Alumni
Recent graduates:
2012
Ariel Cyrus - 2012
Ariel graduated with a BS in biology an Associates in chemistry. He was inducted into three honors societies: Phi Kappa Phi, Beta Beta Beta, and Omnicron Psi. Ariel's research, which was conducted in Costa Rica, was entitled "Prey Spectrum Analysis of Agaronia propatula". He is grateful to the Honors Program, which gave him a grant for the research. Ariel intends to continue research into the lifecycle and behaviors of this unique gastropod predator as a graduate student at IPFW.
Nicole Fuelling - 2012
Nicole obtained a BS in biology pre-med, a BA in general studies, and an AS in chemistry. She was the IU Class Representative and graduated with distinction in General Studies. Nicole was a member of Beta Beta Beta and served as president. Nicole was appointed as an Abassadon for two years and was Homecoming Queen for the 2010-2011 school year. Her research was entitled "Food for Thought: Understanding Food Addiction". She plans on pursuing a career as a Physician's Assistant and attending St. Francis University.
Rachel Fuelling - 2012
Rachel graduated with a BS in biology teaching and an AS in chemistry. Her Honors research titled "Media Effects on Sassafras albidum Shoot Culture Growth in Micropropagation" is in publication process. Rachel received Distinguished and was treasurer of the Beta Beta Beta Biological Honors Society. She has been accepted into graduate studies at IPFW and will research the influence of size and distance of woodlots on understory species diversity. She plans to teach in a university while conducting ecology research as a professor.
Stephanie Howe - 2012
Stephanie graduated from IPFW with a BS in biology and anthropology and an AS in chemistry and Spanish. Stephanie presented on the topic "The Effects of Trigonella foenum-gracum on Prostate Cancer". She is a member of Omnicron Psi Honors Society, Tri-Beta Biological Honors Society, and Lambda Alpha Theta Anthropological Honors Society. She plans to obtain her Masters in human biology and eventually her PhD. in forensic anthropology.
Jonathan Humberson - 2012
Jonathan's presentation was titled "The Development of a New Analytic Potential Energy Surface for the reaction H+O2 -> OH+O". He was a member and treasurer of the Honors Student Group. Jonathan plans to study chemistry and obtain a graduate degree in Pennsylvania and an eventual PhD.
Justine LaBlanc - 2012
Justine graduated with a BS in biology with a minor in psychology. She was the PU Class Representative and a member of Beta Beta Beta and Chi Alpha Sigma. Justine also was a David R. Skelton Awardee, named to the Summit League Fall Academic All-League Team for 4 years, a 4-year starter for the Division 1 women's soccer team, and captain two years. Her presentation was titled "Antimicrobial Effect of Popular Essential Oils on Relevant Oral Microorganisms", a topic that will help with dental school and the eventual opening her own dental practice.
Alan Tse - 2012
Alan received BAs in anthropology and philosophy as well as a research certificate in anthropology and a certificate in international studies. He graduated with distinction in addition to his Honors Certificate. Alan's presentation was title "Ethnography of a Midwestern Evangelical Christian Camp". The project was funded by an Honors Program grant. Alan plans to work on a MPhil degree in anthropology while attending the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
2011
- Melisa Crabil
- Deborah Crouch
- Abigail Kleber
- Arturo Salgato
- Charles Shull
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
Staci Bougher-2010
Staci majored in Political Science and Economics. She presented her capstone project titled “The Occupation Gap: An Examination of Selected Careers” at the 2010 Honors Showcase under the mentorship of Dr. Hedayeh Samavati, Professor of Economics. This summer, she will be reading, traveling to Florida, and studying for the LSAT and GRE in preparation for her application to law and graduate schools.
Louisa Danielson-2010
Louisa completed her capstone projected “Music of Fort Wayne and Allen County Region, 1790-1860: An Exploration of the Music and Musicians who were Present during the American Frontier Period of Northeastern Indiana ” with the help of her mentor Dr. Hardin Aasand, Professor of English and Linguistics. A major in Music with minors in Political Science and Spanish, she will be taking Suzuki violin teacher training and traveling over the summer.
