s ability to maintain the show’s distinctive voice while adapting to a changing media landscape demonstrates the critical thinking and adaptability fostered by a liberal arts education,” said Harpur College Dean Celia Klin.

Nearly 1,900 Harpur students received bachelor’s degrees and 120 received master’s degrees on Saturday; another 63 graduates received doctorates at a separate ceremony on Thursday. As the University’s oldest and largest school, Harpur is home to a wide array of programs, including the fine and performing arts, social sciences, humanities and natural sciences, as well as mathematics and interdisciplinary programs.

Flanz encouraged students to celebrate their accomplishments and shared some of the lessons she has learned along the way.

Have confidence. Consider journaling. Take care of your physical and mental health. Be bold enough to take up space, but thoughtful enough to leave room for others. Everything you do, from social media posts to text messages and fashion sense, will one day haunt you as “cringe,” but embarrassment just means that you’re embracing life.

After all, Flanz’s own life has contained more than just professional success at her network’s most popular show. She has endured personal hardship, too: cancer treatment, divorce, loss, disappointment.

A good sense of humor is essential for survival, she said. The Daily Show teaches that, too; even amid terrible national tragedies, the show — and the laughter — goes on.

“We try to find ways to help people laugh in the face of heartache, disappointment and fear. To be honest, it helps me process the world for myself and keeps it all from feeling overwhelming and chaotic,” she reflected. “I try to remind myself and the team to handle the days and workload the way we handle the news: find the fun and funny wherever you can. That life and work, with a little bit of levity and laughter, does not always have to be so heavy.”

Honorary doctorates

During the second and third ceremonies, Harpur College awarded two highly accomplished alumni with honorary doctorates: Michael D. Timmeny ’73, the former senior vice president of Cisco Systems Inc., and Stuart F. Koenig ’73, senior advisor at LeadCrest Capital Partners.

A history major at Harpur, Timmeny went on to build a career in government service and corporate leadership, starting in the office of Shirley Chisolm, a U.S. representative from Brooklyn and the first Black woman elected to the U.S. Congress. To pay forward Chisolm’s legacy, Timmeny endowed a scholarship for politics and public service at ���غ��� that is awarded to students pursuing careers in public service who demonstrate financial need and maintain a GPA of at least 3.0.

He went on to serve seven Democratic lawmakers in various capacities, and then as vice president of domestic policy for the American Electronics Association, which represents more than 3,000 technology firms based in the U.S. In 1998, he joined Cisco Systems, where he led the firm’s government relations and strategy team worldwide, and also chaired the Carlton Club, a peer group of heads of corporate government affairs organizations in Washington, D.C., who meet weekly with policymakers. After retiring in 2023, Timmeny has served on the ���غ��� Foundation Board of Directors and the Harpur College Advocacy Council.

During his speech, Timmeny discussed a matter close to his heart: diversity, equity and inclusion.

“Now, I may be one of the least diverse people in this room — as you can tell, I was born white and middle-class and am now beyond middle-aged — but throughout my professional life, I’ve been hired, guided and advanced by people unlike me,” he said. “Diversity has been my friend and a blessing. It has not been an obstacle nor is it something that I have ever feared — and I don’t think you should, either.”

When Timmeny stood outside Chisholm’s office door in 1974, he didn’t think he had a chance of being hired as “a 23-year-old white guy from Westchester with nothing but enthusiasm and a Harpur College degree.” But the barriers existed only in his mind, he said.

That held true throughout his time in politics and private industry. All but one of his bosses at Cisco, for example, were working mothers. Black women in particular played a significant role in his professional development, he said.

“Even as DEI language and practices are contested in today’s discourse, remember this: you’ll excel in every aspect of life by embracing America’s vast diversity,” he told students. “You’ll discover opportunities and reach heights you never expected, as I did.”

He also urged graduates to consider careers in public service, at every level of government. It may seem unusual advice for the times, he acknowledged, but the country needs engaged citizens who respect the rule of law, tell the truth and value diverse contributions, he said.

An English major, Koenig went on to earn an MBA at Baruch College while starting his career as an assistant controller at a securities brokerage firm. From there, he held various financial positions and later joined Apollo Real Estate Advisors as the chief financial officer, chief administrative officer and senior partner, helping the business grow its assets from $500 million to $6 billion while facilitating its expansion into Europe.

His career then took him to a directorship at Emeritus Corporation, which provided independent living, assisted living, Alzheimer’s care and skilled nursing for seniors. From there, he joined Ares Management as a senior partner and finally to Lead Crest Capital Partners, a Luxembourg-based sale-leaseback and build-to-suit investment firm where he is a senior advisor.

