Students Honored During Annual Recognition and Pinning Ceremony

Friday, May 24th, 2024

Drake University College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences (CPHS) held its annual Recognition and Pinning Ceremony on May 9. The Ceremony marks students’ transition to final year internships, fieldwork, and rotations for third-year undergraduate health sciences students, first-year Master of Athletic Training students, second-year Occupational Therapy Doctorate students, and third-year Doctor of Pharmacy students.

To assist students with their transition from their course work to their program’s final year of experiential learning, Dr. Renae Chesnut, professor of pharmacy practice and former CPHS dean, provided advice on how to be a transformational leader. Dr. Chesnut was the recipient of the College’s 2024 Richard Morrow Transformational Leadership Award.
Each student named in the ceremony received a name badge and a pin to wear in their final program experiences. The College’s pin is in the shape of a shield with the name of the student’s degree program, which serves as a reminder of their program’s professional values and competencies. A Drake ‘D’ in the center circle serves as a reminder that students are always representatives of the Drake University College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences.

During the ceremony, CPHS Interim Dean and Professor Dr. Chuck Phillips announced the recipients of several prestigious awards.

Anna Miller, a junior health sciences student, was presented with the Outstanding Health Sciences Student Award. Recipients of this award have excelled in their coursework and have been active in University and College professional organizations and activities.

Edda Pederson, a junior health sciences student, received the Health Sciences Student Leadership Award. This award recognizes a health sciences student who has shown leadership in their curricular and co-curricular activities.

Tyler Otto, a first-year Master of Athletic Training student, was presented with the Athletic Training Emerging Clinician Award. Recipients of this award demonstrate the qualities necessary to thrive in the practice of athletic training.

Hannah Bley, a second-year occupational therapy doctoral student, received the Occupational Therapy Scholastic Achievement Award. Recipients of this award have excelled in their coursework, performing in the top 25% of their class.

Nicole Herren, second-year occupational therapy doctoral student, was awarded the Occupational Therapy Leadership and Professional Development Award. Recipients of this award demonstrate the drive to advance the profession of occupational therapy through leadership opportunities, publications, or involvement in professional presentations.

Paula Ornelas, third-year Doctor of Pharmacy student, received the Excellence in Public Health Pharmacy Award. This award was established by the United States Public Health Service to recognize student pharmacists who make significant contributions to public health.

Deena Alsabbah, third-year Doctor of Pharmacy student, was recognized as the recipient of the Lon N. Larson Engaged Practitioner Award. Established through memorials made in Larson’s honor, the annual Lon Larson Engaged Practitioner Award is presented to the student that most demonstrates the values and actions for which Dr. Larson, previous CPHS faculty member, was best known including high ethical standards, reflective practice, innovation, and community service.

Students who received pins and were named during the ceremony included the following:

Health Sciences Students: Elizabeth Aanestad, Cristina Baez, Adama Bockarie, Chloe Bonta, Caleb Bowling, Anthony Bradley, Emma Byrne, Marcus Chew, David Duncan, Clare Else, Caroline Fleming, Matthew Fook, Ava Hawthorne, Ashley Iiams, Serena Iske, Sophia Johnson, Molly Kennedy, Samuel Kim, Felicia Lor, Brooklyn Lowry, Thomas Lucas, Ruthie Lundberg, Khushi Makhija, Camryn Makovicka, Cassandra McPheron, Anna Miller, Sydney Norton, Carina Oelkers, Hannah Par, Melia Patrick, Edda Pederson, Marie Porto, Kiara Riley, Suzanne Shoemaker, Mia Shipley, Shandhar Sureshbabu, Lily Whitmore, Raelyn Wilcox, Starla Wiler

Master of Athletic Training Students: Aziz Jdai, Kaylee Larson, Sami Miller, Tyler Otto, Mac Pursell, Aayushi Sarkar, Darinka Stepan, Jeremy Villalobos

Occupational Therapy Doctoral Students: Alexa Aldrich-Ingram, Lily Becker, Hannah Behunin, Grace Blazevich, Hannah Bley, Whitney Bramm, Abby Brown, Madelyn Canfield, Hannah Cole, Brooke Dannenfeldt, Abby DeAnna, Brittney Eilers, Ellen Everhart, Paige Fernety, Ayla Fleming, Johnna Gary, Jessica Garza, Emily Goodman, Nicole Heeren, Samantha Hoenig, Alicia Hubbard, Hakyung Jang, Tessa Jaske, Stefanie Jensen, Alex Larson, Mackenzie Laughlin, Nelson Le, Megan Menke, Madison Osbern, Madeline Preston, Kristin Prine, Haylee Rasmussen, Abbey Riordan, Peyton Robertson, Marissa Ruppel, Quincy Schenk, Abby Summers, Olivia Terzich, Kinzi Van Wyk, Olivia Wersinger, Jillian Wood

Doctor of Pharmacy Students: Ruben Abraham, Deena Alsabbah, Trinity Baccam, Keith Barnett, Kayla Batdorf, Claire Behymer, Lexie Bennett, Devin Blish, Michael Bracco, Anna Braun, Noah Budde, Trinity Busch, Abby Crupi, Megan Day, Zoe DeWitt, Megan Deal, Nick Deveza, Jennifer Diaz, Luke Ferguson, Angelica Fic, Sally Fry, Zakk Getz, Timothy Giesen, Marissa Grothe, Adela Hadziric, Sarah Hennessey, MacKenzie Hester, Megan Hoenig, Anna Holden, Jillian Hood, Stacia L. Humphrey, Alena Jomon, Ben Jones, Megan Kenney, Austin Lampman, Emily Luu, Suzy Mahalick, Corinne McCormick, Elizabeth Mensing, Madeline Mews, Jacob Miller, Drew Momchilovich, Hanna Mullen, Carly Mullins, McKenna Murcek, Sophie Nguyen, Grant Nutter, Kayla Nye, Jaymie O’Connor, Imor Okwaramoi, Paula Ornelas, Shawn Patel, Mung S. Piang, Beth Reed-Jahncke, Kathryn Reiman, Alexis Sands, Michaela Schick, Ashley Sinnorai, Karl Stadler, Abigail Stumpner, Amisha Tayal, Hannah Thillman, Kaitlyn Thomas, Ryanne Trpkosh, Rachel Turin, Dylan Valley, John Ware