Thirty of West Virginia University’s top graduating seniors will be honored with the WVU Foundation Outstanding Seniors Award Friday, April 14, at 7:30 p.m. during a WVU Honors Convocation in the Mountainlair ballrooms.

The students will be recognized for their achievements in scholarship, leadership and service. The award was established to commemorate the Foundation’s 40th anniversary in 1995.

Eight of these seniors will then be conferred the”Order of Augusta,”the University’s most prestigious student honor, during a surprise announcement that same evening.

The Order of Augusta recognizes a highly select group of students based upon superior scholarship, demonstrated leadership and record of community and public service. The award was so named for its historical significance in the state. Augusta was among the original names considered by the legislature when the state seceded from Virginia in 1863. Also, the District of Augusta was the original name for a large area in what is now the northern region of West Virginia, including Monongalia County.

WVUs Outstanding Seniors for 1999-2000 are :

* Philip Biedler, Karen Higgins, Amanda Lee and Sharon Ritz, all of Morgantown

  • Thomas Miller and Carolyn Satterfield, Fairmont
  • Celena Morgan, Marcelle Simms and Jennifer Vincent, all of Mt. Claire
  • Brian Anderson, Ripley
  • Jacqueline Bass, St. Albans
  • Matthew Echard, Glenville
  • Carl Grey, Culloden
  • Lisa Hriblan, Martin, Pa.
  • John Keeney, Fayette County
  • Mary Lewis, Lewisburg
  • Jennifer Mattison, Downingtown Pa.
  • Amy Moats, Aurora
  • Sushma Nayak, Nitro
  • Jason Ng, Cross Lanes
  • Jessica Nonnemacher, Reading, Pa.
  • Carrie Ruddle, Franklin
  • Marcelle Simms, Shinnston
  • Heath Skinner, Fairview
  • Christopher Stroech, Kearneysville
  • Jennifer Tasso, Buford, Ga.
  • Melissa Thornhill, Shinnston
  • Brian Warner, Danville
  • William Whitt, Bluefield
  • Toby Williams, Pentress
  • Xiangyang Xin, Pittsburgh, Pa.

“The WVU Foundation’s Outstanding Seniors Awards honor the University’s exceptional graduating seniors for their achievements both in and out of the classroom. These 30 seniors are at the core of our future and we are proud to recognize them,”stated Foundation President F. Duke Perry in announcing the award winners.

The selected students will be presented with a special certificate by WVU President David C. Hardesty Jr. at the Honors Convocation and their names also will be included on a permanent register located in Colson Hall.

Brian Anderson of Ripley will graduate with a degree in chemical engineering. He was a West Virginia State Rhodes Scholarship finalist, a recipient of the Donald F. Othmer Academic Excellence Award and attended WVU as a Foundation Scholarthe institutions top academic scholarship.

He was also selected as the chief engineer of his senior chemical engineering class project and received a service award for 50 hours of community service in the Fall 1999 semester. He has been on the President’s List for a 4.0 GPA six times and the College of Engineering and Mineral Resources Dean’s List seven times.

In addition to these honors and awards, Anderson is president of Alpha Phi Omega and past vice president of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. He is a member of the University Choir, Mountaineer Singers, Opera Theater, Tau Beta Pi, Omega Chi Epsilon and a representative of the Residence Hall Council. Anderson also volunteers with Christian Help, Camp Mountaineer, Merit Badge University, Energy_Express and the Hopi Indian Reservation.

Jacqueline Bass of St. Albans will earn a degree in business administration and foreign language with a minor in Africana studies. She, too, is a Foundation Scholar, and also a National Merit, Marshall and Eberly College Scholar. She is a National Science Foundation Fellow for the Regional Research Institute and a recipient of the Herrera Scholarship and Talent Tenth Award. Honoraries include Beta Gamma Sigma, Phi Kappa Phi, Mortar Board and Golden Key. She is a member of the Organization of Africana Students, Honors Council, INROADS and the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences Student Advisory Board.

As a resident assistant, she is a member of the Residence Hall Association and is head justice advisor.

A volunteer at her church, she teaches vacation bible school, Sunday school and speaks to local junior high students.

She was selected the 1999 Africana Studies Student of the Year, the 1988 INROADS Student of the Year and the 1997 RHA Hall Representative of the Year.

Philip Biedler of Morgantown will graduate with a degree in mechanical engineering. A WVU Foundation Scholar, Biedler also earned the Robert C. Byrd Scholarship. Honoraries include Golden Key, Chimes, Beta Theta Pi, National Residence Hall and Pi Kappa Pi.

He has participated in the SAE /ASME Pumpkin Drop, volunteered for the Salvation Army and as an agricultural engineer on a summer trip to Nigeria. Biedler is president of Intervarsity Christian Fellowship and a representative for the Residence Hall Association. He is a member of Campus Crusade for Christ, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, Society of Automotive Engineers, Council 2000 and Mortar Board.

Matthew Echard of Glenville will graduate with a degree in civil engineering. He has a patent pending on his design and feasibility of OSB Composite Road Panels, a project he worked on as a National Science Foundation REU Program research assistant at the University of Maine.

He has earned the WVU Presidential, Robert C. Byrd Product Engineering (EG&G), Contractor’s Association of West Virginia, Homer P. Nutter and Steven Michael Freeman Memorial Scholarships.

