91ÖÆƬ³§

Leadership

Awarded to Honors student who best excels as a leader displaying creativity, innovation, and long-term effectiveness in advancing the mission of the Reaud Honors College and 91ÖÆƬ³§

2023-2024 - INAUGURAL YEAR

Kelvin Elgar (Class of 2024) excelled as a leader by displaying creativity, innovation, and long-term effectiveness in advancing the mission of the Reaud Honors College and 91ÖÆƬ³§. He represented the student body as SGA Senior Class Senator, SEC Vice President of Internal Affairs, Cardinal Orientation Team Leader, and LU Ambassador.

Within the College of Engineering, Kelvin served as an Engineering Ambassador, Founding President of Cardinal Energy Club, President and Regional Coordinator of the Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers, and as a lab assistant for the Center for Advances in Water and Air Quality.

Additionally, Kelvin’s leadership spanned into the community through his work as an honorary board member for Stable Spirits, an equine therapy center, through our college’s Stepping Up Civic Leadership Institute. He was also the inaugural Vice President of Students Consulting for Nonprofits. His leadership contributions earned him the Ann Shaw Leadership Award in his junior year.

Finally, his leadership experiences extended to the entirety of the TSUS System. As the 2023-2024 TSUS Student Regent, appointed by the Governor of Texas, Kelvin represented 90,000 students in the TSUS system to provide a student perspective for decisions made by the Board of Regents and the Chancellor.

Research and Scholarship

Awarded to Honors student who demonstrates exemplary scholastic work in both academics and research within any field

2023-2024 - INAUGURAL YEAR

Jennyfer Zarate (Class of 2024) produced exemplary scholastic work in both academics and research within her field. As a McNair Scholar, Jennyfer conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of Gut Microbiota and Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis under mentor Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor. Throughout the course of researching this autoimmune disease, Jennyfer learned techniques in cloning, protein expression, electrophoresis, PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) and RT-PCR (Reverse Transcription PCR), Chromatography, and Spectrography.

After presenting her McNair oral defense at Baylor University and sharing her research at Honors Scholars Day, Jennyfer traveled to San Juan, Puerto Rico, to present her research at the SACNAS NDiSTEM Conference, the largest multidisciplinary and multicultural STEM diversity conference in the country.

Community

Awarded to Honors student who demonstrates an ability to build community between the Reaud Honors College and at least one partner from within the 91ÖÆƬ³§ community or the greater Southeast Texas area

2023-2024 - INAUGURAL YEAR

Annabelle Broussard (Class of 2024) demonstrated her excellence in selflessly building community, most notably by establishing mobile health clinics in Lima, Peru, as the Public Relations Chair for Medlife, mentoring high school students as an RHC Home for the Holidays Ambassador, and serving as Founding President of the Students Consulting for Nonprofit Organizations.

Her civic leadership journey began with HSA, and her admirable dedication and leadership resulted in AmeriCorps and the White House nationally recognizing our Honors Student Association with the “President’s Volunteer Service Award.”

Honors Faculty of Distinction

Awarded by the Reaud Honors College to any instructional faculty in any school or discipline who demonstrates excellence in honors education

2023-2024 - INAUGURAL YEAR

Dr. Bianca Easterly (Associate Professor of Political Science) has taught a variety of undergraduate political sciences courses, including Honors American Government in the Reaud Honors College, and was selected by our honors students as Honors Professor of the Year in 2017-2018. She is also one of the first honors professors to integrate students’ ePortfolios into her honors coursework, encouraging our honors students to showcase their projects analyzing real problems faced by local cities and presenting solutions implemented by other cities that could resolve contemporary political issues.  

“Through her role as a mentor in my life, I truly believe that Dr. Easterly genuinely cares about the overall success of her students both inside and outside of the classroom,” one of her students said.

Inside the classroom, the student shared with us, Dr. Easterly engages her students in critical thinking through activities that include forming political parties, participating in mock elections, and conducting semester-long research analyzing city government initiatives. Outside of the classroom, her mentorship has included summer opportunities for honors students that ranged from coding state bills introduced in the state legislature to providing rural education distance programming, expanding on the challenges facing college students while voting in Texas elections. 

“Through her counsel and support in our career, academic, and individual objectives,” the student said, “she has clearly conveyed her interest in our success as honors students.”

Honors Professor of the Year

Awarded by Reaud Honors College students in special recognition of their favorite honors professor of the academic year

2023-2024

Dr. Ashwini Kucknoor (Associate Professor of Biology), the first recipient of the David J. Beck Teaching Excellence Award, is a research mentor to numerous RHC students, including Jennyfer Zarate, whose research accomplishments were also honored. Dr. Kucknoor was presented her award by incoming HSA President Rima Shaaban, on behalf of her honors peers.

“Dr. Kucknoor's teaching style is truly captivating. She spins her lectures into stories, weaving in real-life examples that make each lesson relevant and engaging. This approach not only deepened my understanding of microbiology but also sparked a genuine passion for the subject. One remarkable memory was our honors project, where Dr. Kucknoor challenged us to create a webpage to explore and discuss the relationship of equity and microbiology, allowing us to foster critical thinking and collaboration.   

“Driven by my love for her class, I sought the opportunity to conduct research with Dr. Kucknoor. In the research setting, she mentored me, guiding me through the research process, and entrusting me with my own project. Her dedication to my growth was evident as she provided invaluable skills and support until I achieved successful results and was able to present my findings at two conferences.    

“A testament to Dr. Kucknoor's commitment to her students was our recent experience at the American Society of Microbiology Texas Branch conference in Cedar Hill. Despite the 4 am departure and late-night return at 12 am the next day, Dr. Kucknoor ensured that we had every opportunity to showcase our work and make the most out of the experience. This selfless act encapsulates her nature of putting her students first and going above and beyond to see them succeed.”