Celebration of Excellence
College of Arts and Sciences students and their families, along with faculty and staff, gathered together on April 27 for the college's annual Celebration of Excellence recognizing outstanding academic achievement.
We honored students in the top 10 percent of their class, faculty who received awards from the college and university, our Student Ambassadors and Student Advisory Board, new Phi Beta Kappa members, and inaugural fellows of our Teaching Academy.
Three high-achieving members of the senior class shared their reflections. Watch them here:
Prague Spring 50
The Department of History sponsored Prague Spring 50, a commemoration of the Prague Spring and the aftereffects of the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia, April 3-7, 2018 in the Sheldon Museum of Art’s Abbott Auditorium.
James Le Sueur, professor and chair of the department, spearheaded the efforts to bring 14 speakers to campus. They “represent a wide range of voices, who both lived through the events of 1968, and also those who grew up amid communism and then radical political change,” he said.
Three concerts were held in cooperation with the Glenn Korff School of Music, the Sheldon hosted work by Czech photographer Josef Sudek, and portraits of Havel by Alan Pajer were displayed in the Lentz Room of Love Library.
Ivana Jirasek and her family were forced to flee to Australia in 1969. Jirasek traveled from the other side of the world to gain perspective on the events that left an indelible mark on her family.
Jirasek, who attended with her sister, Alena, said they were too young to remember much about Prague Spring or leaving the country, which they did so illegally.
"The talks have helped me understand and appreciate the nuance of what happened and how people experienced it, including the atrocities," Jirasek said. "It is important to hear it from the sources first-hand, rather than overhearing discussions of my parents and others when I was a child."
Paul Wilson, a speaker on April 7, attended the entire event and was floored by the quality of the event. Wilson, who currently resides in Canada, taught English in Czechoslovakia from 1967 to 1977. Having experienced the Prague Spring and aftermath behind the Soviet Union's Iron Curtain, Wilson thought he had a very good grasp on the history of it.
"I've created in my own mind what happened in 1968, but it has been an exercise in comparing what I thought was happening to what others experienced," he said.
Spectacular students in CAS
The college is proud to recognize our students' outstanding academic achievements and leadership. Your support of these students with your time, talent, and treasure is an important part of their success.
Boren Scholarships are given to highly motivated people to learn critical languages and then work for the federal government. As part of the award, scholars agree to work in the federal government for at least a year.
- Dana Moze-Kadavy – global studies
- Victoria Villota – global studies
Chancellor's Scholars are students who graduated last December or May and maintained 4.0 grade-point averages on all collegiate work at Nebraska and elsewhere.
- Joshua Baue – psychology
- Emily Bausback – biological sciences
- Cooper Christiancy – global studies and communication studies
- Kathleen Ellis – economics
- Jonathan Freese – biochemistry
- Emma Himes – English, global studies and Spanish
- Jacob Kingsley – biological sciences
- Conner Kozisek – political science and Spanish
- Abbigail Mazour – English
- Connor Meza – sociology
- Andrew Schacht – biochemistry and biological sciences
- Laura Springer – history and communication studies
- Mackenzie Strehle – microbiology
- Faith Thomas – English
The Critical Language Scholarship Program is designed to expand the number of Americans studying and mastering critical foreign languages. The scholars gain important language and cultural skills that allow them to contribute to the United States' economic competitiveness and national security.
- Blair Mills – global studies
- Khenda Mustafa – global studies
The Fulbright Scholarship Program is designed to foster understanding between the United States and other countries. The Fulbright U.S. Student Program gives recent graduates, graduate students and young professionals the opportunity to conduct research, study or teach in one of 140-plus designated countries.
- Azlin Armstrong, English, Bulgaria
- Alexander Claussen, graduate student in modern languages, Germany
- Amzie Dunekacke, English, and classics and religious studies, Czech Republic
- Grace Evans, French, global studies and political science, Morocco
- Andrea Hartman, anthropology and English, Mongolia
- Brooke Hartman, biochemistry, Spain
- Tristan Hilderbrand, global studies, South Korea
- Emma Himes, English, Spanish and global studies, Spain
- Meghan Leadabrand, German and English, Germany
- Abigail Miller, political science, Russian and global studies, Russia
- Dylan Severino, classical languages, Germany
- Samantha Staggs, German and global studies, Germany
- Eric Wilhelm, Spanish, Russia
- Brianna Zimmerman, global studies, South Korea
The Gilman Scholarship Program allows students to gain a better understanding of other cultures, countries, languages and economies — making them better prepared to assume leadership roles within government and the private sector.
- Ibrahim Alnajem, junior, biochemistry, South Korea
- Ana Carmona Ponce, junior, global studies, Morocco
- Andrea Contreras, senior, psychology, United Kingdom
- Aurora Gates, sophomore, biological sciences, Spain
- Gaye Gwion, junior, global studies, India
- Miranda Kuzela, junior, global studies, Kazakhstan
- Mishala Lewis, senior, anthropology, India
- Angela Nguyen, sophomore, psychology, South Korea
- Alex Richardson, sophomore, computer science, Oman
- Hayden Richardson, sophomore, political science, Morocco
- Autumn Urbigkit, senior, psychology, Austria
Goldwater Scholarships provide funding to about 200 college sophomores and juniors nationwide in hopes of supporting future scientists, mathematicians and engineers.
- Aaron Halvorsen – psychology and biological sciences
- Lauren Lesiak – chemistry (honorable mention)
Geology graduate students digging up bones at Baranek Farm by Wahoo, Nebraska, August 11, 1966. Photo courtesy the university's Archives and Special Collections.
Professors David Loope and Cara Burberry with geology students on the Walker Field Trip in Utah, spring 2018. Photo courtesy the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences.
Then and now
As the University of Nebraska–Lincoln prepares to celebrate its sesquicentennial (150th) anniversary, we are taking a walk down memory lane with the help of the university’s Archives and Special Collections. Look for more blasts from the past in upcoming issues of our alumni e-newsletters. If you have photos to share from your time in the college, we’d love to hear from you: everythingcas@unl.edu.