Message from the Dean
Dear Dornsife Graduates,
Your dedication, perseverance, and passion for public health have led you to this incredible milestone. As you move forward in your journey, remember that you are stepping into a field where your work has the power to create meaningful change.
Your time at Dornsife has provided you with the knowledge, skills, and perspective to tackle today’s most pressing health challenges. Whether you choose to continue your education or enter the workforce, embrace the opportunities ahead with confidence and purpose.
Your commitment to health equity, social justice, and evidence-based solutions will shape the future of public health. As you celebrate this achievement, know that you are not just graduates — you are leaders, advocates, and changemakers. Congratulations, and may your next chapter be filled with success, impact, and fulfillment.
Sincerely,
Gina Lovasi, PhD, MPH
Dean and Professor of Epidemiology
About the Keynote Speaker
Palak Raval-Nelson, PhD ’08, is the health commissioner for Philadelphia’s Department of Public Health. She has worked for the department since 1996, when she began her career as a public health sanitarian. Since then, she has served as a supervisor, manager, administrator and director of Philadelphia’s Environmental Health Services, as well as deputy health commissioner.
Ms. Raval-Nelson also serves as an adjunct professor for Ð԰ɵ¼º½’s Dana and David Dornsife School of Public Health and Temple University’s College of Public Health. She teaches about environmental and occupational health, as well as about vulnerable populations and the environment. She has presented many papers at the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA), Pennsylvania Public Health Association (PPHA) and the American Pharmacists Association (APhA), and she has published several times in the national Journal of Environmental Health. In 2008, she published her first book, “Breast Cancer Politics: An Evaluation of the Current Funding Policies.” She graduated from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Environmental Public Health Leadership Institute and recently completed a Certificate of Public Sector Leadership from Cornell University with a concentration in Leading Government Organizations.
Ms. Raval-Nelson holds a BS in biology from Temple University, an MPH from MCP Hahnemann School of Medicine (graduating with the distinguished Hiega Society Award) and a PhD from Ð԰ɵ¼º½.
She has been a civil servant for 29 years and is deeply committed to working with vulnerable populations and being a voice for marginalized communities to ensure equity and environmental justice.
You're a Forever Dragon Now!
Don't Miss the University-Wide Commencement on June 12!
We hope you'll join us for this special event at Citizens Bank Park on Thursday, June 12 at 5 p.m. ET. We look forward to celebrating our graduates at the University-wide Commencement ceremony, where our newest Forever Dragons will get the chance to participate in a procession around the baseball field and have their degrees conferred before being officially welcomed into the ranks of Drexel alumni.