NSU’s focus on the workplace and preparing students for success after graduation was recognized by the Carnegie Foundation through an Opportunity College and Universities designation.
This new designation is based on the measurement of whether the institution’s enrollment of students is reflective of the communities they serve and how the earnings of those students compare to their peers in the region.
Provost Ronald J. Chenail
“This designation further demonstrates to current and prospective students that at NSU, our job is your career,” said NSU President and CEO Harry K. Moon.
This significant recognition comes on the heels of NSU reaching the elite status as an R-1 Research University, further cementing NSU’s commitment to research and innovation.
“NSU is recognized as an institution that can serve as a role model for studying how campuses can foster student success,” said Provost Ronald J. Chenail. “The designation of an Opportunity College and University highlights the diligent and successful efforts of the NSU faculty, staff, and students, along with our impressive alumni and inspiring donors.”
The designation is part of a newly developed Student Access and Earnings Classification published in April by the Carnegie Foundation and the American Council on Education. In 2025, only 479 institutions nationally received the classification, representing about 16 percent of the total number of U.S. colleges and universities within the Student Access and Earnings Classification.
NSU is one of only 21 universities in the nation, and one of only two private universities in the nation, to be designated as both an R-1 research institution and an Opportunity College and University by the Carnegie Foundation.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush addresses the commencement crowd.
Commencement season got underway at Nova Southeastern University on Monday, May 5, with a graduation ceremony for the Halmos College of Arts and Sciences and the Guy Harvey Oceanographic Research Center. The graduates were among some 6,000 who will have their degrees conferred this year from NSU’s 14 colleges.
Keynote speaker, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, told the Class of 2025 to dream big and stay determined.
“Remember it’s doing the little things with persistence that will make the difference,” he said.
In front of a packed house, graduates walked the stage and turned their tassels at the Rick Case Arena. For some, it was the first time participating in commencement traditions.
“I graduated high school in 2020, so I haven’t had an actual graduation… due to the pandemic,” graduate Marlon Matute said. “This will be the first time getting to walk.”
Delivering his inaugural commencement address, NSU President Harry K. Moon recounted how the Class of ’25 adapted to distance learning and isolation during the pandemic and resiliently returned to the classroom setting for in-person education.
“Not only did you come [back to campus], you thrived,” he said.
Moon will participate in multiple graduation ceremonies running through August 2025. The commencement website provides more information.
In 2011, when future NSU alum Julius Thomas left Portland State University for the National Football League, he was on top of the world. The 6’5,” 250-pounder was the fourth-round pick in the draft as a tight end for the Denver Broncos.
Thomas played for one of most potent offenses in the league, led by Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning. He competed against players he idolized and picked on his John Madden videogame teams. He also started his journey to become one of the best tight ends in the sport.
“Football was a surreal experience for me, because overall it was such a long shot,” he said. “I came out of college playing basketball, saying, ‘I think I can play in the NFL.’ It was crazy that I pulled it off.”
But as Thomas would soon find out, there would be struggles beneath all the stardom and glitz. There was something missing, he said, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
As Thomas now reflects on his past, he says he found what was missing at Nova Southeastern University.
“I had this really challenging experience with sports,” Thomas recalls. “I had coaches say to me, ‘You know Julius, I don’t think you love the game enough.’ I liked the game, but I didn’t love it.”
Thomas began soul searching, asking himself what he was supposed to do, and who he was.
“I recognized I was very emotionally cold. I started to notice that I was suffering internally – mentally and emotionally. And then I noticed that it wasn’t just me, that people around me were also suffering,” he said. “Then I thought, ‘Somebody should help these people, and maybe I am that person.’”
In 2017, Thomas found himself on the field at the Miami Dolphins practice facility on NSU’s campus. (It has since been relocated to space adjacent to Hard Rock Stadium.)
“Every day that I would drive to practice I would pass the Nova campus,” he said. “One day a curious thought came to mind: ‘I wonder if NSU has a psychology program.’”
Thomas reached out to the Dolphins’ director of player engagement with his inquiry, and he was connected to Dean Karen Grosby with the College of Psychology. It was a connection that would change Thomas’ life.
“Dean Grosby is amazing and has been so instrumental in my life,” he said. “I’m eternally grateful for her.”
Dean Grosby and Professor Robert Seifer gave Thomas a tour of the college.
“Julius has always had a natural curiosity and appetite for knowledge,” Grosby said. “He was open to learning and new ideas, demonstrated a deep respect and compassion for those with whom he met or worked, and communicated easily with people from all backgrounds. No doubt he will do great things as a psychologist.”
