Lakeland College

Subscribe

 

The 2011 Koehler Award Nominees

This year, 10 seniors were nominated by their peers for the annual Clarence H. Koehler Award. The award is given in honor of Rev. Koehler '37 to the day program student who "best exemplifies Lakeland's spirit" through his or her engagement in campus activities and exemplary commitment to the Lakeland community.

The winner will be announced at the May 7 Graduation Celebration Banquet. As attested to by these brief biographies, the finalists are some of the college's top students with notable accomplishments in the classroom and the community. The Lakeland community certainly will miss them, and this place that so many call home will await their return. We look forward to watching them shine in the world, just as they have done here at Lakeland for the past four years. The 2011 Koehler Award nominees are:

Pratikshya Bhandari

Major: International business.

Accomplishments: Dean's List for seven semesters; 2010 International Student Academic Achievement and Leadership Award; Outstanding Student in International Business.

Involvement: Make a Difference Day, Relay for Life, Habitat for Humanity, Dress a Child for Christmas for a Malawi orphanage, Global Student Association (Special Events Coordinator/Public Relations Officer), Student Association (Incoming Student Representative, Treasurer and Graduating Student Representative), Colleges Against Cancer. In 2009-10, she was President of the Lakeland College Service Group.

"I will miss my friends who have become a part of my extended family, all the staff who have made my life possible at Lakeland, and the professors who have shaped my college experience intellectually for the past four years. I am most excited about all the possibilities that stand before me and the responsibilities that are coming my way. Life after Lakeland, at the moment, is uncertain, but it is a new beginning and I am ready to embrace it!"

Mary Dennewitz

Major: Accounting with a fraud and forensics emphasis; Minor: Resort management.

Accomplishments: Dean's List all four years, numerous awards and scholarships including Outstanding Student in Accounting in 2011.

Involvement: Numerous service projects including Big Brothers/Big Sisters Music Jam, Festival of Trees, Muskie Shoot Outs, Salvation Army Bell Ringing. Mary played basketball for four years and was team captain in 2009-10. She was a Campus Ambassador for three years, and member of Students in Free Enterprise, serving as secretary in 2009.

"I am most excited about getting into the real world and finally trying to apply some of the knowledge I have obtained into real-life situations." She will miss college life for the naps, and more importantly for the friendships with fellow students and her professors.

Kristina Filipovic

Double major: Business management and sports studies; Minor: Spanish.

Accomplishments: Numerous scholarships, Who's Who Among American College Students, Outstanding Senior in 2010, Outstanding Student in Sports Studies in 2011.

Involvement: Volunteer basketball coach at Tiny Tigers basketball clinic, a volunteer summer high school basketball coach, and a Lakeland orientation leader. She was named Homecoming Queen in 2008. She is in Mortar Board, the National Spanish Honors Society, and Lakeland conversation partners program.

Kristina says she will miss the Lakeland rule that dictates that students can work only 10 hours a week. "I am excited about putting all my experiences and lessons that I learned at Lakeland to use in the real world."

Katelyn Gussert

Major: Elementary education; Minor: English.

Accomplishments: Dean's List for eight semesters, numerous awards include the Presidential Scholarship, Who's Who Among American College Students, 2011 Outstanding Theatre Student Award.

Involvement: Countless hours volunteering in elementary classrooms. She assisted the Big Brothers/Big Sisters Music Jam, Festival of Trees, delivered canned goods for charities. She has been involved in theatre all four years, and was vice-president of Theatricians. Mortar Board for two years, serving as vice-president. Member of Student Wisconsin Education Association for three years, Freunchor for four years, and Concert Choir one year.

Katelyn is most excited about a new adventure that will begin when she completes her student teaching: a summer spent in New York attending The American Academy of Dramatic Arts. "I am going to miss the community that is found at Lakeland. It is full of people who share a deep sense of caring for one another. My second family lives here, and it is hard to imagine not seeing them."

Grace Jairo

Major: Biochemistry.

Accomplishments: Many awards including 2011 Outstanding International Student for Academic Achievement and Leadership and Outstanding Senior in Biochemistry.

Involvement: Many service projects including Relay for Life, Make a Difference Day, Habitat for Humanity, Camo Quilt Project in Plymouth. Served as an ER volunteer at Aurora Sheboygan Memorial Hospital. President of the Global Student Association, founding president of the Math Club, Vice-President of the Chemistry Club, served on the Spiritual Life Council. She played tennis and performed in the 2011 spring musical, Godspell.

