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The President’s Medal has traditionally been given to the top senior in the graduating class. Candidates are judged on overall academic record, including grades. This year, for the first time, two awards are being presented. One medal goes to a student who has completed three-fourths of his or her degree requirements at the University. The other goes to a student who has entered the University with at least 60 transfer credits from a Washington community college.
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Anna Fortin, President's Medalist |
Anna Fortin grew up in the small town of Zillah, Wash., and spent her first two years of college at Yakima Valley Community College. There, she was inspired by one of her teachers to study cell biology — study that she has continued at the UW. She has also participated in a variety of research projects, from genetics to public health. She reports that conducting genetics research in a genome sciences lab on campus has "greatly enhanced my understanding of molecular biology, biochemistry and genetics."
But Fortin has another passion besides science. She has been studying Spanish throughout her college career and loves not only the language, but the Latin American culture. She has served as a volunteer English as a second language teacher for Hispanic immigrants and also spent 10 weeks in Ecuador, where she lived with a host family to learn firsthand about the culture.
Fortin has been accepted to the UW School of Medicine. Her career goal is to work as a family physician for underserved, Spanish-speaking populations, where her language skills will come in handy.
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Tan Hung "Marie" Ng, President's Medalist |
Tan Hung "Marie" Ng came to the UW from Hong Kong, and admits that as a freshman she was "completely overwhelmed and perplexed." But once she got her bearings it didn't take her long to excel. She made the dean's list every quarter, but grades are just the beginning of what she did.
For starters, she added not one but two minors to her psychology major — one in mathematics and one in philosophy. Then she got involved in research in a big way, starting in her freshman year. By the time she was a sophomore, Ng had done an independent research project that she presented at two research symposia. This year she'll be presenting research she's been working on since her junior year.
Ng has also served as a teaching assistant and found time to volunteer for a number of different agencies. For fun, she plays both the piano and violin, performing with the University Symphony Orchestra and the El Mariachi Club. In August, this young woman, who is the first in her family to attend college, will begin graduate school at the University of Southern California.
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