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Raritan Valley Community College awarded associate degrees and certificates to more than 1,300 graduates at its commencement, held Saturday, May 18, in the Soccer Field at the College’s Branchburg campus. Clint Wallace, Sanofi Senior Vice President of Human Resources, North America, and Global Head of HR, Digital and Analytics, delivered the commencement address and received an honorary degree during the ceremony.

Clint Wallace is responsible for providing strategic HR leadership to Sanofi’s North America organization as well as leading a global center of expertise to leverage digital, data and analytics to support Sanofi’s business strategy. He partners closely with the executive team to drive the organizational climate necessary to innovate and collaborate in a highly competitive environment. Wallace serves as a member of the Global HR Leadership Team and has previously served as Chair of the US Country Council.

Prior to joining Sanofi, Wallace was with BASF Corporation where he was Vice President of Human Resources for North America, providing strategic HR leadership to BASF’s North America HR organization, including organization design, talent resourcing, career planning, reward and performance management tools and talent succession planning. Prior to BASF, Wallace held numerous positions within GE Healthcare and Pratt & Whitney.

Wallace served as a Commissioned Officer in the US Air Force Reserve and after 21 years of service retired in June 2008. In support of the broader Somerset County community, Wallace is a member of Greater Raritan Workforce Development Board appointed by the Freeholders and is a Board Member of the RVCC Foundation. He also has served on the Advisory Council of Dress for Success – Northern New Jersey.

Wallace holds a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a Bachelor’s Degree in Manufacturing Engineering from Central Connecticut State University.

The program featured RVCC student commencement speaker Aya Younes of Piscataway, formerly of Branchburg. Younes was born in the U.S., and she and her family moved to Fez, Morocco when she was three years old. She moved back to the U.S. in January 2017 and started at RVCC taking ESL classes, quickly progressing to the College’s prestigious Honors College in fall 2018. She is graduating with a 4.0 grade point average, double-majoring in Pre-Pharmacy and Pre-Medical Professional. While at RVCC, Younes has been a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and served as Vice President of the Muslim Student Association and Vice President of the ESL Club. She has received several honors, including RVCC’s Academic Award for Pre-Pharmacy and the New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund (EOF) Graduate Achievement Award. Younes will be attending the Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy at Rutgers University this fall on a full scholarship.

Bick Treut of Somerville, Professor of Communication Studies, delivered the faculty commencement address. Treut, who is in his 17th year with the College, assisted in developing RVCC's Digital Media/Film Studies program. Before teaching, he was senior partner for 20 years at a small advertising and marketing consultancy and was a reporter at the Hunterdon County Democrat for two years. Treut received a Bachelor of Science in Radio/TV Production from Emerson College and a Master of Arts in Communication Studies from Ohio University. He is pursuing his doctorate in General Psychology at Capella University.

The other graduates speaking during the ceremony included Sakshi Kulshrestha of Montgomery, who introduced the commencement speaker, and David Iglesia of Branchburg. After immigrating to the U.S. from New Delhi, India in May 2016, Sakshi Kulshrestha found a sense of belonging at RVCC, became a leader on campus, and was active with the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society, Student Government Association, Rotaract and Enactus. An Honors College student with a 4.0 grade point average, she was selected for the prestigious Sanofi Corporate Mentorship Program at RVCC. Kulshrestha received the Academic Award for Business Administration - General Business.

David Iglesia introduced the faculty speaker. Iglesia was enrolled at a four-year, out-of-state university, but before he even stepped foot on campus, he realized the cost was too high and that RVCC would be his best option. Iglesia has been a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society and the National Society of Leadership and Success. Iglesia graduated Magna Cum Laude with degrees in four majors: Social Science, General Business, Marketing and Communications. This fall, he will be pursuing a degree in Communication Studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

May 18, 2019

Media contact: Donna Stolzer, 908-526-1200, ext. 8383

PR #147