A Q&A with one of the 750 students who received a diploma Dec. 14 at UW-Stout:
Name: Hailey Hansen
Hometown: Eau Claire
Major: Psychology; minors in Spanish and in human development and family studies
Awards, honors: Summa cum laude, seven-time recipient of the Chancellor’s Award, Gamma Sigma Sigma Scholarship, McNair Scholar, Psi Chi, International Honor Society in Psychology, Sittko Family Annual Scholarship, UW-Stout Psychology Scholarship, Samuel E. Wood Medallion Award, Steiner/Milnes Scholarship, Achievement in Research, High Academic Distinction in Psychology, Promising Student Scholarship
Why did you choose UW-Stout? I toured UW-Stout with the Upward Bound program, and I fell in love with the small, intimate campus and the polytechnic approach. I knew it would be a great fit for me.
What are the biggest obstacles you faced in earning your degree? My biggest challenge was dealing with finances. As a first-generation college student from a single parent household, I have had to pay for my tuition if I could not get enough funding from outside sources. This has been difficult with multiple jobs as a full-time student on and off campus. I have worked for the custodial team of the student center and Price Commons, Stoutfitters (previously known as the campus bookstore), I was a Week One Orientation leader (WOO), and I was a teaching assistant for the human development and family studies department. I was also on the executive board of my sorority for two years as treasurer. I had one additional job that I did over the summer. At one point, I was working four jobs simultaneously.
What stands out among your college experiences? I was able to get a 3.9 GPA as a very involved student. I have had a very large support system between my family, friends and faculty. As for staff and faculty, I was supported through the McNair Scholars Program, Aspire and the psychology, Spanish and HDFS departments. Faculty gave me opportunities to complete several research projects, present internationally and be a teaching assistant, and I was able to create connections for references.
What’s next? I will be continuing my education at UW-Stout to pursue my career goals as a school counselor. I will be in the Master of Science school counseling program starting in January.
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