C.W. Post's 2007 Valedictorian Derek Petti, Dr. Joseph Shenker, C.W. Post provost

As a high school senior in Lockport, NY, Derek Petti knew exactly what he was looking for in a college – a first-rate Audiology curriculum, performance opportunities for non-music majors, and a competitive track and field team. He entered his criteria into a web-based college search service and the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University returned as a perfect fit.  Four years later, Petti stands to graduate this spring with a near-perfect academic record and the exceptional honor of representing the student body as the Valedictorian of the Class of 2007.

Petti will receive his Bachelor of Science degree in Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology at the commencement ceremony, which will take place on Sunday, May 13, at the Brookville, NY campus. He will take the podium as the main student speaker to deliver his valedictory address before an audience of 10,000 students, parents, dignitaries and invited guests.

Petti’s nearly flawless transcript boasts a GPA of 3.97 with over 144 credits, far more than the number of credits required for graduation. His grades are all the more impressive because they were earned in the Honors Program, a rigorous course of study that affords students the opportunity to take an array of challenging courses outside of their major area of study. Petti says that one course in particular -- Medieval Religious Philosophy -- nurtured a spirited discussion of what it means to be wrong that went beyond the answer "to not be right." This course, he said, changed the way he viewed life’s many challenges.

“The lesson was my first introduction to a non-linear mode of thinking,” he recalls. “There is nothing more disconcerting, and simultaneously inspiring, than realizing that the world is not always as simple as black and white, and that grey area surrounds our existence at every moment.”

He interned last summer at the Long Island Jewish Medical Center, performing universal newborn hearing screenings, an experience he said that “has reaffirmed my aspirations to become a pediatric specialist in audiology.”

Petti has also seen his share of success on the athletic field. A member of the C.W. Post Track and Field team, Petti has earned individual all-conference accolades in the 800-meters and the 400-meter hurdles, as well as numerous relay events. This past winter, the Pioneers took home both the East Coast Conference and the Collegiate Track Conference team titles.           

When not in class, in an internship or on the track – “I have never been the kind of person who looks on from the sidelines; I like to get involved as much as possible” – Petti may be found with saxophone in hand. He picked up the instrument for the first time in fourth grade and had neither the interest nor the intent to put it down for the years he was pursuing his bachelor’s. Dr. James McRoy, director of the Symphonic Band, gave Petti the opportunity to join the ensemble and he maintained his place there for four years, practicing two nights a week and taking part in numerous performances on and off campus. Most of the students he performed along with were music majors, making Petti's participation particularly impressive. 

“Although he does not study the saxophone privately, like all the music majors do, he prepares all his parts on his own and is always ready to make an exceptional individual contribution,” said Dr. McRoy. “He is happy to have the spotlight, share the spotlight and withdraw from the spotlight.”

Petti is also a contributing writer for the C.W. Post student newspaper, the Pioneer, and a member of the student chapter of the National Student Speech Language Hearing Association. He has served as a campus tour guide for prospective students and has been involved with the New York State Band Director’s Association reading session for the past two years.

Although he’s living off-campus this year, Petti enjoyed his days in the campus residence halls. He lived in a suite complex for a time, wherein eight students co-exist in one shared space, an experience he was well-prepared for as the middle child in a family with five children.

After he leaves C.W. Post, he plans to pursue a Ph.D. in Speech and Hearing Sciences, with specific concentrations in pediatric audiology and cochlear implantation. He hopes to achieve a professorship position at an institution that will afford him opportunities for scholarly research in the field.

Petti considers his college education, with its many victories and challenges, as invaluable and extraordinary. “I have learned that there is only so much that I can accomplish on my own," wrote Petti in his valedictory essay. “Where I falter, I know I have my family here at C.W. Post to pick me up and help me through.”