First Year Dean's Scholars:
Other than first year Dean's Scholars:
As a first year student, it is my hope to make the Dean's Scholars
Council one of my first enriching experiences into university
life. I sincerely feel that by involving myself early with Council,
I will be allowed the opportunity to contribute my own ideas and
particularly the thoughts of my peers towards fostering greater
communication within the program. If allowed this unique opportunity,
I will make it a point to serve as an open liaison between the
students of Dean's Scholars and the surrounding faculty, campus
organizations, and community. I promise to do my best to work
towards making student life within the program more fulfilling
and rewarding and hope to initiate several activities which will
help Dean's Scholars better emerge themselves into campus and
community life. Far too many students live in ignorance, not knowing
what wonderful opportunities lie out there for them. I will, therefore,
make it one of goals to help make these opportunities both known
and easily accessible. By serving on Council, I sincerely believe
that I can make a difference with my ideas, diligence, commitment,
and desire. I can, therefore, only hope for this chance to help
facilitate a more personal and open communication/understanding
amongst the students, faculty, community, and scientific field
around us.
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The Dean's Scholars Program is one of the main reasons I decided
to attend the University of Texas. In my opinion, it creates a
small college atmosphere at a large state university. The program
is an elite group of intellectuals brought together not only to
learn but to associate with others who are similar in capability
and interest. There are many advantages such as registering first,
immediate respect from professors, seminars, and good friends.
Each of these is an asset of the program which I believe should
be more publicized to those who might become willing to chose
a state school or those already here looking to find people like
themselves. With a governing body and more organization, we could
possibly recruit additional talented people to the program. Also,
the talents of the persons currently enrolled in the program should
be used to benefit others, such as the University itself and select
philanthropies. Throughout high school, I learned valuable skills
that would enable me to help organize such ideas. I was a member
of my school's Student Council for all four years. I served the
students by being elected to each office and eventually was elected
President of the student body my senior year. I am very organized,
a hard worker, and willing to listen to what the actual students
want this association to become. I would like the opportunity
to put these skills to the test as a member of the Dean's Scholars
Student Association.
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I believe the goal of the Dean Scholars Students Association should
be two fold. One is to serve the Dean Scholars Students themselves.
For example, currently the freshman are assigned a buddy. As an
expansion of this idea, the association could provide assistantship
to all the students not just the freshmen. Since the association
involves a number of people, a student who needs advice or help
can turn to a variety of people, not just one person. Paralleling
the Dean's Scholar's Program, the second purpose of the association
would be to help facilitate more ways the students can give something
back to the university/community. This could be done through programs
initiated by the association or joint programs with other campus
groups. The most important thing that I have to offer to this
association is time. Because I have no other great time commitments,
I will be able to put a lot time into helping start off and working
on any projects that the association wishes to initiate.
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I am a very candid person, and this is an extremely informal brainstorm
about what I feel the new DS Council should and should not be.
. I am generally against having officers in any organization,
because members of these government bodies often give an impression
that they are above or superior to others. This is wrong. Other
times, I feel that many of these elected officials are poor leaders
because they seem to be doing it for their resumes. Again, this
is wrong. For the new government to be successful, it cannot be
an exclusive body of select Dean's Scholars who make the sole
governing decisions. That is the job of every Dean's Scholar.
Rather, it should be a body whose purpose is to bring all the
program students together so that each may make his or her own
contribution. The Council needs to be molded into a "translational"
medium through which any Dean's Scholar may express his or her
ideas. By translational , I mean implementing those ideas into
feasible activities, programs, etc. . . . Also, I believe that
in any system, the people should not have to come to the government;
the government needs to come to them. . Whenever I hold a leadership
position, I view myself not as an officer, but as a volunteer.
I merely want to donate more time to a particular organization
because I see a genuine worthiness in what that certain group
stands for. The DS Council is one of these groups. This all goes
back to my original idea on officers. We are all Dean's Scholars,
and we each have a role to play on this new organization. A good
leader is not a figure of superiority, but one who brings him
or herself to the level of everyone else. By this definition,
I am a good leader.
