Terre Haute, IN -- Last week, St. Joseph-Ogden alumnus Sarah Acklin (Class of 2018) was selected to receive the Indiana State University's Hines Memorial Medal. She and three other graduating seniors will be recognized on May 7 at the school's 2022 commencement ceremony.
"I am honored to have been awarded the Hines Memorial Medal!" Acklin wrote in a post on LinkedIn. "I've worked hard to maintain my GPA throughout my collegiate career, and the hard work has paid off."
The medal is awarded to students completing their bachelor's degrees with the highest cumulative grade point average. The award is named after Linnaeus Hines, the ISU's fourth president who led the campus from 1921-1933. He also served two terms as Indiana superintendent of public instruction.
"Indiana State offers so many different opportunities to get involved and develop yourself if you seek them out," Acklin said in a statement released by the university. "Especially all the experiential learning opportunities offered by the Scott College of Business.
The Ogden native, who played volleyball and basketball for SJO in high school, plans to work as a Transfer Pricing Associate at PricewaterhouseCoopers. PwC is the second-largest professional services network worldwide and is known as one of the Big Four accounting firms. She will be working with large international suppliers making sure each firm pays its fair amount of tax revenue to each country they transport or sell goods.
"International business has always been an area that interests me, so I am looking forward to beginning my career in such a fascinating field," she said.
James Moore, from St. Joseph, and Victoria Herb, from Sidney, conferred their college degrees from Southern Illinois University - Carbondale in December.
Moore was awarded a Bachelor's of Arts in Languages, Cultures, and International Studies as well as completed the requirements to also earn a Bachelor's of Scienc in Physiology.
Herb received her Bachelor's of Science in Zoology.
Southern Illinois University Carbondale plans to host in-person commencement ceremonies May 7-9, 2021 for their Spring 2021 graduates and all 2020 graduates.
*** Note: Students who chose to restrict access to SIU-C directory information will not appear on this list.
Eight St. Joseph and two Ogden residents were among 3,187 graduates from the University of Illinois in December.
Ogden
Stephanie Marie Costa, Master of Human Resources and Industrial Relations
Mathew Rafael Lopez-Cervantes, Master of Science in Recreation, Sport and Tourism
St. Joseph
Kelsey Lynne Clancy Dzwilewski, Doctor of Philosophy in Neuroscience
Luke Brennan Falls, Bachelor of Science in Information Systems and Information Technology
Rylan Housenga, Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts and Sciences
Lindsey I. Kelso, Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Communications
Austin N. Luebchow, Bachelor of Science in Finance
Casey Modglin, Bachelor of Science in Agricultural and Consumer Economics
Rachel Eileen Mullen, Bachelor of Science in Crop Sciences
Jacob Pence, Bachelor of Science in Finance
Twelve St. Joseph-Ogden High School students were name among 6,394 Illinois residents who earned degrees from the University of Illinois this past spring. Three of the 12 former Spartans who received bachelor degrees obtained their diplomas with exceptional academic laurels.
Former SJO cheerleader LaRyssa Randall smiles during a photo shoot with fellow cheerleaders in 2011. Randall, from St. Joseph, graduated this past spring from the University of Illinois with Highest Honors with a Bachelor of Science in Community Health. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)
LaRyssa Randall, from St. Joseph, was bestowed Highest Honors recognition after completing coursework for her Bachelor of Science in Community Health from the College of Applied Health Sciences.
Students at the University of Illinois who are awarded Highest Honors have achieved outstanding performance in their courses as well as participated in supplementary activities of an academic or professional nature. This honor generally requires completion of an undergraduate thesis or a special project of superior quality within most university departments. Highest honors are also awarded to students upon recommendation of his or her department.
Randall, from the Class of 2012, was a Spartan cheerleader at SJO.
Danielle Kaiser and Whitney Setterdahl also earned high academic recognition for their undergraduate studies.
Kaiser, from St. Joseph, earned High Honors recognition after with her degree in Speech and Hearing Science from the College of Applied Health Sciences. High honors students must have a cumulative grade point average at least 3.80 at graduation.
Setterdahl, from Ogden, graduated with Honors with a degree in Finance from the Gies College of Business. To receive a honors designation students must possess a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.50.
Two graduates in our area earned advanced degrees from University of Illinois.
Former Spartan distance runner and Ogden native Beau Barber, who has been active in plant research at the university since 2014, received his Master of Science in Agricultural and Biological Engineering in Agricultural and Biological Engineering.
Angela Mock earned a Master of Social Work from Illinois' School of Social Work. Mock did her internship at Urbana School District #116 and prior to that spent two years as a teacher at Robeson Elementary and editor at the university.
The remaining area students earning bachelor degrees from the University of Illinois include:
Ryan Allen, St. Joseph, Major: Molecular and Cellular Biology / Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts and Sciences
Amie Bott, Ogden, Major: Molecular and Cellular Biology / Bachelor of Science in Liberal Arts and Sciences
Jessica Kassuelke, Ogden, Major: Food Science and Human Nutrition / Bachelor of Science in Food Science and Human Nutrition
Kimberly Newman, St. Joseph, Major: Communication / Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences
Matthew Rabb, St. Joseph, Major: Agricultural and Consumer Economics / Bachelor of Science in Agricultural and Consumer Economics
Hailee Robbins, St. Joseph, Major: Elementary Education / Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education
Hannah Zalaker, St. Joseph, Major: Kinesiology / Applied Health Sciences
Update
(8/28/19)
It has come to our attention that several area SJO graduates were omitted from this article at the time of publication. Names that did not appear in this story were not included due to those students providing a campus address as their home address to the university. Our logic in compiling this list was apparently flawed in assuming that graduates in a list provided by the university News Bureau with a 61859, 61871 or 61873 zip code attended SJO. We will address that in future graduation stories. In certain instances, graduates may not have been appeared in this story because graduates were added to the official campus list after June 24.