Stasha Dirrim-2010
Stasha is the Marketing Coordinator at Aptera Software Development and Web Design in Fort Wayne. She majored in Interpersonal & Organizational Communication and Media & Public Communication with a minor in Public Relations. Her capstone project, “Family Communication Patterns and Levels of Self-Determination,” was completed under her mentor Dr. Marcia Dixson, Associate Professor of Communication.
Nnenna Ezeilo-2010
Nenna majored in Biology with the Pre-Med option. She presented her capstone project titled “The Herpes Simplex Virus Type-2 UL24 protein: A suspected antagonist of the cellular interferon regulatory pathway “ at the 2010 Honors Showcase. Her mentor was Dr. Robert Visalli, Associate Professor of Biology. Nenna has been accepted to Indiana University School of Medicine in Indianapolis where she plans to continue her education in medicine.
Eldin Hasic-2010
Eldin double majored in Political Science and Economics and is spending this summer abroad in Bosnia and Korea. Afterwards, he will pursue a JD/MA joint-degree in international law and international affairs. His project “Europe’s Turkish Phobia: Foreign Workers or Foreign Culture?” was presented at the 2010 Honors Showcase. His mentor was Dr. Jamie Toole, Associate Professor of Political Science.
Elizabeth Krueckeberg-2010
Elizabeth majored in Economics and Marketing. She presented her project titled “Investigating the Central Banks: Federal Reserve and European Central Bank” at the 2010 Honors Showcase. Her mentor was Dr. Nodir Adilov, Assistant Professor of Economics. In the fall, Elizabeth will be working at Lincoln Financial in the Leadership Preparation Program in Connecticut.
Chad Seewald-2010
Chad, an Elementary Education major, presented his project “Getting the message: Measuring the Effects of Text Formatting on Reading Comprehension” at the 2010 Honors Showcase. His mentor was Dr. Jonathan Hilpert, Assistant Professor of Elementary Education. Chad plans to teach in a local Elementary School while continuing his research on his honors thesis and working as a research assistant with Dr. Hilpert.
Joel Sprunger-2010
Joel majored in Psychology. He presented his project titled “Hypnotic Emotional Numbing as a Buffer for Affect Misattribution” at the 2010 Honors Showcase. His mentor was Dr. Jeannie DiClementi, Associate Professor of Psychology. Joel will continue to collaborate with his mentor to do a follow-up study on his Honors thesis, submitting the results for professional publication. He intends to pursue a PhD in Clinical Psychology.
Danielle Stevenson-2010
Danielle majored in Biology with the Pre-Med option. She presented her capstone project titled “Determination of Maximum Plausible Hatchling Weights” at the 2010 Honors Showcase. Her mentor was Dr. Winfried Peters, Assistant Professor of Biology.
Hoang Tran-2010
Hoang majored in Biology with the Pre-Med option and Philosophy with a minor in Linguistics. He presented his project titled “Stem Cells: Scientific, Ethical, and Political Overview” at the 2009 Honors Showcase. His mentor was Dr. Shree Dhawale, Associate Professor of Biology. In the fall, Hoang will be continuing his medical education at Indiana University School of Medicine Fort Wayne.
Debra Crouch-2009
Debra presented her Honors Project on "Serenity," a series of infrared photographs that she authored. Her mentor was James Gabbard of the Visual Communication and Design department.
Melissa Getts-2009
Melissa presented her Honors Project on "Recapturing Poetry in Children's Lives Through Farm Animal Poems." Her mentor was Lewis Roberts of the English and Linguistics Department.
Abigail Kleber-2009
Abigail presented her Honors Project on "The Effects of Chromium on the White Rot Fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium." Her mentors were Shrikrishna Dhawale (Biology), Shree Dhawale (Biology), and Michael Columbia (Chemistry).
Arturo Salgado-2009
Arturo presented his Honors Project on "Manufacturing Design of Quality Control Cylinders." His mentor was Ramesh Narangof Manufacturing and Construction Engineering Technology department.
