Southwestern University 2020 Annual Report

10 High-impact experiences are the hallmark of today’s Southwestern Experience. Through these immersive, life- changing opportunities, students gain independence and discover how to synthesize, interpret, and evaluate information from the world around them. These abilities position Southwestern graduates for active, meaningful lives of engagement and achievement. STUDY ABROAD Alex Bell ’21, a junior majoring in anthropology, was awarded a 2019 Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship. The highly competitive scholarship allows U.S. undergraduate students with financial need to continue their academic studies or intern abroad. This year, the program reviewed a record 5,000 applications; Bell was one of the 1,300 students offered an award and the 15th student from Southwestern to win a Gilman grant in the past seven years. INTERNSHIPS Biology and kinesiology double major Shelby Wilhite ’22 shadowed Sandra Guevara Esparza ’96, P’23 at ABC Medical Center in Round Rock during the fall 2019 semester. One day a week, she was able to witness the practice of medicine in the real world and ask questions of Esparza and her husband, who is a pediatrician. The experience reaffirmed Wilhite’s interest in a career in medicine and the health professions. COMMUNITY-ENGAGED LEARNING This summer, Megan Melo ’21, Grace Sexton ’22, and Brooke Shattuck ’21 worked as Community-Engaged Learning Student Associates at Faith in Action Georgetown, a nonprofit that provides transportation and other support to seniors so they can age in place. The three students helped clean up a database, reviewed news clippings to outline the history of the organization and prepare for its 20th anniversary celebration, and contacted donors to update their information. UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH As a member of Southwestern’s prestigious Financial Analyst Program (FAP), economics major Ramish Nadeem ’19 managed part of the University’s endowment through carefully researched and selected investments. He partnered with theatre major Trevor Stoneburner ’20 to display the resulting data using red, white, and blue wires that connected 600 multicolor LED lights arrayed across two eight-feet-tall boards. They displayed their unique art installation, which they called Baroque Economic Beauty , at the 2019 Research and Creative Works Symposium. High-Impact Experiences