He made his mark in other ways, too. The recipient of the Glenn G. Bartle Distinguished Alumnus Award in 2019, Koenig serves on the University Foundation Board of Directors, vice chair and trustee for the University’s Endowment Fund and chair of the Investment Committee. In 2017, he made a generous donation that resulted in the creation of a dedicated space on campus for students and faculty to enhance their communication and digital production skills.

“Perhaps, like myself, who majored in English but ended up having a successful 40-year career in private equity real estate, your path might not be readily apparent today. But rest assured, your education here has prepared you well to seize the opportunities when they present themselves and even create some yourselves,” Koenig told students.

The University was a much different place in 1969, when Koenig arrived as a first-generation college student from the Bronx. There were only 6,000 students and 250 professors back then, and fewer facilities of all kinds. Admissions standards have tightened, too, with the average SAT score rising from 1239 in Koenig’s day to 1430 today.

“The irony is that I probably could not get into this school today,” he quipped.

Once home to the Endicott Johnson shoe company and IBM, the ���غ��� region has undergone a shift away from manufacturing and toward higher education, research and healthcare. Since its start more than 75 years ago, the University has become one of the largest employers in Broome County and a major contributor to the Southern Tier’s resurgence, contributing approximately $1 billion to the local economy annually, Koenig said.

“Remember that your education is not just a means to personal success, but a tool to effect positive change in the world,” he said.

Student voices

Learning, of course, happens both inside and outside the classroom. Harpur’s three student speakers shared some of the lessons that shaped them during their educational journey.

One core lesson: Life plans — while important — can change on a dime. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, noted Veronica Raffele, a dual major in Spanish and Philosophy, Politics and Law. She admitted that she has her own 10-year life plan, which involves law school.

Originally from Milan, Italy, Raffele immigrated to Rochester, N.Y., with her family 12 years ago. She explored multiple interests at ���غ���, including as vice president of Evolution Dance Company, an intern with the ���غ��� Policy Project and co-founder of the ���غ��� Moot Court Team. An honors student in the Pell Honors Program, Raffaele did her thesis on “Refugee Integration Bonds: A Pragmatic Solution to the Global Refugee Crisis — Private Investment.”

Looking at the future, she bid her peers to heed the profound lessons taught … by the campus squirrels. To prepare for winter, they bury acorns — but they don’t remember where they put most of them. The squirrels survive and thrive, and the forgotten acorns grow into forests.

“There’s something to be said for the idea that not everything has to go exactly as planned for it to work out,” she said.

Psychology major Michael Lulaj found that out early on. When he first arrived at college, he planned to become a medical doctor — only to find his dream thwarted by his struggle with organic chemistry.

“That following semester was one of the biggest hurdles I ever experienced. However, it taught me one of the most valuable lessons: the beauty of uncertainty,” he reflected. “Pivoting is not a shortcoming; it’s a strength.”

During his time at ���غ���, Lulaj worked as marketing director of the Student Association Programming Board, a content creator for ���غ���’s TikTok team and a peer consultant in the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development. He also completed an internship in human resources at an asset management firm in New York City.

Lulaj is now enrolled in the 4+1 MBA program in the School of Management. From there, he plans to pursue a career in either human resources or marketing and communications.

If something isn’t working, don’t be afraid to quit, he told his peers.

“In reality, quitting means you had the courage to say ‘this isn’t for me’ and take on the even bigger challenge of figuring out what is,” he said.

Hawa Fofana, who received dual degrees in global public health and biological sciences and minored in Africana Studies, encountered difficulties early in life. She grew up in a South Bronx public housing complex, the daughter of Gambian immigrants in a household with 14 siblings.

“I experienced firsthand the struggles of an environment where the odds seemed stacked against success,” she said. “I grew up in a community where police officers outnumbered guidance counselors in our schools, where resources were scarce and opportunities limited. I grew up in a community where young, impressionable children were told exactly who and what they would amount to be,” she said.

Despite the obstacles, Fofana never felt hopeless. Being able to dream — and try, fail and try again — is a privilege denied to many children across the world who face the burden of poverty or war, she said.

At ���غ���, she was part of the African Student Organization and the X-Fact’r Step Team, programming and projects coordinator for the Multicultural Affairs office, and director of advocacy for the Student Assembly’s presidential cabinet. Following graduation, she will intern with researchers at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, who are further developing the healthcare data system in Guyana for the Guyanese Ministry of Health. She hopes to take what she learns from that experience and apply it in The Gambia, where she’d like to work one day.

Privilege isn’t just a blessing, but a call to action: to rectify inequitable systems, mentor future generations and amplify unheard voices.

“We are living at the precipice of social change, and it is up to us to advocate for what is right. It’s up to us to claim the spaces they say we don’t belong in,” Fofana told her peers. “So, as we move on to the next phase of our lives, I ask you: How will you choose to represent yourself to the world?”