Mikaila Smith is a Plan II senior with concentrations in international affairs and Chinese from Sydney, Australia, by way of Austin, Texas. She has been named a 2017 Rhodes scholar, which will provide for her to pursue a Master of Science degree in refugee and forced migration studies, followed by a Master of Science degree in […]
Q&As
Testing the Waters
Bailey Anderson is a geography and the environment alumna from Bowie, Texas. She is the recipient of a 2017 British Marshall scholarship, which will fund her pursuit of a Master of Philosophy in geography: water science, policy and management at the University of Oxford. Anderson has also been awarded the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration […]
People, Places and Pages of Influence
The Pro Bene Meritis award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts. Since 1984, the annual award has been given to alumni, faculty members and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic pursuits or have participated in service related […]
Helping Students Set Sail
The Pro Bene Meritis award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts. Since 1984, the annual award has been given to alumni, faculty members and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic pursuits or have participated in service related […]
A Stand Up Longhorn
The Pro Bene Meritis award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts. Since 1984, the annual award has been given to alumni, faculty members and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic pursuits or have participated in service related […]
Bright Futures: Q&A with the 2016-17 Larry Temple Scholars
Each year, the Larry Temple Scholarship recognizes two students in the College of Liberal Arts with superior academic merit. First awarded in 1992, the scholarship honors Austin lawyer and public servant Larry Eugene Temple. Temple, a champion of higher education, graduated with a bachelor’s degree from UT Austin in 1957 and received his law degree from […]
An Education for Life
Michael Stoff was raised in Merrick, New York, and was the first in his family to graduate from college. He received a bachelor’s in history and American studies from Rutgers College, and a master’s of philosophy in history and doctorate of philosophy in history from Yale University. He has taught at UT Austin for 36 […]
Humanists Make Great Doctors
Dr. Kimberly Monday is a Plan II alumna, the 1988 Texas Parents Association’s Outstanding Female Student and a Dean’s Distinguished Graduate from Huntsville, Texas. She attended Baylor College of Medicine and completed her neurological residency there before taking a fellowship at Emory University. She is the owner of the Houston Neurological Institute and president of […]
No Stone Unturned
Zachary Stone is a Plan II senior from Dallas, Texas. He has served as the chief justice of UT Austin’s Student Government, been published in the Sunday edition of The New York Times and will be attending the UT Austin School of Law on a Massey Scholarship, the school’s top merit award. Why Plan II? […]
Living The Examined Life
The Pro Bene Meritis award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. Since 1984, the annual award has been given to alumni, faculty members and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic […]
Teaching An Understandable World
The Pro Bene Meritis award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. Since 1984, the annual award has been given to alumni, faculty members and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic […]
Leading His Longhorn Family
The Pro Bene Meritis award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. Since 1984, the annual award has been given to alumni, faculty members and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic […]
A Q&A with English Alumna Ashley Hope Pérez, Author of ‘Out of Darkness’
In March 1937 a gas leak caused a massive explosion that killed almost 300 children and teachers at a school in New London, Texas. Amidst the backdrop of this catastrophic event, a Mexican-American girl falls in love with a Black boy in a segregated oil town. In a town where store signs mandate “No Negroes, […]
Diagnosing Disease Faster: Q&A with Courtney Koepke
Courtney Koepke is a Plan II Honors and biomedical engineering junior from Austin, Texas. She works as an undergraduate research assistant at UT Austin’s Laboratory of Biomaterials, Drug Delivery and Bionanotechnology. What made you want to be a research assistant? As a freshman entering college, I didn’t know much about research or understand the important […]
Promoting National Security: Q&A With Mark Jbeily
Mark Jbeily is a Plan II Honors and Naval ROTC senior from Austin, Texas. He is a recipient of the 2015 British Marshall scholarship, which will fund his pursuit of a Master of Philosophy in international relations at the University of Oxford. Jbeily is also a Naval ROTC battalion commander, a Bill Archer fellow and […]
Fighting the World’s Fight: Q&A with Sai Gourisankar
Sai Gourisankar is a Plan II Honors and chemical engineering senior from Fort Worth, Texas. He is a recipient of the 2015 Rhodes scholarship, as well as being a Dedman distinguished scholar, a Goldwater scholar and an Astronaut Foundation scholar. What does winning a Rhodes scholarship mean to you? It enables me to study at […]
Liberal Arts Refugee Alliance Introduces New Residents to Austin: Q&A with Founding Member Sarah Fischer
Sarah Fischer is an international relations & global studies and journalism sophomore from Mechanicsville, Maryland. She is a founding member of the Liberal Arts Refugee Alliance, which started last spring with grant from the Liberal Arts Honors program. How did the Liberal Arts Refugee Alliance come about? Last Spring, I attended a volunteer orientation at […]
Judy Perkins on Finding Joy in Life and Learning
The Pro Bene Meritis Award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. First granted in 1984, it is given each spring to alumni, faculty and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic […]
Creating Your Own Noble Purpose
The Pro Bene Meritis Award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. First granted in 1984, it is given each spring to alumni, faculty and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic […]
Inspiring Lifetime Readers
The Pro Bene Meritis Award is the highest honor bestowed by the College of Liberal Arts at The University of Texas at Austin. First granted in 1984, it is given each spring to alumni, faculty and friends of the college who are committed to the liberal arts, have made outstanding contributions in professional or philanthropic […]
Executive Session: Q&A with Student Body President Kori Rady
The College of Liberal Arts is no stranger to student body presidents—in the past 20 years, only two presidents of the University of Texas Student Government weren’t students in the college. Studying the liberal arts has a way of shaping leaders. UTSG’s 2014-15 president is Kornel “Kori” Rady, a government and corporate communication major from Houston, […]
Q&A with Ecosickness Author Heather Houser
Take a look at your surroundings. Are you sitting in a climate-controlled office next to a window overlooking a sea of traffic? Or are you skimming this article on a porch swing underneath a shady oak tree? Whether you’re surrounded by wide open spaces or a concrete jungle, your environment is significantly affecting your emotional […]
Q&A with Beth Mooney
Banking on Liberal Arts Beth Mooney, History ’77, is the chairman and CEO of KeyCorp, making her the first female chief of a top 20 U.S. bank. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, she oversees more than 15,000 employees and $91 billion in assets. She has been named one of the most powerful women in banking by […]
Q&A with Chris Barton
Keeping It Real Chris Barton, History ’93, is an award-winning, bestselling children’s author of Shark Vs. Train, The Day-Glo Brothers and Can I See Your I.D.? He lives in Austin with his wife, Jennifer, and their four children. Who are your favorite authors?Aside from the one I’m married to—Jennifer Ziegler, who writes novels for young readers—the authors that come […]
Q&A with Christina Melton Crain
Reducing Recidivism Christina Melton Crain, Government ’88, is president and CEO of DOORS, a reentry advocacy nonprofit based in Dallas that focuses on reducing recidivism (repeat offending). She is the only woman ever to have served as the chairman of the Texas Board of Criminal Justice. Crain has practiced law for more than 20 years, […]