A Round of Applause: CAS Student Award Winners for Spring 2025

Click for quick scroll to specific awards: Student Research and Creative Activity Fair, Student Honors Convocation, Department Awards

Student Research and Creative Activity Fair:

Performances:

• Outstanding Graduate Performance: Aaron Scobie (John Price – Mentor)

Exhibits:

• Meritorious Undergraduate Exhibit or Demonstration: Jen Riedl (Kristin Girten – Mentor)

Posters:

• Outstanding Undergraduate Poster Presentation: Megan Althouse (Michael Matthews – Mentor)

• Meritorious Undergraduate Poster Presentation: Brooklynn Schmidt (Lisa Scherer – Mentor)

• Honorable Mention Undergraduate Poster Presentation: Claire Wing (Karen Kim Guisbert – Mentor)

• Best Graduate Poster Presentation: Chukwuma Adinchezor (Jonathan Clayton – Mentor)

Oral Presentations:

• Best Undergraduate Oral Presentation: Isabelle Weber (Paul Denton – Mentor)

• Outstanding Undergraduate Oral Presentation: Izzy Vargas (Lisa Scherer – Mentor)

• Meritorious Undergraduate Oral Presentation: Charleston Berryman (Paul Denton – Mentor)

• Honorable Mention Undergraduate Oral Presentation: Cherylynn Gibson (Ryan Wong – Mentor)

• Best Graduate Oral Presentation: Sarah Lenn (Danielle Battisti – Mentor)

• Honorable Mention Graduate Oral Presentation: Thomas Forke (Mark Celinscak – Mentor)

Student Honors Convocation:

• Helen Hansen Outstanding Graduate Student Award: Bianca Ruiz

National Scholarships and Fellowships:

• Voyager Scholarship: Gio Gomez

• Goldwater Scholarship: Abby Tarr

• National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship: Sheri McVay

Undergraduate Major Awards:

• Biology: Alexander Becker

• Black Studies: Deja Harris

• Chemistry: Edrees Amani

• Economics: Shelby Krzemien

• English: Kyley Bishop

• Environmental Science: Isaac Noel

• History: Cody Jackson

• Interdisciplinary Studies: Makayla Demmon

• International Studies: Abigail Faris

• Latino/Latin American Studies: Jessica Fernandez-Erazo

• Mathematics: Will Harr

• Medical Humanities: Thomas Eilers

• Molecular & Biomedical Biology: Tai Prauner

• Neuroscience: Eternity Gines

• Philosophy: Destiny Tobar

• Physics: Dylan Owens

• Political Science: Abigail Faris

• Psychology: Elizabeth Finn

• Religion: Joe Byers

• Sociology: Lydia Deichmann

• Women’s and Gender Studies: Saki Fukuda

• World Languages and Literature: Tai Prauner

Dean's Awards:

• College of Arts and Sciences: Tai Prauner

• College of Communication, Fine Arts and Media: Elizabeth Gonzalez (Communication Studies & Spanish)

• College of Information Science & Technology: Ava DeLaGarza (Computer Science & Spanish)

• Chancellor’s Award for Academic Excellence: Ava DeLaGarza (Computer Science & Spanish)

• Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Student Leadership: Suzana Ntirampeba (Criminal Justice & Political Science)

• Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Service Learning: Erik Zamora

• Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Research or Creative Activity: Tai Prauner

College of Arts and Sciences Department Awards:

Biology:

• Bouteloua Research Award: Michaela Sanford

• Biology Department Research Funds (Fall 2024): Mayowa Abiodun, Beth Griffis-Anchala, Matthias Walters, Brandon Wolfsohn

• Biology Department Research Funds (Spring 2025): Owen Conroy, Sunday Princess-Jimmy

• Outstanding Reaching Assistant (Spraing 2025): Chukwuma Adinchezor, Jamie Uz

English:

• Fulbright English Language Teaching Assistantship Program of the Austrian Ministry of Education: Kyley Bishop

• Helen Baker Anderson Scholarship for Excellence in the Major: Summer Dingman, Kyley Bishop

• Marion Basler Scholarship for Outstanding Writing in the Major: Brenna Dostal

• James C. Horejs Scholarship for Distinction in the Major: Bryce Coulton, Maren Evans, Azumi Kuchma, Isa Manhart, Kat Manning, Lucy Mason, Marcus Pennell, Moo Law Eh Soe, Joni Beauchamp

• Sue Maher Best Undergraduate Research Essay: Kassidy Hoffman (First Place), Maura Durfee O'Brien (Runner Up)