The original headline to this story, 12 SJO alumni earn UofI degrees, was changed to 12 area students earn UofI degrees and certain instances of SJO alumni has been changed to area students or removed from the story.
Are there other omissions? Click here to submit information for corrections.
Matthew Raab sprints the remaining yards to the finish line and a 22nd place finish in the Men's 14 - 18 division at the 2014 SJO 5K. Raab was one of 16 area students named to University of Illinois spring 2019 Dean's List. (Photo: PhotoNews Media/Clark Brooks)
Sixteen area St. Joseph-Ogden graduates now attending the University of Illinois earned recognition for their outstanding academic performance during the spring 2019 semester. Three of the academic achievers hail from Ogden and the remaining 13 listed are from St. Joseph.
Students named to the Dean's List are in the top 20% of a student’s college class or curriculum. To be eligible, students must complete at least 14 academic semester hours taken for a letter grade at Illinois. This semester, 7,025 U of I students earned that recognition. Among them, 5,048 of the awardees are from Illinois.
Members of this semesters Dean's List from Ogden include Nicholas Cagle, who is a freshman currently in General Curriculum studies, Carly Frerichs, a senior in Kinesiology and Jessica Kassuelke, who is a senior in Food Science and Human Nutrition in the College of ACES.
Freshman Camryn McKee (Political Science) and Emily Bluhm (Agricultural and Consumer Economics) along with sophomores Allison Place (Crop Sciences), Claire Smith (Agricultural Communications), Evan Hawkins (Advertising) and Mason Housenga (Physics) make up the group of underclass scholars from St. Joseph.
Juniors Casey Modglin (Agricultural and Consumer Economics), Hailey Collum (Architectural Studies), Lauren Gherna (English), Matthew Weyer (Information Systems) and Mira McLain (Integrative Biology) and two seniors, former three-sport athlete Jake Pence (Finance) and Matthew Raab (Agricultural and Consumer Economics), who was a distance runner for the Spartan cross-country and track program, round out the list of area recipients this semester.
Four St. Joseph-Ogden alumni attending South Illinois University - Carbondale earn academic recognition for their studies during the spring semester.
Michael Bott and Olivia Hutcherson, both from Ogden, along with St. Joseph's Dakoda Jones and James Moore each will receive marks denoting their academic achievement on their official transcripts.
SIUC undergraduate students who were enrolled for and earned full-time credit during the term, and whose grade point average (GPA) meets or exceeds the minimum established by the University, will be included on the Dean's List.
While her kid sister was in the circle leading the Spartan softball team to a win over Tri-Valley on Saturday, St. Joseph-Ogden alumna Tori Witruk pitched 11 innings, allowing just five earned runs and striking out six, to help Parkland College softball program sweep Spoon River College on the road.
Nose to the grindstone, Witruk (7-1), who possesses a 2.71 ERA on the season after 14 appearances, help the Cobra's prevail 3-2 in game one and stop the bleeding in a the 13-10 nightcap. After picking up the wins for both contests, her seven victories are now a team-best so far this season.
In game one, the former Spartan allowed just two runs while escaping trouble in multiple innings to pick up win number six.
Morgan Parrish started game two for Parkland and hurled the first three innings of the conference slugfest. With the Cobras feeling the heat, Witruk stepped in to close out the game's final four innings, which included pitching a scoreless seventh frame.
Abigail Emmett and Samantha Mabry were two of more than 700 undergraduate students named to Eastern Illinois University’s Fall 2018 Deans' List.
Emmert, a music education major with a focus on teaching and 2016 graduate from St. Joseph-Ogden High School, served as a student ambassador for the EIU music department, held the role as principal chair flute of Concert Band and performs with several bands as a student-musician.
A drum major the SJO Marching Band, she also earned the same title and responsibilities with the Panther Marching Band. In May of last year she was awarded the Errett & Mazie Warner Presidential Award and the Helen J. Krehbiel Music Scholarship.
Mabry, who was a four-year veteran cross country and track athlete in high school, is an English major at EIU.
She finished her prep career as a member of last spring's state championship track team. The 2018 SJO alum is continuing her athletic career with the Panthers. A red-shirt freshman in cross country this past fall, she is listed as a middle distance specialist on the university's track & field roster.
The Deans’ List at EIU recognizes undergraduates with a declared major whose academic performance has been excellent. Eastern Illinois University students who achieve a GPA of 3.80 to 4.00 (on a 4.00 scale) while completing a minimum of 12 graded semester hours, excluding credit/no credit grades, are honored each semester.
Five St. Joseph-Ogden graduates earned academic recognition for their efforts at Illinois State University in the fall of 2018.
ISU students must complete at least 12 or more semester hours to be eligible for recognition. The Dean's List for individual colleges, which include the Colleges of Applied Science and Technology, Arts and Sciences, Business, Education, Fine Arts, and Mennonite College of Nursing, will recognize those students whose grade point average places them among the top ten percent of those students majoring within the College based on their semester GPA. Students whose major does not place them in one of the six colleges that offer degrees and whose semester grade point average is within the top ten percent of the University are identified on a separate list at the institution.
Courses completed after the official end of the semester and courses taken with a Credit/No Credit option are not tabulated in the final GPA.
Area honorees include:
Ogden: Katie Kurtz
St. Joseph: Brandon Burnett, Makenzie Pence, Hanna Richter and Nathan Schuele.
Note: Area students who have chosen to restrict access to directory and/or address information will not appear on the list below.
*** Note: Students who chose to restrict access to SIU-C directory information will not appear on this list.
