Purdue students honored at annual Honors Convocation

Amir M. Faghih, an agricultural education major from Huntertown, Ind., will receive the $500 G.A. Ross Award for the outstanding graduating man. He has been a leader in the Farmhouse Fraternity, Mortar Board and on the rugby team while also serving as an Agricultural Ambassador and treasurer of the Agricultural Council. The R.A. Ross Award is made possible through a gift from Ross, a 1916 alumnus and benefactor of Purdue.

Tanya J. Hadley, an agribusiness management major from Woodburn, Ind., will receive the $500 Flora Roberts Award for the outstanding graduating woman. Hadley has participated in a number of campus groups including Purdue Student Government, Mortar Board, Agriculture Council and Glenwood Cooperative. She also has participated in three study abroad programs. The award is made possible through a bequest by Flora Roberts of the Purdue class of 1887.

Jenna L. Miller of West Lafayette will receive the $1,000 Bruce Helfert Memorial Award for outstanding junior majoring in science or engineering. Miller is pursuing a degree in biomedical engineering. She has held leadership roles in activities such as the Seminar for Top Engineering Prospects, the Women in Engineering Program and has served as an ambassador for the Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. The Helfert award is made possible through a gift from Sylvia Helfert in memory of her son, Bruce Helfert, a 1964 Purdue graduate. He was a surgeon at March Air Force Base in California, where he died from injuries sustained in an automobile accident.

Kagiso A. Paynter, a sophomore double majoring in political science and theater from Oswego, Ill., will receive the $1,000 Alpha Chi Omega Fraternity Arts Scholarship. She has been involved for two years with Purdue Musical Organizations as a member of the Purduettes. The scholarship is endowed by the Purdue chapter of Alpha Chi Omega and presented annually to a freshman, sophomore or junior with a minimum grade point average of 3.0 whose life is enhanced by a passion for the visual or performing arts.

Three students, Amber L. Groth, Gregory W. Mattes and Amy L. Penner, were chosen as recipients of the Amelia Earhart Scholarship, given to students who demonstrate a desire to succeed in their fields. Recipients of the $1,000 scholarship must be U.S. citizens, have a minimum 3.2 grade point average and exhibit leadership skills, determination and potential.

Groth is a junior majoring in psychology, child development and family studies from Lebanon, Ind. She is current president of Psi Chi, a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta Phi Eta Sigma Honors Society and volunteers as a big sister for the Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Wabash Valley.

Mattes is a junior majoring in mechanical engineering from Saint Charles, Mo. He is a past president of the Dean of Engineering Student Advisory Council, a member of the Alpha Kappa Lambda fraternity and a past vice chairman of the Honors Freshman Engineering Learning Community.

Penner is a junior majoring in biological and food processing engineering from Wabash, Ind. She is a past vice president of the Society of Women Engineers, a mentor for the Women in Engineering program and an ambassador for the Boiler Gold Football Recruiting.

Six students will receive the Charles O. McGaughey Leadership Awards, which were established by McGaughey, a 1939 Purdue graduate, to honor students with leadership potential. To be eligible for these awards, students must have completed at least two years of full-time study at Purdue with at least a 3.0 GPA. They are selected on the basis of their contributions to the university and community.

Recipients of the McGaughey Awards are Michael P. Armbrust of Roselle, Ill.; Megan E. Keffaber of North Manchester, Ind.; Katherine K. Hanley of Northville, Mich.; Hayley M. Knollman of Fort Wayne, Ind.; Michael S. Mickus of Sylvania, Ohio; and David M. Mullaly of Prairie Grove, Ill.

The honorees, all seniors, each received $3,050 and a crystal paperweight commemorating the award.

Armbrust is a senior majoring in computer science and math. He has been involved in Boiler Gold Rush, Phi Sigma Pi fraternity, Mortar Board and College Mentors for Kids. Armbrust also served as a College of Science Ambassador and as the pledge class president of Delta Lambda Phi. Upon graduation, he will pursue his Ph.D. in computer science at the University of California at Berkeley.

Keffaber, a management major, has worked with a variety of organizations on the Purdue campus and has held many leadership positions such as the co-chair of the Mortar Board Leadership Conference, host coordinator of the Old Masters Central Committee and secretary and marketing coordinator of the Purdue Foundation Student Board. Upon graduation, she will be joining Procter & Gamble as a financial analyst in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Hanley, a psychology major, has been active in Purdue Student Government, holding positions as chair of student affairs chair and president pro tempore, and in Mortar Board National Senior Honor Society, serving as the tapping chair. Upon graduation, she will attend a Ph.D. program in industrial and organizational psychology.

Knollman is majoring in chemistry and biochemistry. She has served as the president of the Purdue Science Student Council, head ambassador of the College of Science Ambassadors, activities chair of Zeta Tau Alpha Sorority and studied abroad in Florence, Italy. After graduation, she plans to enter the Indiana University School of Medicine.

Mickus is pursuing a degree in aviation flight technology. He has been involved in Air Force ROTC as the mentoring program commander, fundraising officer of the Arnold Air Society and the Leadership Excellence and Awards day commander, and leader of the Navigator's Student Ministry. Upon graduation, he will begin the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training program, the Air Force's No. 1 undergraduate pilot training program at Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas.

Mullaly is majoring in chemical engineering and chemistry. He has been an active member of several organizations on campus, including Mortar Board, American Institute of Chemical Engineers, Purdue Pugwash and Purdue Student Government. Mullaly has volunteered in the community with the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program and Helping Paws. After graduating, he will move to Cincinnati, Ohio, to work as a research and development engineer in the beauty division of Procter & Gamble.

Graduating seniors who maintained a 4.0 grade point average also will be honored during the convocation. Seventy-two of Purdue's May 2006 and August or December 2005 achieved that honor.

Writer: Christy Jones, (765) 494-1089, christyjones@purdue.edu

Source: Jim Vruggink, director of special projects, (765) 494-2086, jvruggink@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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