Ten graduating seniors were inducted into the Florida Gulf Coast University Hall of Fame on Thursday, April 7 — the highest recognition given to student leaders at FGCU.
“The Hall of Fame is reserved for students who have demonstrated superior leadership, integrity and achievement through their activities, service, scholarship and academic excellence,” said Vice President for Student Affairs J. Michael Rollo. “These students have had an exceptional impact on our campus and distinguished themselves as leaders among our many other outstanding students.”
A committee of faculty, students and alumni reviews nominations and selects up to 10 honorees each spring, and about 100 high-achieving Eagles have been inducted into the Hall of Fame since it was founded in 2007. Photographs of each year’s recipients are displayed on the second floor of the Cohen Center.
The 2016 inductees — along with their programs and highlights of their activities — are:
- Michelle Anderson of Fort Myers (Marketing and Business Management, with concentration in Entrepreneurship): President of the Lutgert College of Business Undergraduate Student Advisory Board; involved in Beta Gamma Sigma, Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, Order of Omega and Phi Mu Sorority; served on Phi Mu Academic Excellence Committee.
- Lori Boegershausen of Dumont, N.J. (History; minors in German and Medieval/Early Modern Studies): Procedural chair in the Student Government Senate, peer mentor in the Honors Program; Histories of Choice Research Project; presented at nine conferences; recipient of 2016-17 Fulbright grant to teach in Germany.
- Stephanie Chediak of Naples (Political Science; minors in Philosophy and Global Studies): Secretary of Phi Eta Sigma Honor Society, president of Amnesty International and Eagle “I” Ambassador; showcased two projects on Civic Engagement Day and presented on Research Day.
- Robert Garcia of Sarasota (Political Science): Served two terms as a Student Government Senator, current chief justice of the Student Government Supreme Court; presenting research at the Midwest Political Science Conference on April.
- Kathleen Leon of Fort Myers (Legal Studies and Political Science): Spring intern in the Office of Presidential Correspondence in the White House; charter member of the FGCU National Black Law Student Association; Student Government Supreme Court Associate Justice; Service-Learning Youth Development Ambassador.
- Elizabeth Means of Washington, D.C. (Business Management with a Sports Management concentration, and Computer Information Systems): Tennis team captain; Honors Program member; led service-learning projects including an on-campus restoration project for Make a Different Day; teaching members of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Lee County about nutrition; interned with FGCU Athletics’ marketing division, managing a cancer awareness initiative.
- Karen Muhl of Fort Myers (Business Management): Professional Development Officer for the Lutgert College of Business Undergraduate Student Advisory Board; co-coordinator for annual FGCU St. Baldrick’s Day fundraiser for childhood cancer research; president of the Society of Human Resource Management, supplemental instruction leader for the Center of Academic Achievement; Honors Program member.
- Tatiana Rodriguez of West Palm Beach (Marketing; minor in Advertising): President of Dominican Republic Outreach Program; participated in Global International Volunteer Excursion (GIVE) in Thailand and Laos and Lutgert College of Business Exchange Program in France.
- Jessica Scanlon of Tampa (Communication; minor in Interdisciplinary Studies): former Student Government vice president; membership director for Panhellenic Association; involved in Headbands of Hope, an organization dedicated to helping girls with cancer.
- Megan Shindler of Cincinnati (Political Science and Theatre): Shared her transmedia theatre piece “Justice Is” in a TEDxFGCU talk, “The Artist Is”; artistic director of 2015 World Children’s Festival on the White House Lawn in Washington, D.C., and presented an art exhibition at the Lincoln Memorial; playwright and producer of “S(he) Will Fade,” which will be staged at FGCU in fall 2016.