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I have only been at UT for a few weeks, but in this short time
I have come to enjoy our weekly meetings and the various activities
sponsored by this organization. UT seems like an awfully big place,
especially to a freshman, but the small intimate settings provided
in Dean's Scholars make it easier to get to know people who share
your own interests. From what I have seen, this is accomplished
not only through our weekly seminars but also through a variety
of activities such as intramural football and the Middle School
Enrichment Program. I believe that the organization of such activities
should be a central focus of the Dean's Scholars Student Association.
This association could concern itself with motivating Dean's Scholars
to perform community service by providing activities such as MEP
and with planning and organizing social get togethers for Dean's
Scholars. These social get togethers range from dinners to IM
sports to helping in the planning of weekend trips. The association
could also be responsible for arranging buddies for next year's
new Dean's Scholars. These are merely ideas for the association,
and I would be more than willing to listen to other people's thoughts
on what this organization should accomplish. One thing that I
could contribute to this organization would be my time. As I have
found evident in the past few weeks, I seem to have quite a bit
of time on my hands, and I feel that I could probably do something
constructive with it by being on the student board. Besides my
time, I can also offer my willingness to work and my talent for
organization. Dean's Scholars has allowed me to feel more comfortable
at UT, and I would like the opportunity to contribute my time
and effort to this program.
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My name is David Smith. I would like to stand for election to
the Dean's Scholars Student Association Council. The most important
work for this organization at this point is to get a running start.
First, we need to establish a set of rules, or precedents, for
the organization and its mother program. Also, we need to expand
the program and its number of functions and activities. As a first
year Dean's Scholar, I feel uncomfortable in the university as
a whole, yet so at ease with the Dean's Scholars. They are great
people and have an extraordinary amount of talent. I really enjoy
being able to enrich myself through this program and its members,
however I only get this opportunity about once a week. I believe
we can expand the program to encompass so much more. Being a freshman,
I have no time commitments, other than the Middle School Science
Enrichment Program, which is a Dean's Scholars activity. Thus,
I believe that I could contribute a great amount of physical work
to the organization. Also, since I am a first-year Dean's Scholar,
I have some creative insight that could develop some interesting
new activities. But most of all, I am truly excited about the
potential of this unique program, and I hope I can benefit it.
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I think that the association can be effective in working with
the faculty, community, and other students as the student representation
of the Dean's Scholars Program. It can be used to encourage programs
and develop events for DS students and to work with Dr. Cline
in attracting high caliber speakers for the program. I will bring
to the association a willingness to put in the time and effort
to make the organization effective and useful, as well as the
openness to listen to new ideas and support programs and events
that enrich DS students. I also bring to the organization experience
with working in leadership groups and coordinating with others
to arrange important and useful events.
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I, Elizabeth Weihe, would like to stand for election to the Dean's
Scholars Council. I feel that I uphold many of the principles
on which the Dean's Scholars Program was founded, and my love
for science and research grows daily. As a Dean Scholar, I would
like to become as active and committed to it as possible so that
it can benefit me as much as I plan to benefit it. Since I am
a first year member of the program, I am not sure of how exactly
to change it, but I do feel important work that the council should
address includes: delegating more responsibilities to students,
focusing on keeping members aware of current research discoveries
from around the world, as well as providing a forum for other
members to voice opinions and concerns with the program. To the
council, I would bring commitment, eagerness, and many fresh,
new ideas to enhance and possibly even improve the Dean's Scholar
Program. Once I begin something, I always try to see it through
because dedication is the underlying principle in order to make
anything successful. So, through hard work, hopefully, I can prove
as an attribute to such a council.
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Dean's Scholars is a good program with many benefits. Through
the first-year seminars, new members are introduced to science
research by a variety of different groups. After this period,
many of the benefits (and also the responsibilities) of DS dwindle.