Geography/Geology:

• Charles Gildersleeve Award: Adam McLaughlin

History:

• George B. Lake Memorial Prize: Dakota Andreasen, Ben Lundstrom

• Frederick W. Adrian Award: John Kennett

• A.V. Sorensen Award: Treygan Russel

• Shuflata Graduate Award: Tyler Gillis

• Sam Fried Memorial Prize: Haleigh Diltz, Brayden Kimball

• Frances Fried Award: Micaela Haffey, Zoe Law

• Jerold Simmons Scholarship: Bryan Yumul

• Timothy S. Dunning Scholarship: Audie Thorton

• Jo Ann Carrigan Scholarship: Emily Gaddy, Micaela Haffey, Kyleen King, Michael Schlesinger, Bryan Yumul

• Suflata Master’s Fellowship: Katie Dykstra

• Graduate Research and Creative Activity: Alexis Ritterbush, Md Robiul Alam Roni, Treygan Russell

• Special Recognition: Sarah Lehn, Tom Forke, Md Showkot Ali, Claire Du Laney, Lori Schwartz

Political Science:

• Darlene & Orville D. Menard Political Science Scholarship: Gio Gomez, Ashley Rivas Martinez

• Loree Bykerk Memorial Scholarship Fund: Emily Jimenez Avalos, Victoria Dennerlein, Eva Robinson, Alexius Sipp

Psychology:

• Outstanding B.S. Psychology Major: Elizabeth Finn

• Outstanding B.A. Psychology Major: Akela Dramse

• Outstanding Neuroscience Major: Eternity Gines

• Meritorious Achievement in Psychology: Mary Fennessy, Emma Grubbe, Kyden Johnson, Daniela Martha-Palma, Hailey Matthews, Mayam Medina Lopez, Nasire Perry, Anastasia Rogers, Jada Russ, Briton Webster, Asia Wewel

• Meritorious Achievement in Neuroscience: Meg Aerni, Braden Anderson, Malinda Lo, Vanessa Neri Lara, Lily Price

• Frank Bellinghiere Scholarship: Izzy Vargas

• Mary E. Flannigan Scholarship: Dakota Stutzman

• Barbara Manning Scholarship: Nasire Perry

• Robbins Family Psychology Scholarship: Avyn Urbanski

• Stephen R. Page Scholarship: Peyton Powell

• Scholars Transforming Through Research: Erik Garcia

• Nebraska School Psychology Association Outstanding Graduate Student: Josie Sand

Sociology & Anthropology:

• Undergraduate Department Honoree: Lydia Deichmann, Justin Schacht

• Graduate Student of the Year: Katelyn Nelson

• Sharon Hudson Departmental Service Award: Mina Bussa

World Languages & Literature:

• Outstanding Student in the Language: Kyley Bishop (German), Tai Prauner (Spanish), Jon Watson (French)

• French Honors: Joey Drollinger, Diana Sanchez-Godoy, Shreeya Shapkota

• German Honors: Lizzie Holloway, Theresa Isbilir, Teagan Rossman

• Spanish Honors: Ava Delagarza, Elizabeth González, Mayam Medina Lopez, Patricia Obblink, Will Ramsey

• Second-Year Honors – French: Colette Adair, Miacaela Haffey, Lexi Prosser

• Second-Year Honors – German: Jeremy Dow, Izzy Martin, Jon Watson

• Second-Year Honors – Japanese: Joey Drollinger, Alex Tippets

• Second-Year Honors – Spanish: Ian Andress, Chawnta'le Bushnell, Gracelyn Dayle Hite, Madison Kramer, Kate Novinski, Ella Shulte, Rebekah Vavarek, Aaliyah Wilson, Reid Wondra

• Maverick Language Maven Award – French: Michael Howatt, Keira Miller, Ivy Neihart, Lawrence Wilson

• Maverick Language Maven Award – German: Eva Burklund, Clint Plozay

• Maverick Language Maven Award – Italian: Keely Pinkerton, Paula Quintanilla

• Maverick Language Maven Award – Spanish: David Brennan, Greg Cobbs, Brittainee Freeman, Jane Ehrhart, Gabriela Calderón, Sophia Kouba, Antonio Moore, Ramon Ortega, Jonathon Rice

• M.A.L.T Graduate Program Honors: Nora Boyd, Kenny Cortum

• Sigma Delta Pi – National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society: Elizabeth González, Tai Prauner