Salma Waheed is a senior majoring in biology with a minor in public health. She hopes to graduate in May 2025 with her bachelor's degree.
Salma's interest in biology began in high school when she realized that she had a natural interest and talent for the subject which would help her pursue a medical career. It wasn't until her sophomore year that she added the public health minor after solidifying her interest in healthcare, and her desire to learn more about the healthcare system. This path has widened her understanding of America's healthcare system, which is essential for any future medical professional.
While her academic path is impressive, Salma's campus and honors program involvement has set her apart from her peers. Salma has kept busy with campus organizations throughout her years at OU. She is a member of the OU policy debate team, which is a cross-examination-style policy debate team typically comprised of 6-12 members. Cross-examination is a type of debate where teams of two advocate for a specific topic. As part of the team, Salma has had the opportunity to travel across the country and debate other teams on topics like monopolies, personhood, and nuclear weapons.
She is also Vice Chair of operations for Miracle Mindsets, an early outreach program serving first-generation/low-income students across the state. They strive to bridge the gap between these communities and a fruitful college experience by providing educational resources, information, infrastructure, and encouragement needed to be successful in school and beyond. Salma joined the organization her freshman year through this program. She has set up mentorship conferences that welcome these communities into a community of students, mentors, educators, and administrators who make up this equitable educational outreach program.
Apart from this work, Salma is also a Gender and Equality Center peer educator, a position that allows her to conduct various workshops associated with the Gender and Equality Center such as The Consenting Conversation, and #RelationshipGoals. One of these workshops was what initially attracted Salma to the role. She was very impressed with the way that students and teachers alike were engaged in educating themselves on issues that are so prevalent in society today. As of today, Salma has educated students at Camp Crimson, the Consent Bar, and Boundaries.
Salma has been just as active in the Honors College as she is outside of it. She has taken full advantage of the undergraduate research opportunities that we have to offer. Her first foray into research was taking part in the FYRE program her freshman year, a program that is open to new Honors College students. These students participate in active laboratory research each week and then give a poster presentation to present their work at the end of the spring semester. Salma is still working with the same microbiology lab she worked in as a freshman! Since beginning her research in the FYRE program, she has also received funding through UROP (Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program) and later presented at the Honors College sponsored event, Undergraduate Research Day, which is held every April.
Not only has Salma done research herself, but last year she was a part of the editorial board for The Undergraduate Research Journal where she reviewed research papers on subjects like microbiology, music theory, and feminist literature. One of her favorite memories at OU came from this work where she and her cohorts made the final selections for the journal and later celebrated with Insomnia Cookies.
Of this and the other honors research programs she says, "The Honors College opportunities gave me indispensable research experience that I know will help me in my future career."
While Salma isn't gearing up for graduation just yet, she already has some words of wisdom for new honors students strongly advising them to take full advantage of the Honors College opportunities — whether that's research, interesting classes, or even free food at a community event. She says, "The Honors College has so many useful programs that can really help you build skills for the world after you graduate."
Salma plans to attend medical school to become a doctor in family medicine.
Chaani is a graduating senior earning a degree in both mechanical engineering and studio art. For Chaani, pursuing a double major was a natural compromise to pursue his two passions. And although to many it looks like an unlikely pair, Mr. Rao has managed to entangle them to form his ideal career.
Mr. Rao has been a part of the Honors College for a couple of years now and has made the most of his time by participating in the college's informal groups and presenting his undergraduate research at Undergraduate Research Day. One of his favorite parts of his Honors experience, however, has been the diverse course list that Honors has to offer. He says, "Being an honors student has given me access to courses across a wide variety of disciplines that I would not have been able to explore otherwise. Each one was an escape from my 'normal' coursework, and I have never had an Honors class that was boring even when the subject matter was entirely out of my comfort zone." He continues to say that the Honors College faculty are incredibly invested in the success of their students. He credits the Honors College with broadening his viewpoint and education during his undergraduate career.
During his time at OU, Chaani has managed to carve out a niche for himself on campus by his participation in various programs and organizations. Regarding campus organizations, he is currently a mentor in the Engineering Pathways Mentorship Program at the Gallogly College of Engineering, the Chair of the LGBTQ+ Mentorship Program, a Peer Educator at the Gender and Equality Center, and a member of the Print Club.
