Outstanding undergraduates selected as Hall Center Scholars

LAWRENCE — Nine outstanding University of Kansas undergraduates have been selected to serve as Hall Center Scholars for 2013-2014. They are as follows:

• Joyce Bohling, senior in English, Lawrence
• Tasha Cerny, senior in English literature and creative writing, Salina
• Jenny Curatola, senior in English and global & international studies, Lansing
• Katherine Gwynn, junior in English and women, gender and sexuality studies, Olathe
• Isabella Herrera, senior in neurobiology and French, Overland Park
• Heathyr Johnson, junior in secondary English education, Olathe
• Allen Schaidle, senior in education, Metamora, Ill.
• Hannah Sitz, senior in psychology and strategic communications, Andover
• Ryan Smith, senior in English and history, Overland Park.

Each scholar receives an award of $500. The students selected for the honor will spend the academic school year interacting with the visiting speakers of the Hall Center’s highly regarded Humanities Lecture Series.

Smith said he appreciated the chance to engage personally with the wide variety of speakers brought by the Hall Center.

“I seek … the chance to interact with those prestigious scholars, authors and speakers (of the HLS) with the hopes of passing on their research and knowledge, opening me to new ideas and new worlds.”

The Humanities Lecture Series is the Hall Center’s most significant public outreach program, bringing prominent intellectuals to speak to the campus and wider community about contemporary issues of importance.

The scholars play an important role by promoting the unique contribution of the humanities to their academic growth and promoting discussion about topics raised in the series to other undergraduates at KU. 

“I believe very much in the power of communication, in the sharing of ideas, and being a Hall Center Scholar will allow me the chance to interact on a more intimate level with great minds from a variety of disciplines,” said Gwynn.

The Humanities Lecture Series speakers for 2013–2014 will be Arsalan Iftikhar, Jill Lepore, Junot Díaz, Anne D. Hedeman, Peter Brown and Jeffrey Toobin. The series has long provided a forum for interdisciplinary dialogue among renowned speakers, the university and the surrounding communities.

Hall Center Scholar awards, made possible by donations to the Friends of the Hall Center, are open to KU undergraduates with strong academic credentials who have demonstrated significant engagement in the university community. 

For more information about the Hall Center Scholar program or the Humanities Lecture Series, please contact the Hall Center by email or call 785-864-4798.