Commencement Profile: Carlos Cisneros Vilchis

Carlos Cisneros Vilchis has earned his bachelor of science degree in business administration with a minor in legal studies while attaining a GPA of 3.92.

Cisneros Vilchis will receive the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Student Excellence during the 2:00 p.m. baccalaureate ceremony at Buffalo State's 140th Commencement, Saturday, May 12, in the Sports Arena.

A native of Monterrey, Mexico, Cisneros Vilchis played an integral role in connecting international students at Buffalo State with one another. He implemented a Thanksgiving get-together for international students and scholars and their American host families on campus, and organized a camp weekend at Whispering Pines for large numbers of internationals.

Students chose Cisneros Vilchis two years in a row as president of the International Student Organization, which aims to increase cultural awareness on campus. He also served as vice president and treasurer to the ISO and was a member of the Knights of Columbus.

Both faculty and community members praised Cisneros Vilchis for his leadership qualities, his warm personality, his ability to excel in his academics while also serving in multiple roles, and his exceptional gift for empowering diverse populations of students.

Off campus, Cisneros Vilchis gave of himself in countless ways. In fall 2011, he prepared programs to raise awareness for students on voting rights, homelessness, and hunger as a leader in the New York Public Interest Research Group. Additionally, Cisneros Vilchis was recognized for his work raising funds to help the people of Haiti and Japan following the earthquake in Haiti in 2010 and the tsunami in Japan in 2011.

Additionally, he taught religious education at Prince of Peace Church in Buffalo and served as a junior adviser to a youth group at St. Stephen’s Roman Catholic Church on Grand Island.

Cisneros Vilchis hopes to study law at either Harvard or Yale University.