NexPoint Tower Scholars Receive Top Honors and Awards

As we conclude the 2023-2024 academic year, the NexPoint Tower Scholars have exhibited immense resilience and determination to achieve remarkable goals in their respective endeavors. Being a member of the SMU Tower Scholars Program does not restrict oneself to a specific craft, and our scholars have displayed exactly that by receiving awards in various industries. From industry-specific awards to state-level awards and even national awards, we want to acknowledge and congratulate all of the fantastic achievements of the Tower Scholars for the 2023-2024 academic year!

National and State Award Recognition:

E.J. Rorem ’24

    • Critical Language Scholarship for Persian
    • Boren Scholarship

Anish Senthilkumar ‘24

    • Critical Language Scholarship and Boren Scholarship for Hindi

Zahra Anam Chowdhury ‘26

    • Critical Language Scholarship for Arabic, Alternate

Zoe Mukendi ‘26

    • Texas Society of Professional Engineers Student of the Year

Shriya Siddhartha ’26

    • Barry Goldwater Scholarship

Pictured AT THE HONORS CONVOCATION [from left to right] Anish Senthilkumar ’25, Alexandra Pugh ’25, Shriya Siddhartha ’26, E.J. Rorem ’24, Samuel Rodick ’26
Hilltop Excellence Awards:

  • Abby Herrera ‘24
    • SMU’s most prestigious, “M” Award
Abby Herrera ’24 receives SMU’s “M” Award, presented by Vice President for Student Affairs, Dr. KC Mmeje and President R. Gerald Turner

Honors Convocation Awards:

Hala Arnouk ‘25

    • Phi Beta Kappa
    • Beta Gamma Sigma
    • Mortar Board
    • Robert Stewart Hyer Society

Zahra Anam Chowdhury ‘26

    • Philip H. Soloman Award in World Languages and Literatures: Arabic Alternate, Critical Language Scholarship for Arabic

Lillian Grace Derr ‘24

    • Arnold Fund Dennis M. Simon Award for Academic Excellence
    • Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholar
    • John Robert McCaw Merit Award in Mathematics
    • Phi Beta Kappa
    • Alpha Chi
    • University Honors Program
    • 2024 Outstanding Female Senior Award, Dedman Nominee, SMU Mothers’ and Dads’ Club

Princess Igwe-Icho ‘25

    • Ann Early Award in Women’s Studies
    • Betty Janette Maynard Award for Excellent Scholarship in Women’s and Gender Studies
    • Robert Mayer Undergraduate Research Fellow

Reece Davis Iriye ‘24

    • Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholar
    • John Robert McCaw Merit Award in Mathematics
    • Phi Beta Kappa
    • University Honors Program

Zoe Mukendi ‘26

    • Texas Society of Professional Engineers Student of the Year

Hayden Grace Ovanes ‘24

    • University Honors Program

Alexandra Rachel Pugh ‘25

    • Robert Steward Hyer Society

Samuel Lopes Rodick ‘26

    • The McLamore Family Foundation Scholarship in Classical Studies

Erik Jahveed Rorem ‘24

    • Phi Betta Kappa
    • Critical Language Scholarship for Persian
    • University Honors Program
    • 2024 Outstanding Male Senior Award, SMU Mothers’ and Dads’ Club

Shriya Siddhartha ‘26

    • Hamilton Undergraduate Research Scholar
    • Goldwater Scholarship

Anish Senthilkumar ‘25

    • Critical Language Scholarship for Hindi
    • Big iDeas Pitch Contest Winner for ActiveMind, spring ’24

Nrithi Subramanian ’25

    • Big iDeas Pitch Contest Winner for Mantra & Co, fall ’23

Emory Grace Woodruff ‘25

    • Robert Mayer Undergraduate Research Fellow
    • Beta Gamma Sigma
SMU TOWER SCHOLARS PROGRAM GRADUATES at the Honors Convocation [FROM LEFT TO RIGHT] Lillian Derr ’24, Alexandra Pugh ’25, Reese Iryie ’24, E.J. Rorem ’24