Congratulations 2025 Graduates!

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Joey Ilagan

Joey Ilagan graduated summa cum laude in December 2024 with a B.S. in Computer Science and Linguistics and a minor in Italian Studies. While at Duke, Joey was president of the sketch comedy group Inside Joke and a member of Club Triathlon, the Quad Identity Team, Round Table, and Language Central. He is now a software engineer at Google in San Francisco, CA, developing global NLP/LLM infrastructure as a member of the Device AI Foundations team.

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Grace Levey

Grace Levey is graduating with a double major in Environmental Engineering and Linguistics and a minor in Math.  After graduation, Grace will be working as an Associate Consultant at Bain & Company in New York City.  While there, she hopes to explore the intersection between business and the environment in pursuit of the fight against climate change.

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Leah Nickelsburg

Leah Nickelsburg is graduating with a B.S. in Computer Science, an A.B. in Linguistics, and a minor in Chinese. During her time at Duke, Leah performed with the Duke Symphony Orchestra, competed on the Club Equestrian Team, volunteered for the Puppy Kindergarten, and was a founding member of the emerging band Nerdvana. Following graduation, Leah will begin her career as a data analyst at DTCC.

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Alexander Pieroni

Alexander Pieroni is graduating with an Interdisciplinary Major in Computer Science and Linguistics and a second major in Classical Languages. At Duke, he led reconstruction work in the Dig@Lab, using VR, Latin epigraphy, and 3D modeling to decipher the Etruscan Vicchio Stele and digitally reimagine ancient cities, featured in an April 2025 exhibit at NYU’s Institute for the Study of the Ancient World.

His current research explores natural language processing and how large language models interpret ambiguity, memory, and meaning. After graduation, he will join Disney Streaming (Disney+, Hulu, ESPN+) as a Product Manager in New York City.

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Lauren Read 

Lauren Read is graduating with a BA in Political Science and a minor in Linguistics. During her time at Duke, she contributed to the American Predatory Lending project through Story+, worked at the Box Office, and served on the executive board for several pre-law organizations. After graduation, she is moving to Washington D.C. She looks forward to using her linguistics knowledge to work as a federal contract associate before applying to law school.

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Julian Schwanke

Julian Schwanke graduated this past winter with a B.A. in Linguistics. This upcoming year, he hopes to serve high school students from North Carolina as a member of the College Advising Corps. Looking forward, he is excited to pursue a career in counseling or education

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Jaeden Toy

At Duke, Jaeden obtained a BS in Computer Science with a concentration in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, an AB in Russian, and a minor in Linguistics. After Duke, Jaeden will be moving to Washington DC to work as a data scientist. He has thoroughly enjoyed his time in all three disciplines, and he hopes he is able to continue learning languages long after graduation.