April 2021 Senior Recognition Ceremony
Our Virtual Ceremony: April 30, 2021
Welcome to the 2021 Senior Recognition Ceremony here in the Frederik Meijer Honors College. We were unable to celebrate our graduating seniors in person this year, but we're delighted to bring you this virtual version, which took place on Friday, April 30, 2021, via Zoom.
Program
The Mission of the Meijer Honors College is to inspire and empower motivated students to be intellectually-curious lifelong learners who make positive contributions to their local and global communities, and serve as capable leaders and active global citizens.
Introductory Remarks:
- Dr. Roger Gilles, Director, Frederik Meijer Honors College
- Dr. Mark Schaub, Dean, Brooks College of Interdisciplinary Studies
Honors Senior Project Awards:
- Outstanding Senior Thesis: Ben Brown, presented by Professor Brett Bolen
- Outstanding Senior Thesis: Meghan O'Neill, presented by Professor Charles Pazdernik
- Outstanding Senior Project: Reilly Olson, presented by Professor Babasola Fateye
- Outstanding Creative Achievement: Riley Wells, presented by Professor Rachael Gates
- Excellence in Collaborative Research: Annelise Trout, presented by Professor Xiang Cao
- Outstanding Civic Engagement Project: Alex Hicks, presented by Professor Laura Schneider
- Outstanding Civic Engagement Project: Aaron Trudeau, presented by Professor Ira Woodring
Honors Outstanding Student Awards:
- Outstanding Leadership and Service: Jacob Gunn, presented by Honors Advisor Meg Marshall
- Outstanding Senior Award: Emily Hermann, presented by Honors Faculty-in-Residence Rob Franciosi
Slideshow of Graduate Profiles
Concluding Remarks:
- Dr. Coeli Fitzpatrick, Chair of Faculty, Frederik Meijer Honors College
Introductory Remarks
Director Roger Gilles and Dean Mark Schaub welcome students and families, followed by remarks by Professor Craig Benjamin, retiring this year after 18 years at the university.
Honors Senior Project Awards
An unusual number of excellent student projects were nominated this year, and we've included a list of honorable mentions in the video. We ended up with seven Honors Senior Project award winners in our five categories. Each student's name will be engraved on the appropriate plaque and displayed permanently in the hallway outside the main Honors College office in the Niemeyer Learning and Living Center.
The presentation of our seven Honors Senior Project Award winners. Each student is introduced by their project faculty advisor.
Honors Outstanding Student Awards
Each year, the Honors College faculty and staff name two students as our most outstanding. This year, they are Jacob Gunn for leadership and service and Emily Hermann for overall academic excellence. We asked one of our faculty or staff to offer some introductory remarks about each student, and we also invited the students themselves to say a few words.
The presentation of our two Honors Outstanding Students of 2021.
Slideshow of Graduate Profiles
The presentation of over 140 of our approximately 230 graduating seniors.
Concluding Remarks
Dr. Coeli Fitzpatrick, Honors Faculty Chair