Indiana University Indianapolis 2026 Spring Commencement will take place at 8 p.m. May 16 at Michael A. Carroll Stadium.

Each year, one undergraduate student and one graduate student are selected to serve as honorary speakers during the ceremony. The 2026 speakers, Ivana Daniels and Snehvir Kaur, both forged their own paths into scientific research after considering following in the footsteps of their parents.

Ivana Daniels

Ivana Daniels. Photo by Liz Kaye, Indiana University Ivana Daniels will graduate with a Ph.D. in pharmacology from the IU School of Medicine. If not for a middle school STEM program, she may have pursued a much different career.

Growing up in Richmond, Virginia, Daniels said, her parents invested heavily in her musical education. Her mother played the flute and French horn, and Daniels shared that musical bent. She successfully auditioned for admission to a fine arts magnet school where half of her classes focused on musical performance and production.

But the STEM program introduced her to another passion: science and math. In 10th grade, she joined a NASA-sponsored program.

“A lot of my peers wanted to be engineers or astronauts, but I found myself more curious about the human health aspects of space exploration, which led me to explore biomedical engineering and eventually sparked my interest in premed.”

As an undergraduate student at the University of Virginia, Daniels majored in biology and religious studies and continued working with NASA through its Virginia Space Grant Consortium scholarship program. She also shadowed several doctors, but the only specialty that captured her interest was pathology.

“I really liked being in the lab,” she said.

During her sophomore year at UVA, she worked in a biochemistry lab with research focused on pulmonary hypertension and treating antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. Daniels worked as a molecular medical technologist, processing high volumes of diagnostic tests during the COVID-19 pandemic. The experience solidified her interest in respiratory research.

That led her to apply for a job in the lab of Dr. Benjamin Gaston at the IU School of Medicine. When Daniels chose to pursue her Ph.D., she also chose to stay in the Gaston Lab and make Gaston and Michael D. Davis her mentors.

Since 2021, she’s given more than two dozen presentations on their collaborative work, contributing to advances in the understanding and potential treatment of respiratory diseases, including cystic fibrosis, RSV, asthma and human metapneumovirus.

“She has demonstrated potential treatment for two viruses that have no known treatment in the world — and that’s all her work,” Davis said. “She’s expanded our patents and is now on the patent for our antiviral drug because of this work.”

Gaston said he sees Daniels as “a leading scientist in her generation.”

“People like Ivana who actually know how to discern scientific truth will ultimately be in great demand and will be essential leaders,” he said.

As a Ph.D. graduate, Daniels plans to pursue a role that connects academia and industry, with a focus on scientific communication.

“I want to be somewhere I’m still connected to the science, but I’m also able to use my voice to communicate and educate others on what is happening behind the curtains of drug discovery,” she said. “I’m hoping to use the skills I’ve built here at IU to be an effective scientific communicator and bridge the gap between science and patient care.”

When she takes the stage at commencement, Daniels will encourage her peers to embrace the uncertainty ahead.

“When people imagine scientific discovery, they often picture a breakthrough — a sudden answer,” she said. “But those of us who have lived through graduate school know the truth: Discovery rarely looks like certainty. More often, it looks like unanswered questions, failed experiments, unexpected results and the quiet persistence to keep going anyway.”

Snehvir Kaur

Snehvir Kaur. Photo by Liz Kaye, Indiana UniversitySnehvir Kaur will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in neuroscience from the School of Science. It’s a path she did not plan to take when her collegiate journey started.

“Initially, I wanted to major in business, since my parents own businesses; it was just practical,” she said. “But when I saw how passionate my business school peers were about what they wanted to do, I realized I didn’t feel that same connection.

“I like science, and I’ve always enjoyed medicine, so I conquered my fears of thinking I wasn’t good enough and switched my major to neuroscience between my freshman and sophomore year.”

It did not take long for Kaur to take advantage of the prestigious research opportunities available to IU Indianapolis students. During her sophomore year, she began working in the Hydrocephalus Research Center.

Led by professor Bonnie Blazer-Yost and established with over $11 million in federal grants, the center focuses its research on finding an effective drug treatment for hydrocephalus, a life-threatening condition in which cerebrospinal fluid builds up in the brain.

Kaur was entrusted with major research projects; her own investigated how ions contribute to the production of cerebrospinal fluid. Weeks before commencement, she presented her work at the American Physiology Summit in Minneapolis, a national conference for life science researchers.

“Snehvir had the unique and nerve-wracking experience of presenting a poster in the main poster session where senior scientists and their trainees congregate to discuss the presented research,” Blazer-Yost said. “At the same meeting, she participated in a poster research session and networking for undergraduate students where she met her peers from around the country. We are very fortunate to have undergraduate students who show this type of dedication to the research mission of our university.”

Kaur describes her time in the hydrocephalus lab as the most impactful part of her education.

“My experience with the lab has been an amazing learning opportunity, not just learning about science, but navigating research dynamics, writing papers and learning how to collaborate with others,” she said.

Kaur plans to attend medical school and is especially passionate about helping people who may face language or cultural barriers.

“There are a lot of people who feel like their pain or their struggle is undermined because they might not be able to communicate how they’re feeling,” she said. “As an immigrant and a child of immigrants, I can relate to their experience.

“I want to be a physician who sees more than just a diagnosis. My goal as a future physician is to help people be able to fully get back to the things they love.”

Relating to and representing the experiences of her classmates will be a theme of Kaur’s commencement speech.

“It’s not just about my story; it’s about reflecting the experience that so many students have had but is not always talked about: the uncertainty, the pressure, the quiet moments of doubt,” she said. “I want people to feel seen and understood when they hear my speech.”

She also shares this message for the Class of 2026 and those that follow: “You don’t need to have everything figured out right away. You don’t need to compare your timeline with anyone else’s. Just focus on learning and growing. Become someone who can face challenges, even without all the answers.”

 Laura Gates is senior writer for the Indiana University School of Medicine. Tia Broz is a communications consultant in the Office of the Vice President for Communications and Marketing.