Feb. 26, 2024

Overcoming Obstacles and Encouraging Others

Reginald Rogers woke up on June 18, 1999, and expected it to be a fairly uneventful day. Rogers was at home in Atlanta, Georgia, enjoying a well-deserved break after finishing his sophomore year at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Late in the afternoon, Rogers hopped in his car for a quick trip to pick up his father. He never made it to his destination. Rogers was involved a terrible accident, one that kept him in surgery for 14 hours and unconscious for three days. When he awoke, he had no memory of the collision and was…

Feb. 21, 2024

Communicating Vital Messages

Part of the ASH Scholars Program, the Minority Focused News as a Locus of Empowerment research team investigates the manners in which news websites and streaming platforms that serve under-represented and marginalized populations provide a benefit to society. The team was created in 2019 and undergraduate students at the University of Missouri who participate in the research seek to understand how identity-focused content serves as a safe space for those affected groups. It’s work that Julius Riles, an associate professor of communication at MU, had admired since its inception. Riles joined Mizzou in 2016, bringing with…

Feb. 19, 2024

A Strong Mizzou Connection

Botswana Blackburn got her first taste of how rewarding the collegiate experience could be – especially at the University of Missouri – through the Missouri Scholars Academy (MSA), a three-week residential program on the MU campus for 330 of Missouri’s academically gifted students who are ready to begin their junior year of high school. That experience would set Blackburn on an academic journey that has been beyond rewarding – and kept her closely tied to Mizzou. Along with earning a bachelor’s degree in journalism, with a focus on broadcast news, and a master’s degree in health education…

Feb. 7, 2024

Planting Seeds of Success

Maxwell Daubert, a senior majoring in biology with a minor in anthropology, grew up in an environment that fostered constant learning. Daubert, who moved to the Columbia area between his freshman and sophomore years of high school, spent a lot of time on college campuses throughout his childhood. He remembers these experiences fondly. “I really enjoyed being around a college campus all my life,” Daubert said. “I always enjoyed the atmosphere – this kind of environment of learning as a lifestyle was really attractive to me. Maybe that’s because I was taught to love it from…

Jan. 28, 2024

Educating the Next Generation

While Shari Freyermuth had planned to one day attend medical school, when she arrived at the University of Georgia as an undergraduate student she found a new interest – research. That enthusiasm for discovery followed her as she finished her Ph.D. at Duke University and began a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Missouri.  Freyermuth’s fellowship was in the laboratory of Joe Polacco, a professor emeritus of biochemistry at Mizzou. There, she participated in a variety of exciting plant-related projects and provided mentorship to the undergraduate students in the lab. It was the latter experience that…

Jan. 21, 2024

Pursuing Her Passion for Education

A student in the University of Missouri College of Education and Human Development, Madison Hayes, who is also pursuing the Honors Certificate, is always looking for opportunities to get real-world teaching experience. Last semester, the Honors Learning-by-Contract program allowed her to do just that. Through the program, Honors students work with MU faculty to transform a non-Honors course into an Honors credit-earning experience. Honors Learning-by-Contract allows students to deepen their understanding of class material and further explore an area of interest through special projects or research. Hayes was able to earn Honors credit in…

Jan. 2, 2024

Honors Students Go Live on KBIA

Honors Tutorials, small one-credit discussions available to University of Missouri Honors students, are designed to provide more meaningful relationships and in-depth learning experiences than the traditional classroom setting can offer. Some Tutorials, such as last semester’s “Views of the News: Media Criticism” taught by Amy Simons, a professor in the MU School of Journalism, offer hands-on experience to students in areas that may or may not be related to their major. Simons, who produces and hosts a media criticism show, Views of the News, on KBIA with professors …

Dec. 14, 2023

Building Bridges Between His Interests

With interests in music and philosophy, Troy Hall explores both passions as affiliate faculty in the University of Missouri Honors College. Hall, who is an instructor of philosophy and percussion faculty in the School of Music, regularly teaches in the Honors Humanities Sequence and lends his expertise each spring semester to the Honors medical ethics discussion group. With his wide range of teaching duties, Hall interacts with Tigers from multiple degree programs and has built strong relationships with the students he educates. Those efforts led Honors students to nominate him for the Honors Outstanding…

Dec. 13, 2023

Senior Spotlight: Matt Houk

Matt Houk has always loved to learn. That passion for education led Houk to the University of Missouri, where he will graduate this December with three degrees – political science, history and communication – as well as two minors and a handful of certificates, including the Honors Certificate. Houk accomplished a lot during his time at MU, and those achievements led him to being selected as the student speaker during the Honors commencement ceremony. It was Houk’s interest in learning, as well as a desire to follow a blueprint that…

Dec. 12, 2023

Senior Spotlight: Caroline Lyman

During Caroline Lyman’s first collegiate soccer match, the freshman University of Missouri defender found herself lined up against Stanford University forward Sophia Smith. Smith, who was a sophomore, had been a regular on the United States Women’s Youth National Team training circuit and was coming off a solid freshman campaign. It was quite the “welcome to college soccer” moment for Lyman. That first match proved to Lyman that her years of hard work on the pitch had been worth it – she was officially a Div. I athlete and part of one of the best conferences in the…