Vice provost Mary Sánchez Lanier, distinguished scholar Jacob Buursma, and director April Seehafer pose for a celebratory photo in front of the Distinguished Scholars gallery wall in the CUB.
Annual Events

Distinguished Scholars Celebration

Distinguished Scholarships > Annual Events > Distinguished Scholars Celebration

At the annual Distinguished Scholars Celebration, we gather in the Compton Union Building at the WSU Distinguished Scholars Gallery to celebrate the latest group of exceptional WSU students who have applied for and received top, nationally competitive distinguished scholarships.

This fall event celebrates all WSU students who received a distinguished scholarship over the course of the past year. Each awardee is recognized and given a unique WSU Distinguished Scholar medallion. The names of all awardees are included on the informational, permanent posters on the walls of the Gallery.

The Distinguished Scholarship Opportunity Fund has helped prospective distinguished scholarship awardees such as these to fortify their eligibility for prestigious, nationally competitive awards. The support has helped them secure tutoring, travel, and supplementary experiences, for example.

Support the Distinguished Scholarship Opportunity Fund

New Distinguished Scholars Recognized at the 2025 Distinguished Scholars Celebration

  • Goldwater
    • Joan Castaneda Gonzalez
      Biochemistry & Chemistry (Honors)
    • Eva Rickard
      Data Analytics (Honors)
  • Gilman
    • Josiah Aldave
      Business Administration
      United Kingdom
    • Aarya Bajaj
      Biology (Honors)
      United Kingdom
    • Natalie Bjerke
      Zoology (Honors)
      Costa Rica
    • Faith Carratalie
      Entrepreneurship
      Ireland, United Kingdom
    • Lanay Chuckulnaskit
      Pre-Nursing
      Spain, Portugal
    • Claire Claeson
      Foreign Languages & Cultures
      France
    • Alainn Fitzgerald
      Psychology
      Ireland
    • Leisly Hernandez Alvarado
      Agricultural Biotechnology
      Spain, Portugal
    • Brenda Julian Pascual
      Marketing
      Spain, Portugal
    • Kayla Martin
      Pre-Nursing
      Ghana
    • Andrew Nolan
      Digital Technology & Culture
      Germany
    • Daniel Purdy
      Computer Science, WSU Tri-Cities
      Spain, Portugal
    • Meredith Sanders
      Business Administration
      Finland
    • Lika Tanaka
      Digital Technology & Culture, WSU Vancouver
      Japan
  • NSF GRFP
    • John Bussey
      Materials Research-Ceramics (Honors)
    • Natalie Charbonneau
      Geosciences-Marine Biology
    • Suzanne Gelston
      Chemical Engineering (Honors)
  • Fulbright U.S. Student Program
    • Nikki Delgado
      Doctor of Medicine, WSU Spokane
      Philippines
    • Hollen Foster-Grahler
      Foreign Languages & Cultures (Honors)
      Spain
    • Marwa Mahmoud
      Environmental Sciences
      New Zealand
    • Sydney Smith
      Political Science
      European Union
Mary Sánchez Lanier makes an amusing statement as April Seehafer and Jacob listen and laugh in response.
Assistant Vice Provost Mary Sánchez Lanier (left), Director April Seehafer (center), and 2023 Goldwater recipient Jacob Buursma (right) catch up with each other after the celebration.

The first Distinguished Scholars Celebration was held in 2014 and coincided with the dedication of the WSU Distinguished Scholars Gallery. The gallery commemorates the university’s numerous past recipients of distinguished scholarships.