Honors
5/2/2006
Yesterday was our annual Honors Convocation. Actually it was an event capping several weeks of one impressive batch of student recognitions after another. Throughout the end of the semester departments have been inducting outstanding students into an array of national honor societies—Phi Alpha Theta in history, Psi Chi in psychology, Gamma Kappa Alpha in Italian, Kappa Mu Epsilon in mathematics, Sigma Tau Delta in English, and on and on the list goes. The Office of Multicultural Affairs held its annual Academic Achievement and Leadership brunch, honoring particularly the many and varied accomplishments of our talented and successful African-American, Asian, and Hispanic students, of whom there are many here at Dominican.
Honors Convocation brought much of this together. We honored the distinguished seniors from all the major disciplines, recognized student leaders, and gave some very major awards.
For example:
The St. Catherine Medal, given to a sophomore or junior, was presented to Catherine Joy Calixto. She has been integral to the development and outreach of the International Club and coordinating such events as the United Nations Friendship Day, the International Week Dance Revolution and the Ramen Noodle Stand that raised funds for the Red Cross. She is also vice president of Common Ground, secretary of the Honors Cultural Chicago Council, a sophomore senator for the Student Government Association, secretary of Students for Peace and Justice and secretary of the Science Club.
The Lincoln Academy Medal was awarded to Hortencia Acosta. Born in a small town in Mexico, she has been a student orientation leader, a teaching assistant and an active member of the Organization of Latin American students, the Latino Relations Advisory Council and the Business Club. Last year she participated in a study abroad program in El Salvador and she returned this spring to serve as a monitor for the country's municipal elections. In addition to her selection as a Lincoln Laureate, Hortencia recently learned that she is one of six students to win the Associated Colleges of Illinois's Road to College Success Essay Contest.
The Dorothy Reiner Mulroy Award, the highest honor an undergraduate can receive, was given to Kristen Mulligan. She has served as co-president of the Campus Climate Committee for three years, a position which gave her the opportunity to organize student forums, trips to the Sinsinawa Mound, cultural events during International Week, and activities revolving around Women's History Month. She has also served as a student supervisor for the annual Dominican Alumni Phonathon, a student worker for the Core Curriculum Program, and a member of the Honors Chicago Cultural Council, the Student Leadership Council, and the French Club. An avowed Francophile, Kristen spent her junior year studying abroad in Nantes, France. During her overseas stay, she was elected president of her study abroad class and was selected to go to Madrid for the International Exchange Student Model European Union. Kristen will graduate next week with a triple major in international affairs and diplomacy, political science, and French studies. She will then continue her education by enrolling in the master's program at George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs in Washington DC. Her plan is to focus on conflict resolution and negotiation in West and Central Africa and her goal is to eventually contribute to the humanitarian efforts of non-governmental organizations in this part of the world.
I must say one of my favorite moments came with the student address—where we ask a freshman to reflect on his/her experience thus far. Mary Petrosko gave an amazing talk. Here's an excerpt:
Yesterday was our annual Honors Convocation. Actually it was an event capping several weeks of one impressive batch of student recognitions after another. Throughout the end of the semester departments have been inducting outstanding students into an array of national honor societies—Phi Alpha Theta in history, Psi Chi in psychology, Gamma Kappa Alpha in Italian, Kappa Mu Epsilon in mathematics, Sigma Tau Delta in English, and on and on the list goes. The Office of Multicultural Affairs held its annual Academic Achievement and Leadership brunch, honoring particularly the many and varied accomplishments of our talented and successful African-American, Asian, and Hispanic students, of whom there are many here at Dominican.
Honors Convocation brought much of this together. We honored the distinguished seniors from all the major disciplines, recognized student leaders, and gave some very major awards.
For example:
The St. Catherine Medal, given to a sophomore or junior, was presented to Catherine Joy Calixto. She has been integral to the development and outreach of the International Club and coordinating such events as the United Nations Friendship Day, the International Week Dance Revolution and the Ramen Noodle Stand that raised funds for the Red Cross. She is also vice president of Common Ground, secretary of the Honors Cultural Chicago Council, a sophomore senator for the Student Government Association, secretary of Students for Peace and Justice and secretary of the Science Club.
