The Honors Program is made up of talented, hardworking, and energetic students. They are engaged - not only in their academic life, but in their communities as well. Featured below are some of those students.
Student Spotlight
Maciej Piwowarczyk
April 2018 
Maciej Piwowarczyk is a sophomore majoring in Mathematics with a concentration in Pure Mathematics and a minor in History. He commutes every day from his home out in the western suburb of Willow Springs. Maciej currently serves as the President of Honors Student Government after serving as Social Chair in his freshman year and as Vice President earlier in his sophomore year in addition to working as a student assistant in the Honors Program office. Outside of the Honors Program, he is also training to be a CQM after spending the previous summer as an Orientation Leader. He has also participated in the Vincentian Heritage Tour to Paris in the Spring of 2018 and is excited to continue his Vincentian journey at DePaul and in the Honors Program.
Jade Ryerson
September, 2017Jade Ryerson recently won first place in the Honors Program Essay Contest. Her winning essay addressed the Honors Program theme for the 2017-2018 academic year: "Rise Up!" See her winning essay
here. Jade is a freshman student from Bridgeview, Illinois, one of Chicago's southwest suburbs. She is majoring in political science and has a great interest in history as well as the Arabic language, hoping to work in international relations. Jade has a passion for reading and loves to learn, first being drawn to writing in high school as her yearbook's editor-in-chief. She has also been recognized at the Illinois High School Association Journalism State Finals for headline writing. Jade intends to become involved in Honors Student Government and write for the Honors newsletter, Honorable Mentions, and hopes to pursue social justice causes here at DePaul.
Sofea Lee
Sofea Lee is a sophomore majoring in Accountancy (Strobel Honors Program), with minors in Economics and International Business. She hails from Penang, Malaysia. Sofea currently serves as the Service Co-chair of the Honors Student Government and works as a student assistant in the Honors Program Office. She is also the treasurer of Ascend, a pan-Asian accounting organization on campus. She fuses her dual interests in business and community service by working with a local nonprofit organization offering free tax preparation and financial coaching. She is always seeking ways to seize the opportunities offered throughout Chicago, and she looks forward to participating in the humanities-centric Newberry Library seminar in winter and spring 2017. When she isn’t trying to squeeze in gym time in her schedule, you can find Sofea stealing away to play the piano at the Harold Washington Library.
Sydney Begerowski
Sydney Begerowski
recently won first place in the Honors Program's Essay Contest.
Her winning essay addressed the Honors Program theme for the 2016-2017 academic year:
"What must be done?" See her winning essay
here.
Sy
dney is a freshman from the small town of New Baltimore, Michigan. She attended an International Baccalaureate high school, where she found her passion in becoming an active participant in the global community. In order to develop this further, she is majoring in Business Management with an intended minor in International Studies. She plans to pursue a career in the Non-Profit world, raising her passion to a profession and thus developing a lifestyle that advocates for the equality and justice of all individuals. In her spare time, she enjoys participating in theater organizations on campus. Sydney loves to partake in urban explorations as she discovers the infinite opportunities that the city of Chicago holds for her.
September 16, 2016Tom Rietz
Tom Rietz is a junior, majoring in Political Science and Economics. He is originally from Plainfield, Illinois. He is serving as this year's Honors Student Government President, as well as a Resident Assistant for Student Housing. He has been an active leader on campus as a part of the DePaul College Democrats. Tom feels that "leadership is teamwork, and as much as individual initiative is imp
ortant, the best leaders listen to their fellow students before making important decisions." He looks forward to continuing to grow Honors Student Government and serving all Honors Program students.
Taylor Gillen
Taylor is a senior studying Digital Cinema with minors in Sociology and German. He is spending the fall quarter of 2016 in Los Angeles, taking part in CDM's
L.A. Quarter. He is originally from Lincoln, Nebraska. He wanted to attend college in a large city so he could be fully immersed in what urban life offers, so DePaul was one of his top choices. He has a passion for screenwriting, though he also works on projects as a producer or assistant director. Taylor has worked on music videos, short films, reality television and an independent feature film. He is also a campus tour guide and is the Director of Marketing for the Honors Student Government. Between all of these roles, he keeps pretty busy. You can usually find him traveling between the Loop and Lincoln Park on the L.
Zoe Krey
Zoe Krey is a senior studying Public Relations/Advertising and Political Science. She is from Naperville, Illinois and moved to the Chicago her freshman year. Zoe served as Academic Committee Co-Chair on the Honors Program Honors Student Government's Executive Board her sophomore year. She has also participated in the Honors Research Conference and presented her original research at the 2015 National Collegiate Honors Council Conference, held in Chicago, last
fall. Outside of the Honors Program, Zoe is a Student Alumni Ambassador, a student blogger for DePaul’s DeBlogs, Vice President of Pi Sigma Alpha, and a marketing intern for Potbelly Sandwich Shop. Taking advantage of the city life, Zoe enjoys taking long trips to the Art Institute, trying new restaurants, and exploring Chicago neighborhoods. Her favorite thing about DePaul is the limitless possibilities the city and university has to offer.