While the graduates of Manhattan College are getting ready to walk across the stage to pomp and circumstance, the class valedictorian is sharing her story on how she has found her place in the world of academia. 

Alixandria James is graduating from the college with a 4.0 GPA and a major in public health. She is celebrating her accomplishments with her parents, who are Manhattan College alumni themselves.  

"We're super excited, and so proud of her, she's very ambitious and hardworking, so it's great to see her hard work celebrated,” said Michelle James, Alixandria’s mother.  

James says that through her time at Manhattan College, academia helped her accept parts of herself that she didn’t always welcome with open arms.  

“Aspects of my identity that I used to try to hide and be ashamed of actually served as a beacon for new connections among my friends and professors,” said James.  

James is the first Manhattan College graduate to receive the Truman Scholarship, a prestigious award for students interested in public service. She was one of 58 recipients of the award across the United States this year.  

James says her plan is to move to Washington D.C. to work at the National Advisory Committee on Rural Health and Human Services.