Thomas says he was intrigued by the tour, adding that Dr. Seifer asked, “Are you sure you’re really ready to retire from football? If you’ve got nothing to do, you can come sit in on my doctoral classes some time.”
Thomas took Professor Seifer up on his offer. One day when Thomas was sitting in on a class, the professor asked him if he had ever been interested in getting a doctorate.
“My first answer was ‘No, I never thought about it,’” Thomas said.
Before he knew it, Thomas found himself in the classroom, working on his doctorate degree. But it wouldn’t be easy.
“So here I am stepping into a doctoral program saying to myself ‘Do I belong here? Can I do this? Can I keep up? Can I learn this?’” he said. “As a kid from Stockton, Calif., who graduated high school with a 2.7 GPA, there was a high opportunity for failure. I also felt out of place at first – in age, with different lives, and different problems than other students. I had to put in so much time at home on weekends to catch up.”
During his studies, Thomas had the opportunity to work with Dr. Jaime Tartar, the head of the Department for Neuroscience. She helped Thomas learn about behavioral neuroscience and introduced him to scientific research. Thomas learned about Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, a form of therapy that helps people increase their psychological flexibility by developing a more mindful relationship with their thoughts and feelings, and by committing to actions that align with their values.
“From the very first moment I met Julius,” Tartar said, “it was clear that he possessed an intense passion for learning and an authentic curiosity about the human mind and body. It was clear that he wasn’t just looking for a degree; he was seeking the knowledge and skills to make a meaningful impact in the world.”
While in school, Thomas developed his own company, Optimal Performance, which uses science to leverage the gap between performance and wellbeing and helps others maximize on both. Thomas says it allows him to get in front of people and work with them before things cave in emotionally and mentally.
“I feel like over the years I’ve been able to build myself from the inside out,” he said. “I try to help others create the same resilience.”
Thomas says his education at NSU has been life changing. He has worked with patients from age 10 to 70. He has received about 4,000 hours in clinical training. And he has spent thousands of hours in the classroom reading books and taking exams.
“This training is helping me be as prepared as I can possibly be to help people regardless of what they’re experiencing,” he said. “And it’s been fun to do that and learn how to teach and how to effectively provide beneficial information.”
In June, Thomas will have begun yet another career – this one in academia. He plans to take what he has learned at NSU on the road to continue his business.
“When you pursue your calling, there are a lot of things you might have to give up – such as status, fame, and money,” he said. “But there comes a time where you must decide if you want to fall into the trappings of the world or if you want to do what you’re aligned to do. I really wanted to chase a journey of service. I wanted to help people. But I didn’t know how. And that’s how I found Nova.”
When friends Lili Demm and Jack Sardina were freshmen at Nova Southeastern University, they quickly realized college life was more than just classes and exams. Adjusting to independent living for the first time, the two often felt overwhelmed.
“I remember sitting in my room, swamped with laundry, dishes, and deadlines,” said Lili, a Huizenga Business Innovation Academy (HBIA) member and Farquhar Honors College student. “That’s when Jack asked, ‘What if there was an app where college students could help each other with tasks — for money?’”
Student entrepreneurs Jack Sardina and Lili Demm
That concept evolved into CampusRun, a student-to-student task platform where “posters” submit chores and errands, and “runners” can earn money by carrying out those tasks. From picking up food to cleaning rooms to assembling furniture and laundry help, CampusRun was designed to ease the lives of busy students and give other students a flexible way to make money, Lili says.
Once the two hatched the idea, they sought the support of the HBIA, which helped them fine-tune their business model. They also partnered with the NSU Law Clinic, where professors and students helped them build a strong foundation, such as drafting operating agreements, terms of service, employment contracts, and privacy policies.
“They really helped us build a legal moat around our business,” said Jack, also an HBIA member and student at the H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship. “They cared deeply about our success and helped us navigate the parts of business we didn’t even know we needed yet.”
With support from the Alan B. Levan | NSU Broward Center of Innovation’s Incubator Program, the pair gained access to mentors, pitch training, and entrepreneurial workshops. Their added knowledge paid off when they received grant funding from the HBIA Pitch Competition in spring 2024. The money allowed them to hire a professional development team based in the Brickell neighborhood in Miami which built out the app for iPhones.
CampusRun officially launched in fall 2024 and had more than 200 users by year’s end. The app operates on a familiar model — CampusRun collects a 20 percent service fee from runners, which is significantly lower than mainstream platforms such as Uber or DoorDash, which often collect 50 percent or more.
To promote their platform, Lili and Jack have used hands-on grassroots marketing.
