Angelo State's Class of 2015 Top Graduates

Aimee Denham has been named recipient of Angelo State University’s 2015 Presidential Award as the top graduate in her class, while five other ASU graduating seniors have been selected for 2015 Distinguished Student Awards from their respective academic colleges.

A native of Bandera, Denham will be recognized at ASU’s May 16 commencement exercises along with the five Distinguished Student Award honorees. The Distinguished Student Award recipients are: Duncan Knox and Darren Seidel, College of Arts and Sciences; Ashley Bartholomew, College of Business; Tara Warren, College of Education; and Abby Bobo, College of Health and Human Services. Other nominees were Garrett Brueggeman, Holly Miles, Donald “Trey” Moore III and Shelby Robertson from the College of Arts and Sciences, and Brittany Trubenstein from the College of Health and Human Services. (Picture left: Aimee Denham. (Contributed/ASU))

ASU’s Academic Excellence Committee will host a public awards ceremony and reception at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, May 4, in the C.J. Davidson Conference Center inside the Houston Harte University Center to honor the nominees and award recipients. Each will be presented a plaque by ASU President Brian J. May. The event is open free to the public.

Nominated by the Department of Biology, Denham is a biology major with chemistry minor who will graduate with Highest University Honors after completing the Honors Program curriculum with thesis option. She received numerous prestigious scholarships, including a Carr Academic Scholarship, Honors Scholarship, Alvin and Patricia New Honors Enhancement Scholarship, Joint Admission Medical Program (JAMP) Scholarship and Women’s Athletics Scholarship. Her academic accomplishments merited induction into the Alpha Chi and Phi Kappa Phi national honor societies and the Beta Beta Beta (Tri-Beta) national biology honor society.

A member of the Rambelles track and field team for two years, Denhan competed in the pole vault and heptathlon, earning selection to the Lone Star Conference All-Academic Team. She also participated in campus and community leadership and service, holding positions as historian and vice president of the Honors Student Association and representative for Tri-Beta. She worked as an emissary and mentor for the Honors Program, served as a voting member of the Concho Valley Rape Crisis Center Board of Directors and the Galilee Community Development Corporation Board, and volunteered for numerous agencies throughout the San Angelo community.

Denham also excelled in undergraduate research, earning two ASU Undergraduate Faculty Mentored Research Grants and an externally funded Tri-Beta Undergraduate Research Grant. She has presented her research findings at the Texas Society of Mammalogists Scientific Meeting, the Texas Undergraduate Research Day at the Capitol, and multiple Great Plains and National Collegiate Honors Council conferences. Through JAMP, Aimee completed summer internships at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio and Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine.

Denham’s combination of academic success, extracurricular leadership and community outreach earned the 2014 Director’s Award from the Honors Program and the 2015 Rammy Award for Promising Female Leader of the Year and merited selection to “Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.” Denham will attend Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine in preparation for a career in primary care medicine or pediatrics.

Ozona native Duncan Knox was nominated by the Department of History. He is a history major with English minor who will graduate with Highest University Honors after completing the Honors Program curriculum with thesis option. He received a Carr Fellow Scholarship, Honors Scholarship and Alvin and Patricia New Honors Enhancement Scholarship, as well as the Katherine Waring, Joe Bill Lee and Dale Evans scholarships. His academic performance merited induction into the Alpha Chi, Phi Kappa Phi, Phi Alpha Theta, Pi Gamma Mu, Beta Beta Beta and Sigma Tau Delta honor societies, as well as inclusion in “Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.” He received a U.S.-U.K. Summer Fulbright Award to the University of Bristol, interned in the Curator’s Office of the U.S. Supreme Court, and participated in the Presidential Fellows program of the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress in Washington, D.C.

In addition to his academic excellence, Knox worked as an emissary and mentor for the Honors Program, served as president of both the Honors Student Association and Phi Alpha Theta, and held offices in Tri-Beta and the Student Government Association. He earned the 2014 Director’s Award from the Honors Program and the 2013 Rammy Award for Promising Male Leader of the Year. He served as a student member on the boards of directors of Friends of Fairmount Cemetery, Fort Concho, Downtown San Angelo Inc. and the ASU Alumni Association, volunteered for numerous community service projects, and worked as an archives assistant in the ASU West Texas Collection. He received an Undergraduate Faculty Mentored Research Grant and has presented his research at the Biennial Phi Alpha Theta Conference, the Texas Oral History Conference, the Great Plains Honors Council Conference and the National Collegiate Honors Council Conference. He will enter the Master of Arts in history program at Texas Tech University in preparation for doctoral studies and a career in university teaching and research.

