Albert dorman honors college adhc

Persevere, be authentic, remain flexible and make a difference in the world, speakers told the Class of 2025 at New Jersey Institute of Technology’s undergraduate commencement.

New Jersey Institute of Technology served up a full day of fanfare as its advanced degree graduates walked across the stage in the Bloom Wellness and Events Center in three commencement ceremonies. The 2025 master’s and doctoral class exemplifies the institution’s commitment to research and scholarship across a diverse range of disciplines.

Taylor Pape presents an interesting mix: honors scholar, year-round researcher, soccer defender, intern and budding educator.

Even her major and minor at New Jersey Institute of Technology — biology and computer science — represents an intriguing hybrid.

The Albert Dorman Honors College (ADHC) at NJIT commemorated its 30th anniversary with a celebration honoring three decades of academic distinction, community service and transformative leadership. The event gathered university leadership, faculty, alumni and supporters to reflect on the college’s evolution and reaffirm its mission to develop civic-minded leaders.

Standout seniors from NJIT’s Jordan Hu College of Science and Liberal Arts (HCSLA) are capping off their undergraduate journey with one last accolade for achievements across academics and research, athletics and campus leadership.

Fresh from receiving the Outstanding Student Award at the HCSLA Awards Ceremony, these four students share their proudest NJIT moments, future goals and the lessons they’ll carry into the next chapter.

Gala Krsmanovic, B.S. Cyberpsychology

Students from Albert Dorman Honors College’s courses – Introduction to Research Writing, Introduction to Research Methods, Introduction to Entrepreneurship and Science, Technology and Urban Transformation – presented their semester's research during the fourth Honors Interdisciplinary Research Forum, with topics ranging from housing affordability crisis in New Jersey to an analysis of cartographical and textual evidence of Pope Joan.

New Jersey Institute of Technology’s Aliza Mujahid, a senior biomedical engineering student, along with mechanical engineering Ph.D. student and research assistant Mohammad Jafari, reached the final round-of-eight in the 2025 U.S. Hult Prize competition for social-minded startup founders.

The duo, with Assistant Professor Farid Alisafaei and colleagues at Washington University, represent a new company called DermaMech that aims to better understand the science of human skin grafting and develop technology that will reduce infections, rejections and scarring.

NJIT’s Dana Knox Research Showcase returned in 2025 to once again highlight the innovative and impactful work of students across disciplines. The event celebrated undergraduate and graduate researchers tackling real-world challenges with creative, technical solutions.

Now in its 20th year, the showcase was also its largest — over 150 presentations by 200+ students spanned all six of NJIT’s colleges.

Graduating NJIT senior Danielle Grunwald and her employer as of this summer, Axtria Inc., are made for each other — Grunwald loves digging into life sciences data to extract useful insights, and that’s the gist of what Axtria does.

Grunwald is wrapping up her studies with a B.S. in data science from Ying Wu College of Computing. She was also an Albert Dorman Honors College scholar, the only female member of the NJIT bowling team (personal high score 268), active with the Nucleus yearbook and an event coordinator for the Student Activities Council.

For Digital Designer Megan Krutz, graduation from NJIT’s Hillier College of Architecture and Design isn’t just a milestone — it’s a full-circle moment that reflects years of growth, discovery and the kind of artistic transformation she never anticipated. As she looks ahead, Krutz can’t help but reflect on how much NJIT helped her grow into the designer and educator she’s today.