“We’ve held events with on-campus businesses and handed out free samples to encourage downloads,” Lili said. “We’ve walked students through the app, gaining users one by one.”
Lili, the current Miss Brickell USA, is competing in Miss Florida 2025. She has been using her competition platform to raise additional awareness about CampusRun, as well.
To ensure trust in the app, Lili and Jack established background checks, worked with campus IT on email verification, and implemented ratings and review systems to ensure safe, high-quality interactions. They also added referral programs and voucher incentives and are constantly tweaking the app based on student feedback.
“One of the things we’ve worked on is quality control,” Lili said. “Vetting who is on the platform is highly important.”
Next steps are to expand the app into other South Florida schools, including the University of Miami, Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, and Lynn University, while also preparing for national growth.
Jack has a philosophy when it comes to entrepreneurship: “Crawl, then walk, then run.”
“We were at the crawl stage — starting at our school, listening to feedback, fixing bugs, and making improvements,” he said. “Now, we are at the walk stage, heading to eMerge Americas – Florida’s largest tech conference – where we’ll pitch, network with schools and investors, and plan to expand throughout South Florida. By the end of this year, we hope to be running and dominating nationally.”
With their passion for innovation, teamwork, and helping others, Lili and Jack are determined to make CampusRun not just a successful app, but a student-powered movement and long-term business endeavor. The duo will graduate with finance degrees this semester.
“We’re very committed to CampusRun,” Lili said. “We want it to be our full-time job when we graduate in May.”
Heriberto Acosta-Maestre is a proud Shark, graduating from NSU’s College of Computing and Engineering in 2021 with a doctorate in Information Systems Security. Since 2009, he has worked in a variety of high-end technical and managerial roles at the U.S. Army National Guard in Puerto Rico, currently as a program manager, overseeing multiple technical projects. In 2023, shortly after earning his Ph.D., he became a Cybersecurity Research Fellow at the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies in Washington, D.C.
“I pursued my Ph.D. at the NSU Davie Campus while living and working full-time in Puerto Rico,” Acosta-Maestre said. As part of the program, he completed his studies online and traveled to campus once a semester for required weekend seminars. “One of the key reasons I chose NSU was the flexibility of its hybrid program that allowed me to continue my professional career while earning my doctorate. NSU’s format made it possible to balance both effectively.”
Although working full-time while earning a degree can be challenging, Acosta-Maestre’s strong time management and support from his supervisors made it possible. “They were incredibly understanding and instrumental in helping me complete my studies while maintaining my professional responsibilities,” he said.
According to Acosta-Maestre, earning his NSU Ph.D. immediately positioned him as a recognized expert in the field, giving his opinions greater credibility. His advanced education created opportunities for him to speak at conferences and, most importantly, led to his current role as a Cybersecurity Research Fellow.
“The Ph.D. taught me how to work independently, analyze complex problems, communicate effectively with both executives and technical experts, and present ideas in a clear and structured manner,” he said. “Without the Ph.D., I would not have been considered for this role.”
Through Acosta-Maestre’s doctoral dissertation, he gained an understanding of behavioral factors that influence threat avoidance and a unique perspective when developing strategies to mitigate cybersecurity risks. “At the Perry Center, I integrate this knowledge into discussions on cyber defense, helping inform policies and training programs that improve cybersecurity awareness and resilience among government agencies and international partners.”
Acosta-Maestre said he enjoys his work at the Perry Center and plans to contribute to its mission, collaborating with United States hemispheric allies and advancing cybersecurity research and education.
“Looking ahead, I hope to further explore leadership opportunities in cybersecurity policy and strategy while continuing to mentor and educate the next generation of professionals in the field.”
NSU knows a strong and talented workforce is critical to South Florida’s business community and is committed to fulfilling this need. So when it heard employees from NextEra/Florida Power & Light (FPL) were asking for a local Master of Business Administration (MBA) program, it sprang into action.
The NSU H. Wayne Huizenga College of Business and Entrepreneurship began designing a program on NSU’s Palm Beach campus that would cater to employees at NextEra, as well as other organizations, while offering affordability, convenience, and flexibility. Students would be able to finance the program through their corporate reimbursement allowances.
Tshoy Stewart
Tshoy Stewart, a senior GIS specialist/senior development technology specialist with NextEra Energy Resources, leaped at the Palm Beach MBA opportunity when it was brought to her attention by her employer. Stewart has previous bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Florida State University.
A St. Lucie County resident, Stewart has been employed by NextEra since 2020. She is one of the 60 students enrolled in the program, and one of the 52 students working for NextEra/FPL.
