News & Notes Alumni Edition

As we bid farewell to the 2023 semester, I am filled with gratitude for each one of you who has contributed to the success of the University Honors Program at Iowa State University over the years. As you peruse through this newsletter, I want you to know that your support has played a pivotal role in making our program thrive. We embark on 2024 with a deep appreciation for the community we've built together.

Please join me in wishing our 28 newest honors alumni. Their hard work and dedication are a testament to the excellence fostered within our program. We wish them all the best in their future endeavors.

We are thrilled to welcome Tara Prindle, our new Communication Specialist, to the University Honors Program staff. Tara's background in graphic design and journalism brings a valuable skill set to our team, and we look forward to the contributions she'll make to our communications.

Thank you for being an integral part of the University Honors Program. Wishing you a wonderful start to the year and warm season's greetings as we embrace the challenges and successes that 2024 holds.

Warm regards,

Laurie Smith Law

Congratulations to our Fall 2023 Graduates!

We are so proud to present the 28 graduating seniors who joined your ranks as University Honors Program alumni. We wish them all the best!

Alumni Spotlight - Nate Dobbels

Nothing warms our hearts more than to see alumni return to campus for events like homecoming. However, we love it even more when they work at Iowa State, so we can see them all the time!

Nate Dobbels (2012 Agricultural and Life Sciences Education-Teacher Certification and International Agriculture) is an academic advisor for Agricultural Education and Studies, and the president of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences staff council and chair of the CALS Honors committee.

“My role is all about the students,” Dobbels said. “I put students first in everything I do. I advise students, serve on committees, and am a place where students can go for help. I see my role as a front-line person helping students put out fires.”

This year, Dobbels received the Professional and Scientific Learning Community Coordinator Award from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences for being instrumental in improving the student experience, especially during COVID-19. Dobbels also received the 2023 W. Robert Parks Honors Commendation. This esteemed, student-nominated award recognized Dobbels’ outstanding contributions to the University

Honors Program.

When Dobbels was a student, he was just as involved in the honors program as he is now. He participated in Honors 121, assisted with five honors retreats, became a leader, and then an undergraduate assistant.

“My year in service as a UA will always be a memorable year,” Dobbels said. “I was very close with my fellow UAs, enjoyed leading Honors 302, and felt I was able to help coordinate a successful retreat with new ideas. Helping to lead others was a wonderful experience and really started my interest in working in higher education.”

When it came time for him to decide about joining the University Honors Program, he almost didn’t.

“I was unsure about joining the [University] Honors Program my first semester at ISU,” Dobbels said. “I was advised to give it a try and see what happens. One of the best decisions I ever made. I’m so thankful for my experiences at ISU and in the honors program. It is a true joy to give back to the program and help students find success in life.”

Before he graduated, Dobbels was rightfully dubbed a jack-of-all-trades by Iowa State Daily when they wrote about him receiving his 2010 win as homecoming king. On top of that, Dobbels involved himself in the Government of the Student Body as Speaker and Vice President, as well as other various clubs around campus.

Iowa State led Dobbels to have mentors who encouraged him to consider a career in higher education. With that career, he advises about 165 students who appreciate his energy and caring nature while also being a key component of the Agriculture Education and Studies Learning Community. Now, Dobbels is giving back.

“Being able to help students succeed at ISU and move on to successful careers is so rewarding,” Dobbels said. “I enjoy connecting with students and helping make their lives easier. I get a chance to give back to a place that changed my life forever. The office I advise in is the same office I was advised in as a student. That’s pretty special.”

Student Spotlights

13 students in Iowa State University’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) participated in faculty-sponsored research projects. These students are the latest recipients of the LAS Dean’s High Impact Award for Undergraduate Research.

Two honors students, Luke Champion (’27 aerospace engineering, physics) and Hamelynn Harzman (’26 biology) completed their innovative research this past summer.

Hamelynn Harzman, mentored by Jeffrey Essner, professor of genetics, development, and cell biology, spent her summer surrounded by fish.

Using CRISPR technology, Harzman studied the ZO-1 tight junction protein using zebrafish. ZO-1 and other tight junction proteins play an important role in blood vessel formation and maintenance by forming a seal between two endothelial cells. She tagged these cells with red fluorescent protein to better see them throughout a zebrafish’s embryo development.

Hamelynn Harzman, ’26 biology.

(Photo by Hannah Wright/Iowa State University)

“I love screening embryos for fluorescence. We typically use the green fluorescent protein to visualize the entire zebrafish vasculature,” Harzman said. “Under certain light filters, the tagged blood vessels are a beautiful bright, almost neon green. They remind me of little aliens and viewing them under the microscope always gives me a new appreciation for our planet’s unique biology.”

Luke Champion, mentored by Amanda Weinstein, associate professor of physics and astronomy, conducted research that is out of this world, literally. He’s worked on developing ways to make gamma-ray telescopes more sensitive on Earth and beyond, resulting in more accurate data.

“We are working to create a better estimation of the background noise that you get when using gamma-ray telescopes,” Champion said. “If we can estimate this background noise well, then we can subtract it from our data, which improves the sensitivity of

gamma-ray telescopes.”

Read more at LAS News: A Summer of Discovery

Staff Spotlight - Tara Prindle

Joining the University Honors Program staff in October, we'd like to welcome our new Communication Specialist, Tara Prindle. She graduated from the University of Missouri in 2021 with a Bachelor's Degree in Art with an emphasis on graphic design and journalism.

If you have anything you'd like to share with the University Honors Program, like what you've been up to after graduation, what's new with your job, or if you're doing any interesting research, reach out at [email protected].

All student grants and awards are made possible through the generous financial contributions of Honors alumni and friends like you. When you make a gift to Honors, you create opportunities, inspire innovation, and foster growth, and our students - and our world - are better for it! Consider making a gift today.

Support student research and innovation with a gift to Honors

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