Charles Shull-2009
Charles presented his Honors Project on "Genocide: What Causes Such Inhumanity." His mentor was Robert Hannah of the History department.
Michael Cooper-2008
Michael Cooper graduated in May 2008 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology, Pre-Dentistry. Michael presented his Honors Project on the "Stress Physiology in Zebrafish and Its Application to Undergraduate Physiology Labs." His mentors were Dr. Mustafa and Dr. Dhawale of the Biology department. He graduated with a 4.0 Honors Program GPA. In addition to being a member of the Honors Program, Michael was an Ambassadon; took part in various student organizations such as the Biology Club and Pre-Dentistry Club; and performed community service at the IPFW Health fairs and Matthew 25. He plans to attend the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Medicine.
Kathleen Casey-2007
Kathleen Casey graduated in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. Kathleen presented her Honors Project paper on "Diffusion of Innovation and Change: When Newspapers Meet the Internet". Her mentor was Jonathon Tankel of the Communication department. Kathleen graduated with a 4.0 Honors Program Average. She is currently studying Law at Indiana University.
Laura Thieme-2007
Laura presented her Honors Project study on the function of the herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) UL24 gene product. Her mentor was Dr. Robert Visalli of the Biology department. Laura graduated with a 4.0 Honors Program average.
Allison Graber-2007
Allison presented her Honors Project paper on "The Rwanda Case: An Analysis of Power in the Genocide Using Realistic Group Conflict." Her mentors were Teresa Enrick and Pat Ashton of Peace and Conflict Studies. Allison graduated with a 4.0 Honors Program average.
Brian Michel-2006
Brian presented his Honors Project on a remote-control boat-lift drive-system as an extension for his senior design project for his Electrical Engineering Technology. His mentor was Professor Peter Goodman of Electrical and Computer Engineering Technology. Brian graduated with a 3.83 Honors Program average.
Maria Acosta-2006
Maria presented her Honors Project paper on the "Stashi Law" and its consequences in the lives of female Muslim students in the French public school system.Her mentors were Nancy Virtue of International Language and Culture Studies and Steve Carr of Communication.
Lauren Harmison-2006
Lauren presented her Honors Project paper on "No Place like Home: A Study of Homeless Children and Their Needs." The project included a curriculm teaching homelessness which could be used for grades K-5. Lauren is working on getting the curriculum portion of her Honors Project published. Her mentors were Drs. Phyllis Agness and David Lindquist of Education. Lauren graduated with a 3.8 Honors Program average. She worked at Fort Wayne Community Schools as a substitute teacher for a year. She is currently attending IPFW for a degree in nursing.
Nathaniel Hubley-2006
Nathaniel presented his Honors Project on Contemporary Ethics as an extension of his senior project for his Philosophy major. His mentor was Professor S. Moore PhD.of the Philospohy department. Nathaniel graduated with a 3.6 Honors Program average and is currently attending Valparasio School of Law where he is working for his JD and MA.
Krista Marcum-2005
Krista presented her Honors Project paper on " Project Homelessness: A Teaching Tool." Krista graduated with a 3.6 Honors Program average.
Ryan Brown-2005
Ryan presented his Honors Project paper on "Cultural Capital: An Examination of the Emboyd Theater's Use of Live Entertainment to Give Credibility to its Film Exhibitions." His mentors were Steve Carr and Dave Switzer of Communication. Ryan graduated with two degrees in Communication and Political Science with a 4.0 Honors Program average. He received a Master's Degree in Professional Communication and worked as a Graduate Assistant with the IPFW Honors Program. Ryan was the Vice-President of Student Government for the 2007-2008 academic year.