“So far, I have enjoyed the program, and it will help improve my managerial skills,” she said. “I’m no stranger to managing schoolwork and my career. This time, though, it feels more manageable than my prior experiences because of NSU’s accelerated semesters.”
With NSU’s program format, a typical four-month semester is broken into two-month semesters. Instead of taking the traditional route with three to four classes over four months, students take one to two classes for two months at a time. This makes the course load easier to manage, Stewart said.
Working with the faculty and advisers at NSU has also been a plus.
“I so greatly enjoy and appreciate the graduate advisers that have been working with me this school year,” Stewart said. The Palm Beach MBA program appeals to working adults who are looking to advance their careers. Current students come from diverse professional backgrounds, including fields such as engineering, finance, human resources, city government, law enforcement, and more. Based on the success of this initiative, a new cohort MBA program will be planned for the future.
“Programs like this are crucial because they enable us to collaborate with local organizations to develop future leaders and support their leadership succession planning,” said Millicent Kelly, the director of graduate admissions at NSU’s Palm Beach Regional Campus. “Additionally, the program is designed with the needs of working adults in mind, offering flexible course structures that accommodate their various roles and responsibilities.”
Stewart says she wouldn’t hesitate to recommend the MBA program to others.
“I think it is great that my company supports their employees to continue education to learn new skills and elevate themselves in that manner,” she said. “The graduate team at NSU are amazing and that has made this experience easy, educational, and fun.”
Often innovations in education involve thinking outside the box. Just ask Associate Professor and Researcher James Munoz with the NSU College of Psychology.
When he’s not conducting research, Munoz is teaching Neuroanatomy and Research Methods in Neuroscience on the NSU Davie Campus. During a recent “light bulb” moment, Munoz thought of a captivating way to ingrain neuroscience concepts in the brains of his students: creating an escape room.
“Developing the individual challenges was a labor of love and pain,” Munoz said. “I based each challenge on a learning objective. First, I thought about an objective. For instance, the action potential, cranial nerve innervation, control of eye movements, etc. Then the real challenge began with trying to think of ways to turn those concepts into physical puzzles. In some instances, it meant walking around looking at arts and crafts for hours until something clicked.”
Munoz says that once the first puzzle came together, the others started to fall into place more quickly.
“Developing an escape room changes how one thinks.”
Munoz made the escape room a supporting event outside of class time. The rules were simple:
There would 13 teams of four, picked on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Students majoring in neuroscience, exercise science, biology, and psychology would be invited to participate.
There would be six challenges.
Each team would have 30 minutes to decipher the clues and escape.
Each member of the first-place team (escape artists with the best time) would receive a $100 gift card provided by the Office of Student Success.
Each member of the second-place team would receive $25 gift cards provided by the College of Psychology.
The College of Psychology also would provide gift bags and snacks for all participants, as well as purchase all the supplies.
“Registration filled up within 20 minutes,” Munoz said.
Each challenge was focused on a learning objective for the Introduction to Neuroscience and Neuroanatomy courses. Each challenge that a team solved revealed a lock combination to one of several locks on a Plexiglas box with the mold of a brain inside. The objective: unlock the box, release the brain, and thus, escape.
Munoz staged the escape room in one of the conference rooms. The students met challenges with a combination of fun and frantic as they scurried about the room relying on teamwork to crack the winning codes.
“I’ve only participated in two escape rooms, but I enjoyed how we kept talking about it after and appreciated how it challenged us,” he said. “I thought if we could create a similar experience for our students, they might appreciate using their knowledge in a fun, challenging way – similar to how the best movies are the ones that make you think and prompt discussion.”
When the smoke cleared from the competition, one conclusion was evident: The students loved the escape room, and so did fellow faculty. It’s safe to say the experiment has opened new doors.
“I’m currently collaborating with two other faculty for our next escape room,” Munoz said.
Munoz, who has been at NSU for 14 years, has a Ph.D. in neuroscience with an emphasis in gene therapy. His research examines factors that regulate the proliferation, migration, and differentiation of neural stem cells. The transplantation of certain types of neural stem cells has the potential of curing several neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and spinal cord injuries.
President Harry K. Moon addresses the audience at his investiture.
Nova Southeastern University (NSU) officially welcomed its seventh president, Dr. Harry K. Moon during an investiture ceremony at the Rick Case Arena on Friday, Jan. 31, 2025, on NSU’s Davie Campus.
Dr. Moon – who also serves as chief executive officer of the university – was greeted by members of the Board of Trustees, deans, university officers, faculty, staff, students, and additional guests at the event. Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and NASA Administrator and former Sen. Bill Nelson were among the guests who spoke at the event.