"Lakeland College is full of very kind and genuinely caring people that make the environment so friendly starting from the President of the college, and including the faculty, staff, and students. It is the people I have come to know while here and the people who have been of great support that I will miss most. I will also miss the various opportunities I have had to share my culture with other people through my favorite organization, GSA. I am excited to start a whole new experience in a relatively different kind of setting. Whether it will be in graduate school or getting a job, I know I will enjoy it and get a chance to serve the world in a different way."

Katelyn Kilton

Major: Elementary education; Minor: English as a second language.

Accomplishments: President's Award, Who's Who Among American College Students. Involvement: Volunteered at Kohler Elementary School since 2008, volunteer basketball coach for Kiel seventh grade girls' team, several Muskie Shootout Basketball Tournaments. She played basketball and was the team captain in 2008 and 2009. She has been a Conversation Partner, a member of Mortar Board, secretary for Wisconsin Education Association, and has participated in Relay for Life.

"I'm excited about starting a new chapter in my life - especially having the opportunity to educate children and watch them grow. This has been a life-long dream. I will miss all the people I have met and the close friendships I have developed including students and faculty. I will also miss being a part of the women's basketball team, attending sporting events and participating in all of the fun activities that Lakeland offers."

Michael Olson

Major: Middle childhood education (grades 1-8); Minor: History.

Accomplishments: Dean's List, recipient of Dr. John and Anita Morland Scholarship, the Elden A. Amundson Scholarship and the Kuehn Achievement Award.

Involvement: Resident Assistant for three years, Campus Ambassador for two years. 2010 Lakeland Student Leader Award and was named Residence Life Staff Member of the Year. Co-President of Student Wisconsin Education Association and president of Mortar Board.

"I am excited for the opportunity to have a positive and influential role in young students' lives through teaching. I will definitely miss seeing everyone I have grown so close to over the years."

Rob Pockat

Double major: Secondary education and English; Minor: Writing.

Accomplishments: Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities all four years, 2010 English Student of the Year.

Involvement: Volunteered at local schools, the Great Lakes Writers Festival, the Wisconsin State Reading Association, and started a literary journal on campus. Columnist for the Mirror, a student blogger, and the founder and co-president of the Lakeland chapter of the Student Wisconsin Education Association. Served on the Dining Services Advisory Board, was student representative to the Lakeland College Curriculum Committee and will serve as the Class Representative on the Lakeland College Alumni Association Board of Directors in 2011-12.

"As I begin the next chapter of my life I'm reminded of a quote from Henry David Thoreau: 'Do not go where the path may lead; go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.' With the help of my Lakeland guides—professors, faculty, and friends I've made along the way—I blazed a path not wholly expected, but the right path for me. What will I miss most about Lakeland? Miss it? I'm not leaving! I love this place!" Rob is applying for a graduate assistant position and plans to enter the master of arts in counseling program this summer.

Emily Rendall-Araujo

Double major: Voice Performance and Pedagogy and Business Management.

Accomplishments: Dean's List all four years, Who's Who Among American College Students, numerous awards and scholarships including the Helen Boatwright Music Scholarship, the Outstanding New Choral Student Award, 2011 Outstanding Voice Performance Student.

Involvement: Service projects include Giving Tree, Adopt-a-Highway, Letters to Santa, and Teddy Bear Toss. She assisted with Peruvian Day at the John Michael Kohler Arts Center and was 2010 Volunteer Coordinator for the Movers and Shakers Gala. She is active in Phi Delta Omega sorority (President, Secretary, Pledgemaster, and Sergeant at Arms), a member of the Concert Choir, the Band and the Schilcutt Handbell Ensemble and has served the Music Department in various capacities. She has performed in several Lakeland College musicals.

Emily looks forward to slowing down just a bit and being able to spend more time with her husband as well as having time to do more things that are fun for her. As far as what she will miss about Lakeland, "Definitely the people! You always say that you will visit and keep in touch, and you can, but it's not the same as seeing everyone every day."

Kayla Weber

Double major: Spanish and International Business.

Accomplishments: Dean's List, Outstanding Student Leader Award in 2010. Numerous scholarships including Orion Energy Systems and The Manitowoc Company. Involvement: Volunteered at Maywood, the John Michael Kohler Arts Center, and Salvation Army bell-ringing. Special events coordinator of LC-CAB for two years (serving as vice-president and president), president of the Spanish Club, vice-president of Spanish National Honors Society, and was involved in intramurals and Lakeland College conversation partners.

"Lakeland is such a big family that I know I am going to miss being able to walk across the hall or campus to see my friends. I have worked in admissions all four years and I know I will miss the staff in the office as well as giving tours. I am most excited about being able to move somewhere new. Seeing the world has always been a dream of mine."

Share This Story

 

Digg del.icio.us Yahoo Google Facebook Technorati

<< Return to News