Dean's Scholars

College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Dean’s Scholars 18 19 College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Dean’s Scholars Major: Physics - Astronomy Year: Senior Dan is an excellent student whose name has consistently appeared on the Dean’s List. He has been working with professors and students over the past three years on new discoveries including exoplanets and binary stars; one newly discovered exoplanet has been named Kelt-23AB. The team has worked with a group of 57 astronomers to collect observations, analyze, and write a paper that has been sent to an academic journal for publication. Dan has been serving in the National Guard for the last five years and was recently promot- ed to Sergeant. Dan hopes to work towards achieving a Ph.D. in Astrophysics. “I think getting the opportunity to do research outside of class that affects the scientific community has been my most influential experience at Kutztown.” Major: Chemistry Minor: Mathematics Year: Senior Jenna is an excellent student who has been on the Dean’s List several times and is also a member of the Honors Program. Jenna is a supplemental instructor for Chemistry, and she has been involved with two KU BEARS grants as well as participating in the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) at Penn State, main campus, in summer 2019. While Jenna is fully committed to her academics, she is also fully engaged in campus life; she has also been an RA in Rothermel and president of the Chemistry Club. Jenna loves research and is currently applying to graduate programs. “The chemistry faculty encouraged me to spread my wings. It was a little nerve wracking at first, however, it was awesome to be empowered to do something out of my comfort zone and succeed in it.” Major: Biology - Pre-Medical Year: Senior Cody is a dedicated and determined student whose name has appeared on the Dean’s List. Cody won the Sam Gundy Award, given to students who earn high grades in the introductory sequence of biology courses. He is currently working with Dr. Underwood on a research project to study the effectiveness of various predator guards on the nest boxes of birds located at the PA German Cultural Heritage Center. Cody is interested in pursuing veterinary medicine, and he has been able to shadow doctors at a local veterinary clinic. He will be applying to graduate school this summer. Cody is also a Marine Corps veteran. “The professors are amazing and so experienced. I realized that they are here to help you and are really personable. I never met a single professor I didn’t like.” “As long as you make the effort to participate, to learn, to show that you want to succeed and be much more than just a student, the professors here will find a way for you to succeed.” Sheriel (Sherry) is an excellent student whose name has appeared consistently on the Dean’s List. Sherry is a supplemental instructor for BIO 104 and is also working on a research project with Dr. Aruscavage to examine a form of bac- teria that causes food poisoning. Sherry came to Kutztown thinking that she wanted to be a high school biology teacher but once she started taking biolo- gy classes, she changed her mind, switched to Pre-Med, and is working very hard to earn acceptance to medical school. Meanwhile, she plans to become a certified EMT as well as earn BLS (Basic Life Support) certification. Major: Biology - Pre-Medical Year: Sophomore “I discovered a new realm of opportunity when I stopped viewing questions as bad things and started viewing them as signs that I was invested in a topic and eager to learn more.” Tamara is working as a graduate assistant in the College of Liberal Arts & Sci- ences Dean’s Office as she works towards her master’s degree in Information Technology after earning her bachelor’s degree from KU in the spring of 2019. As an undergraduate, she was an excellent student whose name regularly appeared on the Dean’s List. In addition to her CSC/IT major, she completed a minor in math, was a student-athlete, a member of the Honors Program, a peer tutor, and a student worker. Currently, she serves as a volunteer assistant coach with the KU Softball team. Tamara will begin a full-time position as a software tester in May. Major: Information Technology Year: Graduate Student Lara is an excellent student whose name has appeared regularly on the Dean’s List. She participated in a dinosaur excavation project in sum- mer 2019 with Dr. Simpson in Utah under the guidance of the Utah Geological Survey. This research led to Lara’s participation in four poster presentations at the Geological Society of America Conference in Phoenix, AZ, in September 2019. Lara is the President of the Geolo- gy Club and a member of the Geophysics Society and Equestrian Club. After graduation, Lara would like to attend graduate school to study paleontology. Major: Geology Minor: Biology Year: Senior Cody Kelley Sheriel Jimenez Tamara Jennings Jenna Kanyak Dan Johns Lara Ilsemann