I'd like to help get the DSSA Council started off as a forum for
ideas about how the program could improve both the giving and
taking aspects of being in DS. There are many little things that
can be done (peer advising, research guidance, book exchange,
etc.) which need guidance from active involvement from DS members
(more than 'hey that's a good idea, maybe Cline can do that')
which I think the council could do a good job of organizing.
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I conceived of the Dean's Scholars Student Association to serve
three purposes: 1) Increase the participation of individual Dean's
Scholars; 2) Increase the visibility of the program on campus;
and 3) Provide a structure and a self-government to the program,
which is in the process of doubling in size. Basically, the DSSA
can be a powerful mechanism for accomplishing things which would
be too difficult for one or two students to accomplish by themselves.
Since we will be a coalition of 150 of the smartest science students
on campus, we will be a powerful campus organization. In conjunction
with other campus organizations, like the Natural Sciences Council,
we could accomplish even more. Since I have a lot of time and
effort already invested in the program just to get it off the
ground, I am very interested in seeing it succeed. I think it
can, and I'd like to help. With some work we can get this thing
running soon, and we can actually do something rather than just
talk about it.
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I'd like to represent the people in my seminar in the Dean's Scholars
committee. I want to help get the DSers organized so we can all
live in peace and harmony with our brothers and sisters.
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Dean's Scholars is more than a group of talented young people
with an active interest in science. We are a group with a forward
attitude dedicated to enriching our lives and the lives of others
through the active pursuit and application of science, while having
a little fun. To that end, the Dean's Scholars Council should
consist of students possessed of such a mind. I wish to be a
part of the council so that I may help to realize this purpose.
I will use my skills to help provide leadership and an organized
structure through which all of the Dean's Scholars auxiliary programs
(Science Fun Day, DSSMEP, Science Olympiad, etc) can operate and
enrich the social side of Dean's Scholars, as well.
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I'm a third-year Dean's Scholar. I love program, and I'm very
interested in making sure that it continues and prospers. If elected,
you can be sure that I will be an extremely committed and involved
representative.
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I would like to be on the Dean's Scholar's Student Association
Council because I would like to have a hand in making DS a more
service oriented organization. I'd like to help find ways to encourage
(not force) all DS to participate and give back more to the program.
I think this could best be done if DSSA offers DS with opportunities
that they would truly like to participate in.
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The purpose of the DSSA is to get more Deans Scholars involved.
My ideas for the best way to do that: -arrange more volunteer
activities other than MSEP- maybe those concerning health-related
fields since Im guessing a large percentage of DS are premeds.
-set up better advising. Emphasis on freshman, but for upperclassman
as well. Maybe compile a booklet about professors, classes to
take, etc.- seeing as how a lot of us take the same classes..
Included in this might be matching students with professors- however,
I personally think that that's largely an individual responsibility.
-have students get involved in the administrative aspects of DS-
like recruitment -Look into possible new trip sites, and come
up with some ideas for socials. Personally- I think camping would
be fun.. If we didn't want to- we wouldn't even have to set it
up- rec sports has pre-arranged programs.. What I have to offer-
I have a few years of past leadership experience in various organizations,
and I'm not afraid to voice my opinion. Also- time. I'm not technically
involved in any other organizations and I would like to be.. Thus
far most of the ones I've tried have seemed pretty impersonal-
this is a smaller group of people with closer interests- has the
potential not to be like that.
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My name is Justin Lee and I am a second year Dean Scholar. I am
running for the Student Association, because I feel that Dean
Scholars is and a great program with a tremendous amount of potential.
The program should be continually expanding, not only by accepting
more people, but by increasing our involvement with the university
as well as the Austin community. A few dedicated individuals could
really make this program run much more smoothly. To become a truly
well-known and respected organization, we really must earn it.
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I would like to help begin the Dean's Scholars Student Council.
