A California appellate justice and a doctor who uses social media to empower medical learners will be the first guest speakers as the University of California, Davis, begins its graduation season this week.

California Court of Appeal Associate Justice Shama Mesiwala, a 1998 graduate of the UC Davis School of Law and an adjunct professor there for 13 years, will address the law school’s commencement at 11 a.m. Saturday, May 9. 

Paul Tran, an assistant professor of child health at the University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix and a pediatric gastroenterologist at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, will speak at the School of Medicine commencement at 10 a.m. May 16. 

Both ceremonies will be held at the Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts on the Davis campus.

UC Davis will hold eight professional school and Graduate Studies ceremonies on the Davis campus through June 12 and five undergraduate ceremonies at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento June 12-14.

Mesiwala has been on the bench of the 3rd District Court of Appeal since 2023. Devoted to public service, she represented indigent criminal defendants early in her career. In 2004, she began working for the appellate court, first as a central staff attorney and then as a chamber’s attorney. 

In 2017, Mesiwala was appointed commissioner of the Sacramento Superior Court and as a judge 10 months later. She presided over a wide range of court calendars including criminal and civil trials. Mesiwala created Northern California’s first Indian Child Welfare Act courtroom and served as the judge ensuring that the civil court complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Co-founder of the South Asian Bar Association of Sacramento, she has been honored with several awards for her community service. 

Tran, a passionate medical educator, has been the clerkship co-director at the Arizona medical college since 2023 and the pediatric specialty adviser at Creighton University School of Medicine since 2025. He seeks to “inspire learners to grow, embrace challenges and advocate for themselves while fostering encouragement and kindness within medical education.”

Known as Alimentary School, he has hundreds of thousands of followers on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Facebook, where he entertains, educates and empowers medical students and trainees. 

In a keynote address at the American Medical Association’s Medical Student Advocacy Conference in March, he encouraged medical students: “We don’t say it enough. Thank you for what you do. Thank you for what you’re doing today to take care of someone who’s depending on you tomorrow. You are seen. You are important. You are enough.”

Commencement calendar

Following is a complete list of commencement dates, times and locations:

• May 9 — School of Law, 11 a.m., Mondavi Center
• May 16 — School of Medicine, 10 a.m., Mondavi Center
• May 22 — Weill School of Veterinary Medicine, 3:30 p.m., Mondavi Center
• June 10 — School of Education, 4 p.m., Mondavi Center
• June 11 — Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, 10 a.m., Mondavi Center
• June 11 — Graduate Studies, for master's students, 10 a.m., University Credit Union Center
• June 11 — Graduate Studies, for Master of Fine Arts and doctoral students, 3 p.m., University Credit Union Center
• June 12 — Graduate School of Management, 10 a.m., University Credit Union Center
• June 12 — Two undergraduate ceremonies, 9 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., Golden 1 Center
• June 13 — Two undergraduate ceremonies, 9 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., Golden 1 Center
• June 14 — Undergraduate ceremony, 9 a.m., Golden 1 Center

More about commencement

Nine cultural and affinity celebrations will be held May 29 through June 13. More information on these events and commencements, including ticket requirements for most ceremonies, is available on the commencement website. Information about commencement livestreams will be available online later.

Numbers of degrees awarded for 2025-26 are not available until later in the year. In 2024-25, UC Davis conferred a total of 12,171 degrees: 9,887 bachelor’s, 781 professional, 850 master’s, 612 doctoral, and 41 postbaccalaureate.