660 Students Graduate From Oakton Community College

More than 660 students received degrees and certificates at Oakton Community College’s 42nd Annual Commencement, held May 14, at the College’s Des Plaines campus.

After a welcome by Oakton Community College President Margaret B. Lee, Student Government Association Past President Alfred Raul Hegyes of Niles gave a farewell address. He served as co-president and president of Oakton’s Habitat for Humanity Chapter, and stepped into his SGA role in summer 2012. As SGA president, Hegyes was a tireless booster, spearheading efforts to increase student attendance at College basketball games. He plans on pursuing a bachelor’s degree in political science at the University of Illinois at Chicago.

The College conferred its Distinguished Alumna Award on Cheryl-Lynn May, who earned an associate’s degree and a certificate in museum studies from the College in 2006 and graduated with high honors. Originally from Mundelein, she received two Jack Kent Cooke Scholarships that enabled her to earn her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Lake Forest College and the University of Delaware respectively. While in Delaware, she was named a Lois F. McNeil Fellow and the 2008 winner of the Montgomery Connoisseurship Competition. Presently, she is a resident of Columbus, Ohio and works at Ohio State University as the curatorial assistant in the exhibitions department of the Wexner Center for the Arts, where she coordinates bringing nationally and internationally recognized art and artists to central Ohio. An enduring and devoted advocate for Oakton, she serves as an alumni mentor to students and continues to model the power of community college education.  

Ravi Salgia, M.D., Ph.D., director of Thoracic Oncology Program at the University of Chicago, vice chair of translational research in the Department of Medicine, and associate director for transitional research in the Comprehensive Cancer Center, gave the commencement address. 

His research focuses on targeted therapies that enhance cancer patients’ quality of life. The American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute, the Mesothelioma Applied Research Foundation, and the University of Chicago Research Cancer Center have funded Salgia’s prolific research. He took database management courses through Oakton’s Alliance for Lifelong Learning, which gave him the ability to effectively manage and present his findings. A resident of Park Ridge, Salgia is the author of hundreds of articles and pieces published in journals and books related to thoracic malignancies. He also is an associate editor for various medical journals. Most recently, Salgia received a 2013 Society of American Asian Scientists in Cancer Research (SAASCR) award for his outstanding contributions to cancer research.