Sanderson native Darren Seidel was nominated by the Department of Physics and Geosciences and the Department of Agriculture. He is a double-major in animal science and geoscience with a mathematics minor. He received numerous scholarships, including a Carr Academic Scholarship, W.J. Brown Memorial Scholarship, M/A Douglas Scholarship and E.F. Noelke Scholarship. His academic excellence earned him induction into the Alpha Chi, Phi Kappa Phi, Delta Tau Alpha and Sigma Gamma Epsilon national honor societies.

Additionally, Seidel served as an officer in the Meat and Food Science Association and was an active member of the Block and Bridle Club and Geological Exhibition Organization. He competed on the ASU Wool Judging, Meat Judging and Livestock Judging teams and volunteered for multiple community service projects. He also excelled in undergraduate research, receiving an Undergraduate Faculty Mentored Research Grant. He presented his research at the American Association of Petroleum Geologists sectional meeting and earned a prestigious Geoscience Division Award for Excellence in Student Research from the Council on Undergraduate Research. He co-authored a $60,000 Environmental Protection Agency Urban Waters Grant and acts as project manager for that grant. Upon graduation, he will enter the master’s program in hydrogeology at Purdue University, with plans to pursue a Ph.D. and professional licensure in both engineering and geology.

Mansfield native Ashley Bartholomew was nominated by the Department of Accounting, Economics and Finance and will graduate with both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in professional accounting. She received a Carr Academic Scholarship and a Texas Society of Certified Public Accountants (TSCPA) Accounting Scholarship. She also earned membership in the Alpha Chi national honor society and selection to “Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.”

A four-year member of the Rambelles golf team, she served as 2014-15 team captain and earned selection to the Lone Star Conference All-Academic Team. She received the Women’s Golf Coaches Association All-American Scholar Award, as well as the TSCPA’s Accounting Excellence Award. She also served as a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee and volunteered with multiple nonprofit agencies. After graduating from ASU, she will join the Dallas office of McGladrey LLC as a staff accountant while preparing for the certified public accountancy exams. (Picture left: Ashley Bartholomew (Contributed/ASU))

Abilene native and Jim Ned High School graduate Tara Warren was nominated by the Department of Teacher Education. She will graduate with a Bachelor of Science in interdisciplinary studies with EC-6 generalist credentials. She will also graduate with High University Honors having completed the Honors Program curriculum. She received a Carr Fellow Scholarship, Honors Scholarship and Olson-Buttery Education Scholarship. She earned induction into the Alpha Chi and Phi Kappa Phi national honor societies and the Kappa Delta Pi and Pi Lambda Theta international education honor societies, as well as selection to “Who’s Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.” (Image left: Tara Warren (Contributed/ASU))

Additionally, Warren was a member of the Honors Student Association, volunteered for various educational and nonprofit agencies, conducted undergraduate research on invented spelling, and published literary and artwork pieces in ASU’s Oasis literary magazine. After graduating, she will teach elementary school in Waco and pursue graduate studies in education.

Wichita Falls native Abby Bobo was nominated by the Department of Nursing and will graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.). She received a Carr Fellow Scholarship, Dr. Henry N. Ricci Scholarship, CVCM Nursing Scholarship and Women’s Athletic Scholarship for golf. She also earned induction into the Alpha Chi and Phi Kappa Phi national honor societies and the ASU Nursing Honor Society. (Left image: Abby Bobo (Contributed/ASU))

A two-year member of the Rambelles golf team, Bobo earned selection to the Women’s Golf Coaches Association and National Golf Coaches Association All-American Scholar Teams, the Lone Star Conference All-Academic Team, the College Sports Information Directors of America/Capital One Academic All-District Team, and the LSC Commissioner’s Honor Roll. She also served as a nursing student mentor, was a member of the Student Athlete Advisory Committee and was active in Chi Alpha Campus Ministries. Upon graduation, she plans to work as a critical care registered nurse for a few years before applying to medical school and pursuing a career in pediatric cardiology.

Haskell native Garrett Brueggeman is a computer science major with mathematics minor who was nominated by the Department of Computer Science. Upon graduating, he will join USAA as a software developer.

Ballinger native Holly Miles is a double-major in Spanish and sociology with a technical writing minor nominated by the Department of English and Modern Languages. She will study international environmental policy at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, Calif., as a Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellow before beginning a career as a Foreign Service Officer.

Grapevine native Donald “Trey” Moore III is a political science major with philosophy minor who was nominated by the Department of Political Science and Philosophy. He will attend the Baylor University School of Law to prepare for a career in corporate law.

San Angelo native Shelby Robertson is a mathematics major with English minor who was nominated by the Department of Mathematics. She will begin the Master of Science in atmospheric sciences program at Texas Tech University this fall.

Christoval native Brittany Trubenstein is a psychology major with chemistry minor who was nominated by the Department of Psychology, Sociology and Social Work. She will enter the Ph.D. program in developmental psychology at the University of California at Riverside upon graduation.