Class of 2026 Valedictorian
Astiaque Ahmed – Candidate for Bachelor of Science in Financial Economics
Astiaque Ahmed is graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Financial Economics with a current GPA of 3.963. During his time at Medgar Evers College, Astiaque’s academic achievements landed him on the Dean’s list seven times and on the President’s List four times. It’s an even more impressive accomplishment given the fact that he arrived in the United States after emigrating from Bangladesh in 2020 in the midst of a pandemic and without having completed his academic education before arriving in his new country.
Currently living in Queens with his three siblings and parents, Astiaque is the head of the household with the responsibility of providing financial support. While he wound up working full-time managing a Domino’s Pizza franchise, Ahmed saw a more promising path in continuing his education. After earning his GED in 2021, college was his next priority. Armed with a recommendation from LaGuardia Community College Professor Matthew Bird, who was overseeing the high school diploma program he was enrolled in, Astiaque applied to a number of CUNY schools, eventually landing at Medgar Evers College.
Dr. Emmanuel Egbe, Chair of the Department of Economics and Finance, was who convinced the nascent college student to come to Crown Heights to continue his journey. It impressed Astiaque who admitted, “In my country, we don’t get replies back from higher officials and department heads. His responding encouraged me to enroll at Medgar Evers College.”
Having applied for federal financial aid that required him to score above 75 percent in order to continue matriculating, Astiaque established a high bar for himself where he aimed to score 85 percent or higher. No mean feat given that he was balancing both a full-time academic course load while pulling full-time hours as a closing manager at Domino’s. And while his hours often found him leaving home at 6:30 a.m. and not having his head hit the pillow until 3 a.m. the following day, Astiaque scored a 3.96 GPA during his first semester with his lowest grade being an A- in a one-credit class.
With a super-charged sense of confidence, he not only increased his credit load to 18 credits, but wound up with a 4.0 for consecutive semesters while completing his degree in seven semesters. During that time of commuting between Queens and Brooklyn, Astiaque never missed a class and counted Dr. Egbe, Dr. Zulema Blair, Dr. Dereck Skeete, Dr. Margaret Carroll, Patrick Stewart and Lishawn Alexander among his favorite professors.
In November 2025, Astiaque became a U.S. citizen and during his last semester, he squeezed an internship at Senator Kevin Parker’s office into an already packed schedule. It was an impactful enough experience that he switched his goals from financial analysis to public service. As such, joined Alexander’s consultancy firm as an NYSERDA Climate Justice Fellow and is studying for the LSATs with a goal of attending law school. For the newly minted Medgar Evers College alum, the combination of self-belief, hard work, discipline and institutional support are the DNA of Astiaque’s American dream.