Three exceptional SUNY Oswego alumni will receive honorary degrees from SUNY and inspire the next generation of Lakers as speakers during May 2026 Commencement ceremonies on Saturday, May 16.

  • William Precht, director of Coastal and Marine Sciences, Bio-Tech Consulting, will keynote the 9 a.m. ceremony for the College of Liberal Arts, Sciences and Engineering
  • Indie Lee, founder and CEO of Indie Lee & Co., will keynote the 12:30 p.m. ceremony for the College of Business and Entrepreneurship
  • Steven Messina, global head of the Finance Group at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, will keynote the 4 p.m. ceremony for the College of Communication, Media and the Arts and the College of Education, Health and Human Services

Groundbreaking scientist

Dedicated to environmental science from an early age, Precht solidified his career path while earning a bachelor’s in biology from SUNY Oswego in 1978. A semester studying at the Discovery Bay Marine Lab in Jamaica combined his love of geology and ecology (and scuba diving). His independent senior research project under mentor/advisor David J. Thomas concerned the modern reef communities located directly in front of the lab. This life-altering trip set the path for his passion and love of working on tropical marine ecosystems and he has worked on and researched coral reefs and carbonate sedimentary environments ever since. 

After earning a second graduate degree from the University of Miami, Precht built a career as an environmental scientist specializing in the assessment, monitoring, restoration and rehabilitation of coastal resources, particularly coral reef, seagrass and mangrove ecosystems. His contributions to the professional and academic community are nationally and internationally recognized, and he authored the groundbreaking and influential "Coral Reef Restoration Handbook – The Rehabilitation of an Ecosystem under Siege." 

He is currently director of coastal and marine sciences with the environmental consulting firm Bio-Tech Consulting in Miami, drawing on more than 30 years of demonstrated success in creating long-term partnerships, team building and coordinating multidisciplinary scientific programs. 

Precht serves on the Board of Directors for SCUBAnauts International and on the Science Advisory Committee for reef restoration organization Reef Renewal USA. 

For 32 years, he taught courses in ocean and coastal processes and coral reef ecology in Northeastern University's Three Seas Marine Biology Program. He currently teaches a summer field course on the sustainability and resilience of tropical coastal ecosystems for Columbia University’s Climate School. He is also an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Marine and Environmental Science at Nova Southeastern University. 

Precht has been featured in two award-winning broadcast documentaries on coral reefs and interviewed extensively by the media on environmental issues. He also serves as specialty chief editor for the Coral Reef Research section of the peer-reviewed journal “Frontiers in Marine Science” and as a Fellow of the International Coral Reef Society.

Inspiring entrepreneur

A 1993 SUNY Oswego graduate with a bachelor’s degree in accounting, Indie Lee is remarkable for her fighter’s spirit, passion for life and entrepreneurial mind. After earning her Oswego degree as Lisa Swengros, she became a certified public accountant and secured a position at Ernst & Young before even graduating. Fifteen years later, as a parent with two young children, she faced a life-changing diagnosis of a brain tumor and was told she only had six months left to live.

For many, that diagnosis would have been a reason to pause, but it ignited Lee’s mind and heart into immediate action. After healing from surgery, she transformed her life; legally changed her name to “Indie Lee,” short for “Independent Lisa”; and launched a clean beauty company with this new name. Today, Indie Lee & Co. is a trailblazer in the beauty industry. As she once explained: “I love my new name. Lisa was the accountant. Indie Lee is the lover of life!”

Indie Lee & Co. promotes radical self-acceptance, positive self-image and healthy living. The company’s products are non-toxic, eco-friendly and cruelty-free, and sold in more than 2,000 stores worldwide,to  help mainstream the clean beauty movement. Under Lee’s leadership, the company earned COSMOS and Leaping Bunny certifications and follows California Proposition 65 and EU guidelines, which ban more than 1,300 ingredients harmful to humans and the environment.

Indie Lee & Co. has received numerous awards for its effectiveness and ethical standards and has been featured in Vogue, Allure and Harper’s Bazaar, among others. Through the IndieLee.com blog, she inspires thousands of readers worldwide, using the global platform to help others live healthy and positive lives.

Lee mentors rising women entrepreneurs; fundraises and advocates for autoimmune research; and serves on the executive board of the Autoimmune Association. Lee is a 2024 recipient of the Oswego Alumni Association Distinguished Alumna Award, the association’s highest honor. Supporting her alma mater, Lee delivered the keynote at SUNY Oswego’s 2025 Women’s Empowerment Summit and was a featured speaker during TEDxSUNY Oswego in March 2026.

Financial achiever

Graduating from SUNY Oswego in 1991 with a bachelor’s in meteorology, Steven “Steve” Messina used that as a foundation for a trajectory of success. A first-generation college student at Oswego, he earned his law degree from Pace University and became a national leader in corporate banking and finance law –- a testament to the transformative power of education and opportunity.

As global head of the Finance Group at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, LLP,  Messina has built an impressive career overseeing some of the most high-profile financing transactions globally. His expertise in acquisition financings and leveraged finance enable Messina to manage complex, multibillion-dollar deals that have earned recognition from prestigious legal publications, including Chambers USA, Chambers Global, Lawdragon and IFLR1000. In 2025, Best Lawyers in America honored Messina as the New York Banking and Finance Lawyer of the Year.

His dedication to achieving excellence includes giving back to his alma mater. Messina established SUNY Oswego’s first endowed scholarship for meteorology to provide college access for future meteorologists. He also supports a need-based scholarship, the on-campus food pantry SHOP (Students Helping Oz Peers) and the student-run WTOP-10 TV station. His investment in state-of-the-art meteorological systems has enhanced students’ learning experiences, allowing them to gain hands-on experience with industry-leading technology.

Messina also generously shares time and expertise by serving on the Oswego Alumni Association Board of Directors. On SUNY Oswego’s Pathways to Leadership panel, Messina highlighted how the university shaped his leadership potential and career aspirations, citing experience as news director and general manager at WTOP as pivotal to his future success.

His remarkable legal career, combined with an ongoing commitment to SUNY Oswego and its students, exemplifies the values of access, excellence and leadership that SUNY seeks to promote. 

About Commencement

SUNY Oswego's May Commencement ceremonies will take place in the Deborah F. Stanley Arena and Convocation Hall and stream via the university's YouTube page, youtube.com/sunyoswegovideo.

For more information, visit oswego.edu/commencement.