Congratulations to the nearly 100 Milwaukee School of Engineering students who were nominated for leadership awards this year. The following awards were announced at a Student Awards Celebration on May 8, 2023.  

Outstanding Student Award
Anna DeBruine was chosen as the 2023 recipient of the Fred F. Loock Outstanding Student Award. This award is presented annually to the MSOE senior student, who, in the opinion of the faculty, most notably combines an excellent academic record and has at the same time demonstrated leadership and professional bearing in extracurricular or community service activities. It is the most prestigious student testimonial that MSOE bestows. DeBruine will graduate on May 27 with a bachelor’s degree in biomolecular engineering from MSOE.  

DeBruine is a dedicated leader at MSOE, participating in a variety of groups across campus. She is the president of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, a current member and former recording secretary for Tau Beta Pi, president of Health Occupations Students of America, president of Circle K and vice president of German Club. She also is an academic tutor in the Raider Center for Academic Success and a University Honors Scholar. In addition to her extracurriculars, she advanced her biomolecular engineering skillsets through several research programs. She served as an undergraduate researcher for the MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, a research assistant through MSOE’s REU program, and is a CREST (Connecting Researchers, Educators and Students) leader for the Center for BioMolecular Modeling. Her work was featured in papers published in peer-reviewed journals. She is originally from Bloomington, Illinois and will be attending the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in the fall to pursue her Ph.D. in Basic Biomedical Sciences with a focus on cancer biology.  

High Honor Awards
Student Employee of the Year: Emily Runey, nursing, Charleston, S.C.
Female Senior Scholar Athlete: McKayla Zastrow, women’s soccer, biomolecular engineering, De Pere, Wis.
Male Senior Scholar Athlete: Joseph Teschke, baseball, computer engineering, McHenry, Ill.
Female Senior Athlete of the Year: Elizabeth Mikkelson, women’s track and field, biomedical engineering, Brooklyn, Wis.
Male Senior Athlete of the Year: Matt Hanewall, men’s hockey, construction management, Lombard, Ill.
Daniel E. Sahs Memorial Award for Service: Ryan Nickel, biomolecular engineering, Rock Island, Ill.
Thomas W. Davis Student Leadership: Benjamin Paulson, computer science, Mosinee, Wis.
Diversity and Inclusion Student Advocate Award: Jie Yun (Wendy) Guan, mechanical engineering, Taipei, Taiwan
Aimei Nie Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Student Champion: Riley Hornilla, civil engineering, Downers Grove, Ill.

Academic Awards
Nursing Leadership Award: Edward Tseng, nursing, Torrance, Calif.
Vincent Canino Outstanding Biomedical Engineering Seniors: Amber Rothe, biomedical engineering, Brookfield, Wis.; Stephen Scripp, biomedical engineering, Green Bay, Wis.

Non-Academic Awards
Fraternity and Sorority Life Member of the Year: Alexander Tofan, nursing, Andover, Conn.; Zachary Heron, architectural engineering, Germantown, Wis.

Faculty and Staff Awards
Fraternity and Sorority Life Advocate of the Year: Alexa Deacon, director of campus life, Campus Life
Student Advocate: Dr. Joshua Mitchell, dean of residence life, Residence Life
Diversity and Inclusion Advocate: Dr. Lisa Jurgens, instructor, Physics and Chemistry

Northwestern Mutual Outstanding Actuarial Science Students
Thanks to the generosity of Northwestern Mutual, nine actuarial science students were awarded $200 checks for passing at least one of their professional exams during the 2022-23 academic year.
Adam Shaw, actuarial science, Minooka, Ill. Cole Ninmann, actuarial science, Oconomowoc, Wis.
Gabrielle Haensgen, actuarial science, Germantown, Wis.
Jackson VanLue, actuarial science, Brookfield, Wis.
Kyle Fluegel, actuarial science, Hales Corners, Wis.
Michael Smith, actuarial science, Appleton, Wis.
Tripp White, actuarial science, West Bend, Wis.
William Klitzke, actuarial science, Brookfield, Wis.

University Innovation Fellows Pinning
Bansari Modi, civil engineering, Greenfield, Wis.
James Siedschlag, mechanical engineering, Manitowoc, Wis.
Benjamin Paulson, computer science, Mosinee, Wis.
Asher Sprigler, computer engineering, Cedarburg, Wis.

Civil and Architectural Engineering and Construction Management
The following students, faculty, alumni and industry partners were celebrated at the annual CAECM banquet.
Bill Nash Award (outstanding first-year student): Joey Estrada, civil engineering, Cherry Valley, Calif.
Matthew W. Fuchs Award (outstanding fourth-year students): Chelsea Vu, construction management, Milwaukee
Faculty Appreciation Award (selected by students): Mitzi Dobersek, associate professor
Alumni Partnership Appreciation Awardee: Corey Powers ’08
Industry Partnership Appreciation Awardee: CSD Structural Engineers