Sixty-First Commencement
Class of 2026 Salutatorian
Myat Khine Zan
Theatre Arts major
Myat Khine "Daisy" Zan arrived in the United States in August 2024 as a 19-year-old from Yangon, Myanmar, alone in a new country and determined to make the most of the opportunity.
This June, she leaves as the Class of 2026 salutatorian, with a perfect 4.0 GPA, an associate degree in theater arts and a résumé that reflects leadership at nearly every level of campus life.
"Studying in the United States is not something I took for granted. Every class, every opportunity, and every challenge has reminded me how fortunate I am to be here," said Daisy. “As someone who is deeply proud of being from Myanmar, I have always wanted to represent my country well and show what students from my background can achieve when given an opportunity.”
Just getting here was not easy. In May 2024, Daisy traveled internationally for the first time — to Bangkok, Thailand, for her U.S. visa interview. She was rejected. She briefly enrolled in a university in Myanmar and considered abandoning her plan to study abroad altogether. Then she tried once more.
"When my visa was finally approved, I saw tears in my father's eyes, and I realized how much this opportunity meant not only to me but also to my family," she said.
She came in planning to study business administration, but before her first semester even started, she changed course.
"Acting had always been my passion, and Kingsborough gave me the courage to choose what truly made me happy," she said.
That decision paid off. Daisy appeared in three KCC Theatre Arts productions, “She Kills Monsters,” “Twelfth Night,” and “The Book of Will,” with a lead role in the last. Her performance led to a nomination for the Irene Ryan Scholarship at the American College Theatre Festival, where she has represented the College twice. During the festival, she was honored with the BOLD Catalyst Award in recognition of her artistic excellence and leadership.
Outside the classroom, Daisy threw herself into campus life. She served as vice president of student affairs in the Student Government Association, chaired the Student Activist Committee, sat on the Ethics Committee, worked as a Student Ambassador, and held vice president roles in the Theater Club, Film Club, and Environmental and Sustainability Club. She also worked as a student aide in the Access-Ability Services. In addition, she represented the College as a speaker at the CUNY Student Women’s Leadership Conference.
One of her most personal contributions was organizing the Rakhine Water Festival on campus in April 2026, bringing her own culture — she is Rakhine, an ethnic group from Rakhine State in western Myanmar — to the broader KCC community.
"Sharing my culture with the college community made me feel seen and valued while also allowing others to learn about a background that is often underrepresented."
Among her academic honors, she is a Jack Kent Cooke Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship semifinalist, a three-time Dean's List honoree, an Honors College Scholar, and a member of Phi Theta Kappa. She also received the Leonard and Louise Riggio Scholarship.
She credits two professors with helping shape her experience. Acting teacher Miriam Grill, she said, showed her great kindness from the start. English professor Elroy Esdallie "taught me more than complex English writing."
This fall, she transfers to Brooklyn College to pursue a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting. Her long-term goal is straightforward: "I want to be an actress with award-winning status and be able to provide for my family."
An important life lesson she’ll take with her is learning that she doesn’t need to face challenges alone. “The support of my professors, mentors, and friends taught me that strength is not about never struggling. It is about continuing to move forward despite those struggles,” she noted. "Don't ever change yourself. Don't you dare doubt a little bit. You are exactly where you are because you earned it with sweat and tears. Keep going."