The Lincoln Academy Medal was awarded to Hortencia Acosta. Born in a small town in Mexico, she has been a student orientation leader, a teaching assistant and an active member of the Organization of Latin American students, the Latino Relations Advisory Council and the Business Club. Last year she participated in a study abroad program in El Salvador and she returned this spring to serve as a monitor for the country's municipal elections. In addition to her selection as a Lincoln Laureate, Hortencia recently learned that she is one of six students to win the Associated Colleges of Illinois's Road to College Success Essay Contest.
The Dorothy Reiner Mulroy Award, the highest honor an undergraduate can receive, was given to Kristen Mulligan. She has served as co-president of the Campus Climate Committee for three years, a position which gave her the opportunity to organize student forums, trips to the Sinsinawa Mound, cultural events during International Week, and activities revolving around Women's History Month. She has also served as a student supervisor for the annual Dominican Alumni Phonathon, a student worker for the Core Curriculum Program, and a member of the Honors Chicago Cultural Council, the Student Leadership Council, and the French Club. An avowed Francophile, Kristen spent her junior year studying abroad in Nantes, France. During her overseas stay, she was elected president of her study abroad class and was selected to go to Madrid for the International Exchange Student Model European Union. Kristen will graduate next week with a triple major in international affairs and diplomacy, political science, and French studies. She will then continue her education by enrolling in the master's program at George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs in Washington DC. Her plan is to focus on conflict resolution and negotiation in West and Central Africa and her goal is to eventually contribute to the humanitarian efforts of non-governmental organizations in this part of the world.
I must say one of my favorite moments came with the student address—where we ask a freshman to reflect on his/her experience thus far. Mary Petrosko gave an amazing talk. Here's an excerpt:
Last semester I took both a seminar and a theology class with Dr. Weldon. On the first day of both classes she presented us with Emmanuel Kant's phrase "Sapere aude" which means "dare to know." She said that we should question everything, and dare to know our own reasons for all of our beliefs. This quickly became my personal motto. I began to eagerly look for these disconcerting moments in my classes, because, through them, I was able to see my own ideas and prior values more clearly than ever before. Through those times I began breaking down what I believed and what I thought. Ever since I have embraced this philosophy of "dare to know," my academic and personal lives have not been the same. It has given me a new lens through which to view my classes and life.It's nothing short of a privilege to get to know and work with such inspiring, brilliant students!ge to get to know and work with such inspiring, brilliant students!
Learning to question what I had taken for granted has been my experience with Dominican so far. This new way of seeing the world has consumed my mind. Before coming to Dominican I had usually done well in school; however, after coming here, and taken on this new way of thinking, I have grown to love academics. Well, I suppose a more accurate description is a love/hate relationship with academics. I hate it when I am feeling the intense pressure crashing down on me, when I am overwhelmed and doubting my abilities. I know that I will push myself, and though it is stressful, I would have it no other way. It is how I thrive.
In the end, this hate only exists and is defined by my love of academics. I love being pushed to my furthest cognitive abilities. I love mastering hard concepts and building upon them. But, most of all, I love the connection I find between the academic classroom and my life. Recently, I was talking about my work with Invisible Children. It's an organization that is trying to stop the civil war in Northern Uganda for the children's sake. Hundreds of thousands of children walk from their homes into cities every night, to sleep on the streets. Why? If they stay at home, they risk being abducted by the rebel army and forced to be child soldiers and sex slaves. What is going on in Uganda is unbelievable. I was asked how I can stand it, how I stand the blatant, unrelenting horror. When asked this, I immediately connected my feelings about it to what I learned about Carl Jung's philosophy of humanity. He taught that humans have an equal capacity for both good and evil within them, and once they recognize this capacity for evil they can try to control it more effectively. It's a concept that resonates with me, and I wouldn't have come across it without the class. Within this concept, I have learned how to form my own ideas of people. I recognize the capacity for evil, but I choose to believe in and work towards the good that I know is just as prevalent in people. I saw this good with my own eyes last night and this morning. Hundreds of people walked miles to sleep in Grant Park for a demonstration to raise awareness for the crisis in Uganda, and to show solidarity with the children who walk into cities and sleep outside every night. Despite the pouring rain, strong winds, and tents made out of garbage bags, we struck it out. How can I not believe in people's capacity for good after last night?
