A ceremony for Posse scholars

By Amy Downey

On Friday evening, inside Pfenning Alumni Center’s Wilson Room, graduating Posse scholars gathered to be honored by their peers, mentors, and family members.

The celebratory evening started with a formal procession of the mentors and 17 Posse scholars making up the N.Y. and D.C. cohorts. Once everyone was seated, Tim Cox, dean of advising and co-curricular programs and Posse liaison, opened the ceremony with a heartfelt introduction, followed by welcoming remarks by Jahery Paulino, N.Y. program trainer at The Posse Foundation.

Rachel Goshgarian, associate professor of history and NY21 Posse mentor, began presenting commencement cords to individual students within her cohort. Paris Francis ’26, the recipient of the Posse Leadership & Engagement Award, presented a cord back to Goshgarian—not just a Lafayette Posse tradition, but a symbol of Francis’ appreciation for the guidance and mentorship. “My mentor has been so incredible in helping me develop as a person and as an academic,” says Francis, an integrative engineering major with a robotics concentration. “I truly don’t know where I would be without her, and where I would be without my Posse.”

Trent Gaugler, associate professor of mathematics and DC17 Posse mentor, then addressed his cohort, including Yanina Chicas Amaya ’26 and Camsey Noonan ’26 who both received the Posse Leadership & Engagement Award for the D.C. cohort. For Chicas Amaya, a double major in psychology and international affairs with a minor in Latin American and Caribbean studies, she will most cherish the supportive community, which extended far beyond her peer scholars. “Posse is about our ‘plussers,’ the administrators, faculty, our mentors, everyone,” she says. “Posse has brought connections that I will value forever.”

The Class of 2026 has particular significance to Cox, as this is the first set of scholars chosen after he stepped into his Posse role four years ago. “You bring incredibly brilliant people to the College who have outstanding leadership potential and a shared goal to be successful with one another,” Cox says. “At the same time, they are navigating a different environment, and so there’s an affinity to the program because of the experience they had at Lafayette.” Cox credits mentors Gaugler and Goshgarian with strengthening the Posse camaraderie over the years.

The group then participated in the beloved annual tradition of “open mic.” For an hour, Posse Scholars took turns addressing each other, their families, and others with words of gratitude. The audience then addressed the students, at times in their native languages.

Francis explains that whether it was having a peer to work through engineering classes, or eating together as a cohort for “semester dinners,” or even just thoughtful gestures, like when she received a cake during her first birthday away from home—the Posse always knew how to lift up one another. After graduation, Francis will be joining Schneider Electric as a software engineer.

For Goodness Obadofin ’26, he can’t talk about his Lafayette experience without talking about his Posse experience, as they are intertwined. Obadofin, who is from Brooklyn, N.Y., is an English major with a data science minor. He is also the only senior part of the Posse Leadership Board, a group of students who are interested in building relationships and connections within the broader Lafayette community. “The way that we had such an impact on one another was truly inspiring,” he says. “We grew individually and as a collective unit.” Goodness was given a gift and separate set of cords for his work on the Posse Leadership Board.

Throughout the ceremony, more symbolic cords were exchanged. Goshgarian gave a cord to Ani Brutus, a member of the NY Posse 21, who transferred to Hunter College, City University of New York—but who was still very much connected to Lafayette and their Posse. Cox also presented one to Jose Bencosme Pena ’26, a recent graduate and member of NY Posse 19, for his resilience and continued contributions to the Lafayette community. Finally, Heather Reyes ’26 and Chicas Amaya presented a cord to Jaylene Martinez ’26, as Martinez was part of the Lafayette journey from the very beginning.

After the closing remarks, and with white roses and Posse diplomas in hands, scholars took some extra time to snap some photos of the group in their maroon caps and gowns before leaving Pfenning.

“These students have done amazing work here at Lafayette. They are honors graduates. They are scholarship and fellowship winners. They are leaders of various clubs and activities. They are artists, researchers, and the list goes on,” Cox says. “While they may not necessarily know what is ahead of them, they are absolutely ready. They have been prepared by our outstanding faculty members, mentors—and one another.”