2021-2022 Graduating Honors Scholars

Zoe is graduating Summa Cum Laude with a B.A. in Spanish Literature and Human Geography, and a Studio Art minor. She is a Co-Chair of the Honors Program Student Advisory Board and completed her honors thesis on flooding memorials in the Northern Front Range of Colorado. Zoe was also campus tour guide with CU Student Ambassadors and worked for the Natural Hazard Center. She thoroughly enjoyed her time at CU and with the Honors Program! Some of her favorite memories are working with Dr. Abby Hickcox and the Honors Student Advisory Board, attending TV with a Professor, and studying in Norlin Library with friends. She isn’t sure what the future holds, but she plans to take all that she learned at CU with her. Sko Buffs!

I majored in Biochemistry and Spanish with minors in Political Science and Ecology and Evolutionary Biology here at CU Boulder. I have had some wonderful opportunities studying abroad in Argentina, researching in a biochemistry lab for three years and being able to defend my honors thesis for the research I had done. After graduation, I hope to teach English abroad for a year then hopefully go to graduate school for a PhD in bioengineering or biochemistry. I'm grateful for the Honors Program for the personal interactions I have been able to have with professors and the things I have learned outside of my own official academic studies. I feel as if through college I have truly learned to love learning and couldn't be more grateful for the growth I experienced. (A special shout out to the movie discussions with Dr. Dike over Zoom during COVID).

McKenzie is graduating Summa Cum Laude with a B.A. in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences and Physical Geography and is a NOAA Ernest F. Hollings Undergraduate Scholar. She is a Co-Chair on the Honors Program Student Advisory Board and completed her Honors Thesis on downslope winds along the Colorado Front Range. She will continue her research on downslope windstorms this summer at the National Center for Atmospheric Research. McKenzie will start her doctoral program in Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder in the Winters group this fall. She was awarded the Department of Energy Computational Science Graduate Fellowship, the National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowship, and the American Meteorological Graduate Fellowship. She is looking forward to improving the predictability of cyclones and downslope winds in Colorado throughout her graduate degree. McKenzie also completed atmospheric chemistry undergraduate research in the Browne lab examining topics involving ion chromatography, aerosol composition, and dew evaporation. Outside of academics, McKenzie has been the Piccolo Section Leader in the “Golden Buffalo” Marching here at CU. She enjoys cheering on the Buffs during the football and basketball seasons and cannot wait to return to games as an alumna! She enjoys attending Honors Events (especially SciTalks), playing broomball with friends, and hiking around the gorgeous state of Colorado in her free time. She would like to thank her family, friends, professors, and mentors for supporting her every step of the way during her undergraduate degree.

Julianne is graduating with a B.A. in Integrative Physiology, minor in Business, and a certificate in Public Health. She was on the Herd Leadership Council and the student Alumni Association for four years and co-President for two of them. If she wasn’t on campus, she was skiing, hiking, or trying one of the many coffee shops in Boulder. Upon graduation, she will be taking a gap year and applying to medical school. Julianne thanks CU for a wonderful four years! Sko Buffs!