Dr. Moon, an internationally renowned plastic and reconstructive surgeon, has had a distinguished medical career and has been instrumental in the development of medical, research, and educational programs in South Florida for the past quarter century.
During the event, Dr. Moon accepted the honor as president and CEO through the passing of the mace from former President and CEO George L. Hanbury II, who stepped down after serving 15 years in the post.
“At NSU, we exist for one very simple and powerful purpose: To ignite the light of discovery and human potential to enrich lives, enhance wellbeing and create a better future for all mankind,” Dr. Moon told the crowd. “This purpose speaks to the collective power of NSU academics, health care, research, and innovation. How they collectively transform lives, careers, personal wellbeing, and communities. They create the future.”
Dr. Moon’s acceptance speech focused on preparing students for purposeful careers and providing a value-driven education model that accelerates the path to undergraduate, graduate, doctoral, and professional degrees. He expressed the need to lower the cost and reduce the debt of education.
“Education is the fundamental equalizer and greatest liberator of humankind,” he said.
Also emphasized was NSU’s role as the potential “center of world-changing breakthroughs in life science, technology, engineering, social science, health care delivery, and human services.”
“Our world-class oceanographic research, coastal-resiliency, and professional workforce- development programs are foundational to the development of the blue economy,” President Moon said. “In Florida today, the blue economy accounts for more than $800 billion in economic impact, and … includes everything from our fisheries and boating industries to tourism, transportation, environmental safety, research, and so many other pursuits.”
Among the opportunities Dr. Moon cited was NSU’s future as a premier academic health care system through NSU Health, Moon’s brainchild during his tenure as COO and executive vice president. NSU Health is the university’s extensive health care arm providing a variety of services from medical, dental, and eye care, to pharmacy, physical therapy, and hearing, speech and language services.
President George L. Hanbury II has greatly enhanced the faculty, staff, and student experience at Nova Southeastern University during his 15 years as president of what is now Florida’s largest private research university.
The feathers in his cap are numerous, from overseeing the design, construction, and opening of the new state-of-the-art 311,000 square-foot Tampa Bay Regional Campus in 2019, to partnering with Broward County to establish the Alan B. Levan-NSU Broward Center of Innovation at the Alvin Sherman Library on the Fort Lauderdale Campus, to working with HCA to establish the HCA University Hospital as a teaching and research facility adjacent to the Fort Lauderdale Campus.
Hanbury is also credited with initiating the concept and leading NSU’s efforts to provide the matching funds for the Center of Excellence for Coral Reef Ecosystem Science Research, and successfully acquiring a $15 million grant from the National Institute of Science and Technology within the U.S. Department of Commerce. The center now serves as a national resource for coral reef research with more than $40 million dollars of external funded research being performed within its new laboratories.
In 2014, Hanbury spearheaded the opening of a regional campus in San Juan, Puerto – a four-story, state-of-the-art facility equipped with technology and computer labs, videoconferencing, a multi-purpose room, drug information center, a wet lab, offices and a fitness center, to name a few of its features.
And the list goes on.
His shared successes with NSU also have made headlines. Below are just a few examples:
One of President Hanbury’s most memorable quotes is “Keep your aim above your reach, be bold and persistent in achieving your aim, but most of all, maintain your integrity—it is your most precious asset.”
It has been a goal he has truly embraced … and one he will leave behind.
Whether it’s leadership in research, expertise in health care, support of Florida’s economy, or distinctive student experiences, NSU has grown to be a dominant force in higher education – and others have taken notice.
The Wall Street Journal recently named NSU to its list of America’s Best Colleges 2025. This is the first time the newspaper recognized NSU as one of the nation’s top universities. It also ranked NSU fifth in Florida in salary impact (third among privates) and second in Florida in diversity (No. 1 among privates).
Other points of Shark pride:
NSU is Florida’s largest, private research university and on the road to achieving preeminent credentials given to those at the forefront of research and innovation.
Forbes ranked NSU #23 in its list of top employers in Florida.
NSU is the only university in Florida with a College of Optometry.
U.S. News and World Report has ranked several NSU health care programs as tops in their specialty areas.
The Carnegie Foundation selected NSU as one of 59 universities nationwide recognized for both High Research Activity and Community Engagement.
The National Security Agency has included NSU among the few institutions in the country designated as both a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cybersecurity Cyber Defense and Cyber Research
NSU is one of only four U.S. universities offering allopathic medicine and osteopathic medicine colleges.
U.S. Department of Education criteria position NSU as the largest, private, not-for-profit Hispanic-serving institution in the country.