I feel that the council will be a good way to organize the current
program and to promote the involvement of first year Dean's Scholars.
Particularly, I am interested in the recruitment of new Dean's
Scholars because I feel that although we are a very successful
program, many talented high school students do not know of our
program. As a member of the council, I would like to take on the
task of recruitment of new students into our program in these
next few years of expansion.
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I'd like to become involved in the Dean's Scholars Student Association
for several reasons. I'd like to promote a higher level of participation
among Dean's Scholars through both academic, community, and social
events. Although there are many Dean's Scholars, only a small
portion actively participate in the program. I would like to start
things such as workshops for summer programs, internships, and
research opportunities. In addition, I'd like to get more people
involved in ongoing projects such as the Enrichment program and
Science Fun Day. I'd also like to organize more social events
such as hiking through Enchanted Rock, a day at Lake Travis, or
a camping trip of some sort. It be really great to give Dean's
Scholars more opportunities to hang out and get to know each other
better. Anyhow, these are just some of the types of idea that
I have.
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What do I see as important? Well, I'm sure you've noticed in the
past three years that I get less than thrilled with people in
this organization who use the program as resume filler and nothing
more (ie. those people in my class, .for example, whom I haven't
seen since my freshman year). So finding ways to get people active
in the program is something I'd like to focus on. I also think
we've had some success getting science exposed to "general
population" through events like Science Fun Day and so forth,
so I could see us trying to expand on something like that. Given
that I've thought about this for about 17 seconds today, I'm sure
I could come up with some more ideas in the future. I'd like to
see what other people have to say, because to be honest, I'm a
little unclear as to what the focus and intent of this association
is going to be. What do I have to offer? 1) Responsibility. And
more importantly, 2) Being that there are so many new faces in
the program, and I feel more like an old veteran every day, I
feel like I can lead quietly, by example.
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I'm interested in the direction of the program. I would like to
see that the student association get off to a strong start. There
are several things it should accomplish -- better organization
of the enrichment program, orientation events, help with reviewing
applications, and particularly OVERALL STUDENT INVOLVEMENT.
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I am Missy Reynolds, a second year Dean's Scholar and I would
like to hold a position in DSSA. I feel Dean's Scholars is a great
opportunity for intelligent students in the college of Natural
Sciences, and I see that we as a group can offer a lot to ourselves
to help in our present success and our future success. I would
like to see Dean's Scholars grow more than just in size, and I
would like to be a part of this growth.
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If elected, i would like to work with the other officers to plan
outings, like a camping trip etc, which would be a fun way for
us all to spend time together and get to know each other. I think
an important function of this association is to bring together
DS's who obviously share a lot of things in common. It would be
a good way to get more participants into our activities, like
the middle school program, science funday, IM sports and hopefully
some new activities thereby increasing our productivity. I would
really like to help organize all these events, get people in the
program to work closer together, get more done and have a lot
more fun.
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The Dean's Scholars program has enriched my academic and social
life at UT, and it's now my turn to give something back to the
program. I don't have an agenda, but I do have a sincere desire
to make Dean's Scholars a stronger organization through increased
student involvement, and I will dedicate my time and energy to
this goal.
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A peer advising system within Dean's scholars would be a very useful
service the committe might provide. I know that advising in the chemistry
department is sporadic at best, so having someone older in your major to
give advice would be very helpful.
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Hello, my name is Roni Talukdar and I'm a third year Dean's Scholar.
I believe the goal of the student organization should be to expand
the role of the program, both in the university and in the community.
There are a variety of ways to achieve this expansion; most depend
on student participation to succeed. If voted in, I hope to provide
a more structured framework for DS activities and also to increase
the scope of activities available. I've helped with the Dean's
Scholar's Middle School Enrichment program, Science Fun day, the
Icebreakers, and a few more activities so I feel that my experience
will be helpful for the program. If you feel I can help the program,
please vote for me for the DSSA council.
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