Laura Ballou-2004
Laura presented her Honors Project study of Amish Culture and Medicinal Beliefs, Practices and Practitioners at the Central States Anthropological Society annual meeting in Milwaukee on April 15th. Her mentors were Drs. Douglas Kline and Alan Sandstrom of the Anthropology Department. She then presented her paper to the Honors Program Council on April 8th and it was published in the High Plains Applied Anthropologist Journal, Fall edition. Laura graduated with a 4.0 Honors Program average and is currently studying Portuguese in preparation for her trip to Brazil next year to study the farm peoples of the Atlantic Rainforest while volunteering at Iracambi, an organization for the preservation of rainforests. She has applied for admission to the University of Wales in Lampeter where she will work toward her MA in Environmental Anthropology and later her PhD.
Marilyn Jordan-2004
Marilyn presented her Honors Project paper on Aristotle’s Politics, Ethics, and Metaphysics as an extension of her senior seminar for her Political Science major on April 29th. Her mentors were Drs. Elliot Bartky and James Lutz of the Political Science Department. Marilyn graduated with a 4.0 Honors Program average and is currently in the process of moving to the Atlanta area where she will be attending Emory University School of Law studying International Law and Human Rights.
Melanie Bush-2004
Melanie presented the culmination of her 4 years of research on The Effects of Berry Extracts on Immune System Function and LnCap Cancer Cells, under the supervision of her mentor, Dr. Elliot Blumenthal, as her senior seminar for an Honors Biology Degree and as her Honors Project on April 23. She also presented her project at the Indiana Academy of Science and in Sigma Xi undergraduate research competition where she won second place. She was also recognized as The Outstanding Biology Senior by the Biology Department. She is now in the process of preparing it for publication. Her other mentors were Drs. Shree Dhawale and Robert Gillespie of the Biology Department. Melanie graduated with a 4.0 Honors Program average and is currently in a summer internship and will return to IPFW in the Fall as a graduate student of Biology. She plans to go to medial school after that. She will make her thesis an extension of her Honors Project. Melanie was also recently chosen Purdue Graduating Class Representative and Miss Fort Wayne 2004. As Miss Fort Wayne, she will be working as spokesperson for the Northeast Indiana chapter of the American Cancer Society.
Kristi Loy-2004
Kristi presented her Honors Project paper on “To use a noun or not: A toddler’s choice?” at the Indiana Speech and Hearing Association meeting and the IPFW Student Symposium. She is currently preparing to present her project at the National Convention of The American Speech, Hearing, and Language Association in November. Her mentors were Dr. Lucille Hess of the Audiology Department and Dr. Beth Simon of the English and Linguistics Department. Kristi graduated with a 3.77 Honors Program average and is currently employed at the Learning Development Center and ARC working with autistic children. She will begin study for a Master’s degree in Speech Pathology at IU Bloomington and is engaged to be married in 2006.
Dustin K. Miller-2004
Dustin presented his project “Amymara Plant Terminology and the Marketplace as a Measure of Acculturation” an analysis of factors that influence term borrowing among indigenous languages and Spanish in Andean South America. He presented his results to the Honors Council in April and to the Central States Anthropological Society 81st annual meeting in Milwaukee in Spring 2004. He is currently studying Mandarin Chinese in order to teach English in China next year and plans to attend grad school with an emphasis in Sociolinguistics.
Marsha Spaulding-2004
Marsha presented her Honors Project research on the need for a homeless shelter in Adams County to the Adams County Commissioners on April 5th as well as to the annual IPFW Women’s Studies Symposium on March 31st and the annual I.U. Women’s Symposium on April 15th. Her mentors were Dr. Linda Fox of the Women’s Studies Program and Dr. Matthew Kubik of the Civil and Architectural Engineering Technology Program. Marsha graduated with a 3.57 Honors Program average and is currently in manager training with Pizza Hut. She is still presenting her findings and advocating through various media for the homeless in her area.
Jeffrey Wilkins-2004
Jeffrey presented his Honors Project calibrated Fizeau wedge interoferometer with research to the Honors Council in April . His mentors were Drs. Mark Masters and David Maloney of the Physics Department. Jeff graduated with a 3.75 Honors Program average and is currently on his way to Purdue West Lafayette to begin graduate work in mathematics. He will also be working at PWL as a teaching assistant and is currently engaged to be married next year.
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