By Adriana Janovich, Washington State Magazine, WSU Insider
They represent the highest standards of the college experience. In academics, athletics, and the arts. In campus involvement and community service.
Each year, Washington State University recognizes 10 outstanding seniors. The WSU Alumni Association and Student Alumni Ambassadors oversee the effort. A committee of faculty, staff, and students chooses two winners in each category based on criteria such as leadership activities and academic achievements.
Meet this year’s Top Ten Seniors:
Academics
Joan “Jo” Castaneda Gonzalez
Castaneda Gonzalez, of Everson, studied chemistry and biochemistry at WSU Pullman. He’s planning to get a PhD in organic chemistry at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, then become a research professor or work at an industrial pharmaceutical company.
Eva Rickard
Rickard, of Billings, Montana, studied data analytics at WSU Pullman. She’s planning to attend medical school and is interested in anesthesia, family medicine, and women’s health.
Athletics
Ben Borgida
Borgida, of Shoreline, studied biology at WSU Pullman. Because he redshirted his freshman year, he’s eligible for a fifth year on the WSU men’s golf team.
Emily Lundgren
Lundgren, of Chula Vista, California, studied digital technology and culture at WSU Pullman. She’s planning to get an MBA, then continue swimming professionally to qualify for the 2028 Olympic trials or begin a creative video career.
Campus Involvement
Bhargav Iyer
Iyer, of Puyallup, studied biology at WSU Pullman. He’s planning to take a gap year, then go to dental school.
Mauro Ramirez
Ramirez, of Wenatchee, studied biology at WSU Pullman, where he was president of Hermandad de OeMeTe, the first and only Aztec-based brotherhood in the Pacific Northwest. He plans to take a two-year gap before starting med school.
Community Service
Aunjelique Andersen
Andersen, of Fallbrook, California, studied media innovation at WSU Global Campus, for which she served as student ambassador. She runs her own video and photography business.
Audrey Elliot
Elliot, of Belgrade, Montana, studied rhetoric and professional writing at WSU Pullman, where she was president of the WSU Country Swing Club. She wants to travel before working in environmental justice and sustainability.
Visual/Performing Arts
Kendal Clifton
Clifton, of Puyallup, studied music education, instrumental, choral, and general music at WSU Pullman, and dreams of being a high school band or choir teacher.
Hai Xing Lewis
Lewis, of Bend, Oregon, studied art history at WSU Pullman, where she was a visitor ambassador and gallery assistant at the Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art WSU. She plans to take a gap year before pursuing a master’s degree in curatorial studies in hopes of becoming a collections manager at an art museum.
Read more about the top 10 seniors.