Big opportunities spark even bigger dreams
Nearly 12,000 students will make their mark on the Hilltop this year. They come from all walks of life and all parts of the globe, ready to learn, create and become game changers in whatever they are passionate about.
Students who are big on research, like Roxana Farokhnia ’20, will work on solutions to complex challenges. Others, such as Greg Guggenmos ’18, will see a problem in the community and devise a big improvement. Still others, like Neha Husein ’19, will transform their big ideas into tangible results.
Read on to find out how these three students band together with faculty mentors and other Mustangs to make the world a better place.
Roxana describes herself as “a Mustang who wants to save lives one day.” The SMU junior hails from McKinney, Texas, and is a double major in biology and health and society. With the support of amazing faculty mentors and SMU scholarships, she’s heading back to the lab this fall to continue her work on chemotherapeutics to help cancer patients. Read more and watch her video.
Greg created a community bail fund to keep poor people accused of minor crimes from languishing in jail. Financial awards from SMU’s Engaged Learning and Big iDeas covered field research and startup costs. This fall, the Plano, Texas, native will complete his bachelor’s degree in statistical science while continuing to grow the fund. Read more.
Neha, a senior majoring in marketing and human rights, turned a car crash with a texting driver into inspiration for Just Drive. Thanks to donors to the SMU Fund and the Engaged Learning program, she was able to bring her idea for a rewards-based app to life and earn an invitation to the SXSW Launch Institute. Neha will continue to build incentive partnerships for the app this fall. Read more.
