The Heller community gathered to celebrate this year’s graduates during a special reception held on Friday, May 15, in the Levin Ballroom. The occasion served as an opportunity to recognize not only the accomplishments of this year’s graduates, but also the shared sense of purpose, care, and community that defines the Heller School.
In delivering opening remarks at the ceremony, Sara Shostak, Dean of the School of Social Sciences and Social Policy, noted that each graduate contributed a rich array of perspectives, experiences and commitments that have strengthened learning at Heller. She also highlighted that they are entering a world in need of transformative social change:
“To be sure, you will not—you cannot—do this work alone. And so, I hope that you will always remember that you are part of a community of visionary changemakers at Heller and at Brandeis. I urge you to stay in touch with each other and with our faculty, researchers, and staff. We will always be happy to hear from you. We will always be happy to think with you. We will always be inspired by you.”
A recording of the reception is available here.
Representing the PhD in Social Policy program, Tozoe Marton, MS GHPM'19, PhD’26, reminded her fellow graduates that excellence is cultivated in community.
“Each of us here carries a story shaped by sacrifice, perseverance, and hope. Different stories, but bound by a shared education that insists we use what we have learned to improve the world. So to my fellow graduates, wherever you go next—into policy, research, advocacy, or practice—carry this with you: Your work matters. Your voice matters. And the systems we study are not fixed—they can be changed.”
Representing the Master of Public Policy program, Chloe Morales '23, MPP’26, encouraged the members of her cohort to continue advocating for what they believe in.
“Here we are, about to walk into a world where doing the right thing is, once again, something a lot of people are too scared to sign their name to. Where the policies we’ve envisioned—disability justice, protecting immigrant rights, abolishing prisons, and combatting green gentrification—are being framed as controversial. As disruptive. As too much. Good. Let us be too much.
Representing the MS in Global Health Policy and Management program, Chukwuemeka Agbarakwe, MS GHPM’26, emphasized that Heller prepared the Class of 2026 to embrace complex challenges.
“We did the work, asked the hard questions, stayed the course, and showed up even when it wasn’t easy. May we go forward with clarity, courage, and compassion, ready not just to succeed, but to build, to serve, and to lead with purpose. This moment is ours. The world is waiting on us. Let us answer boldly.”
Representing the MA in Sustainable International Development program, Eben Kwapong, MA SID’26, highlighted the importance of doing the difficult work that ultimately makes a tangible impact.
“My dear Heller colleagues, we've come too far, overcome, invested, and experienced too much to allow any darkness to prevail. Our light must shine, our passion must burn, and our resolve must remain until the tides are turned, and the change we've long desired is realized. As we step forward from Brandeis, may we remember that the Bismarks of tomorrow are all around us today. May we build the environments that allow them to grow. And may history remember us as a generation that did not hoard opportunity, but shared it.”
Representing the MA in Conflict Resolution and Coexistence program, Israa Eltawil, MA COEX’26, recalled leaving her war-torn home country of Egypt and finding community at Heller.
“What we share is this: a belief that human life is precious. That we can create alternatives to violence. That we don’t have to accept killing, imprisonment, or fear as the only answers. That another world is possible, and that we are responsible for imagining it, and building it. I may be the one speaking, but this story belongs to all of us in one way or another.”
Representing the inaugural graduating class of the MA in Global Sustainability Policy and Management program, Almaz Kasymbekov, MA GSPM’26, noted that they are becoming part of a new chapter in Heller's history, and reflected on going back to school decades into his professional career.
“Heller became not just a place of study, but a space where my professional experience took on new meaning. And now, at the end of my time at Heller, I can answer my classmate’s question: age and experience do not remove the need to learn. On the contrary, the more we have seen in life, the more important it becomes to gain a new perspective, so that we can serve people better.”