He first joined the Engineering Pathways mentorship program after learning about it through a friend and has been a mentor to engineering freshmen for the last two fall semesters, a role that he finds very rewarding. Of the experience he adds, "it also gives me a lot of perspectives on how much growing I've done since I was a freshman, and I like sharing the do's and don'ts I've figured out over the years!"
When speaking to Chaani, it is clear to see that the work he is most proud of is the work he does at the Gender and Equality Center. He is both a program chair for the programs advisory board and a peer educator. HIs position on the board has led him to head the Queer Tours program this fall. The program is a welcome event for freshmen to direct them to campus resources with a focus on information and spaces specifically applicable to the queer community. For many LGBTQ+ student artists and a creative writing workshop. Part of his work as a peer educator is conducting workshops at campus events like Camp Crimson centering on important issues like consent and ending sexual violence on campus. Although the subjects are quite heavy, the positive feedback from participants makes it all worthwhile. Mr. Rao has been able to do so much good at the GEC and he will be sorely missed after he graduates in May.
After graduating this spring, Chaani will work at Siemens in Atlanta, Georgia, as part of their 2-year Technical Marketing Leadership Development Program. He previously worked as a summer intern for the company. He also hopes to pursue an MBA after the rotational program to get into engineering project management. He plans on continuing to pursue his own artistic career as well.
When asked what advice he has for future students he says, "Don't treat college as just a transitional stage/means to an end. If you open yourself to the experiences available here, you can build incredibly impactful relationships, and learn a lot about yourself, your passions, and priorities in life." He continues by saying, "don't be afraid to invite change when opportunities come your way because I promise that the next 4+ years you spent at OU will be lifechanging, and probably a lot different from what you expected!"
The Religious Studies and Anthropology double major Lauren Gastineau will be graduating in just one month's time. She began her college career as an Anthropology major. Through Dr. Rangar Cline, she was introduced to the Religious Studies department. Her studies have pushed her critical thinking skills and understanding of their cultures.
Lauren had the opportunity to study abroad in Italy this past summer. Along with Classics professors Dr. Sue Alcock, Dr. Joey Williams and a field crew, Lauren took part in an archaelogical excavation in Ficulle, Italy. The team worked in the hot Italian sun to begin excavation on what is theorized to be an ancient Roman villa. This experience gave her hands-on experience in her field of study while also giving her memories to last a lifetime.
During her time as an honors student, Lauren has taken advantage of the academic aspect and has turned many of her honors professors into mentors who have supported her, especially now that she is looking into potential career options. Last year she also became a published author in The Honors Undergraduate Research Journal, a recognition that came with a $200 prize. The paper published was a research paper titled "The Circle of Pomegranate: Finding Religious Syncretism Through Fruit." The paper did double duty as her Honors Thesis.
Her favorite memory in the Honors College happened during her sophomore year she took Dr. Julie Ehrhardt's Food and Culture course. In the class, students worked together to grow a small herb garden, and in the end, Dr. Ehrhardt taught them to make homemade salad dressing. Since taking the course, both her gardeining skills and food system knowledge have expanded.
Some of her most extensive work as an undergraduate has been with the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History, where she has served as both a volunteer and a student worker for the past few years. At the museum, she works as the NAGPRA collections assistant (Native American Graves Protection and Repatrition Act). NAGPRA provides a process for museums that receive federal funds to repatriate or transfer from their collections certain Native American cultural items such as human remains, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony.
On campus, Lauren was a part of the Panhellenic Council, Kappa Alpha Theta chapter. Through Greek life, she has been able to help organize several events to benefit the local CASA branch. CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) is a nonprofit aimed at improving the lives of children in the Oklahoma foster care system. Some of the events are an annual 5k run, a pancake party, Cookies for CASA, and Kats and Dogs. All of these events raised funds for the organization.
Lauren's future includes applying to master's programs, mostly in the areas of Near Eastern Archaeology and Religion. In five years, she hopes to be enrolled in a doctoral program working toward a career in academia.
