The President’s Prize, Gold Axe awards and the Distinguished Senior awards for the Class of 2024 were honored at a ceremony on Nov. 12. Vice President of Student Affairs Margot Saltonstall, in presenting the awards, highlighted the accomplishments, service and scholarship of this class as she recognized students from each college.
The students came from a pool of applicants selected by the Office of Leadership & Engagement. The program is co-sponsored by the Office of the President, NAU Alumni and ASNAU. This year’s class included 30 Gold Axe winners, including three President’s Prize winners—the highest honor awarded to undergraduate students. Additionally, 10 students were honored as Distinguished Seniors of their colleges.
“This is a special event that recognizes the achievements of these students and the differences they have made at NAU and in their community near and far, where the impact of their service and advocacy outside of the classroom are felt so profoundly,” said Saltonstall in sharing remarks from President José Luis Cruz Rivera, who was unable to attend. “We are all humbled and inspired for the opportunity every semester to recognize our Lumberjacks who have accomplished so much and contributed to and enriched our community in so many ways.”
The President’s Prize winners are:
- Janelle Peña, a double major in mechanical engineering and modern languages and part of the Interdisciplinary Global Program, spending a year studying and doing research in Chile, member of the Society of Women Engineers and Global Ties Arizona, was a teacher’s assistant for several math and engineering classes and did an internship for the Salt River Project.
- Shealyn Leedy, a first-generation nursing student and part of the first graduating class of NAU’s new College of Nursing who served in ASNAU, including creating a policy to help faculty support students experiencing grief after losing a loved one, and did study abroad experiences in Tanzania and Costa Rica.
- Alex Lee, a first-generation student with a double major in psychology and criminology and criminal justice who served in ASNAU and did separate undergraduate research projects to study biases in both job seekers and employers, identifying barriers in DEI material in the Oregon Department of Transportation and strategies for employers to support grieving employees.
The Distinguished Seniors are: Maressa Kennedy, College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences; Matthew Wells, NAU Online; Jocelyn Andrade, NAU Yuma; Alex Lee, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences; Autumn Hunt, The W. A. Franke College of Business; Maddy George, College of Nursing; Izaac Molina, Steve Sanghi College of Engineering; Meagan Engels, College of Arts and Letters; Jillian Sweeney, College of Education; and Bridget Nolan, College of Health and Human Services.
The standard bearers are: Chris Grace, Steve Sanghi College of Engineering; Sofia Loera, College of Nursing; Corina Kiyaani, College of Education; Bianca Navarro, NAU Yuma; Bridget Nolan, College of Health and Human Services; Rachel Fry, College of the Environment, Forestry, and Natural Sciences; Apollonia Settducato, College of Social and Behavioral Sciences; Maribel Cardenas, The W. A. Franke College of Business; and Katelyn Mason, College of Arts and Letters.
Watch the ceremony recorded by NAU-TV.
Gold Axe
Distinguished Seniors
Standard bearers