Honors include Chi Epsilon, Tau Beta Pi, Phi Kappa Phi, Golden Key and Robert C. Byrd Honors Program.

Echard is a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and Society of Applied and Material Process Engineering. He is a tour guide for CEMR visitation days, volunteers at Ronald McDonald House as a weekend cook, works with Christian Help and tutors area high school students.

Carl Grey of Culloden will graduate with a degree in biology. He received the Lloyd R. Gribble and Organic Chemistry awards, and earned the Eberly College Scholarship and Presidential Scholarship.

Honors include Presidents List, Alpha Phi Omega, Alpha Epsilon Delta, Beta Beta Beta, Mortar Board, and Golden Key. He also was a finalist for Mr. Mountaineer.

He is a member of the Honorspeak, Outstanding Teacher Award and Gribble Award committees, Orientation Improvement Council, a writer for the Honorspeak newsletter and chair of the AED Membership Committee. Grey also participates on the intramural soccer team and is a volunteer at Ruby Memorial and Chestnut Ridge hospitals, Habitat for Humanity and Ronald McDonald House.

Karen Higgins of Morgantown will graduate with a degree in family and consumer sciences. She has earned an Outstanding Senior Academic Achievement Award, the West Virginia University Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarship and is a member of Phi Upsilon Omicron. She is a volunteer at the WVU Children’s Hospital, a youth counselor at the Spruce Street United Methodist Church and Christ Church United Methodist Church.

She is a fourth and fifth grade Sunday school teacher, director of Vacation Bible School, assistant leader of the Brownie Troop and leader of the Daisy Girl Scout Troop.

Lisa Hriblan of Martin, Pa., will graduate with a degree in speech pathology and audiology. She has received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarship, the WVU Employee Dependent Scholarship, WVU Staff Council Scholarship, the Csanady Hungarian Scholarship for Outstanding Freshman and the Wilma Rhodes Scholarship for Outstanding Seniors. Hriblan also received the Phi Kappa Phi Outstanding Freshman Award.

She is a member of the WVU and National chapters of the National Student Speech-Language Hearing Association, and has worked on numerous research projects. She is active in the WVU Honors Program and a member of the Golden Key Honor Society.

John Keeney of Fayette County will earn a degree in animal and veterinary sciences. He is a WVU Presidential Scholar, WVU National Merit Scholar, Robert C. Byrd Honors Scholar, Division of Animal and Veterinary Sciences William Brent Maxwell Scholar and West Virginia Cattlemen’s Association Ivomec Scholar.

He is involved in the WVU Honors Program, Golden Key and Gamma Sigma Delta. Keeney is also an Outstanding Senior in the Davis College of Agriculture, Forestry and Consumer Sciences, and has received the Animal and Veterinary Sciences Award.Keeney is a member of the WVU Block and Bridle Club and the Mountainlair Advisory Committee. He has participated in the Midwestern National Quadrathalon and WV Farm Bureau Young Farmers Discussion Meet.

Keeney also is a pianist at the Minnie Beller Baptist Church, a volunteer at Ronald McDonald House and the WVU Animal Science Farms Kiddy Days.

Amanda Lee of Morgantown will graduate with a degree in music and piano performance. She is a Licentiate of Trinity College of Music in Piano Performance, has earned the Performance Grant Award and has been recognized for her outstanding contribution and support of the”Rhythm of Love”Concert at Sedaya College.

Her honors include: the President’s List, Phi Kappa Phi, Gamma Beta Phi and National Scholastic Honorary Society. She represented WVU at the Professional Piano Accompanying for BATS Tri-State Vocal Competition, Music Teachers’National Association Collegiate Piano Competition, Piano Performance at The Village at Heritage Point and at the Monongalia Arts Center.

Lee is a volunteer at the Soup Kitchen, a church pianist and a choir and music director at Sedaya College.

Mary Lewis of Lewisburg will graduate with a degree in Spanish and English. She has earned the WVU Leadership Scholarship, Alpha Xi Delta Housing Corporation Scholarship for Service and Achievement, Alfa Duty Barnes Scholar of the Year Award and Dorothy Stone White Sisterhood Award.

She also received the Presidential Award Recognition Certificate for a 4.0 GPA , WVU Panhellenic Certificates for Excellent Academic Achievement and Appreciation for Presidential Service to Alpha Xi Delta, Alpha XI Delta Certificates of Academic Achievement,”All A’s”Certificate, Eberly College of Arts and Sciences Certificates of Achievement.

Her honors include the Dean’s List, Alpha Xi, Sigma Delta Pi, Golden Key, Gamma Beta Phi and Mountain Honorary. She participates in the Spanish Table, English Club, writes for Calliope literary magazine and has studied abroad in Cuernavaca Mexico.

Lewis volunteers at the Red Cross, The Shack, Bartlett House, Christian Help and for the Conversation Helper program.

Jennifer Mattison of Downingtown, Pa. , will graduate with a degree in biology. She has earned the Robert C. Byrd Federal Scholarship, Mountaineer Scholarship and Intercollegiate Horse Show Association Scholarship. She is an Eberly College of Arts and Sciences Scholar whose honors include Phi Kappa Phi, Gamma Beta Phi, Beta Beta Beta, Golden Key and the President’s List. She is a member of the WVU Equestrian Club and competes with the WVU Equestrian Team.

Thomas Miller of Fairmont will earn a degree in computer engineering. He is a WVU Foundation Scholar and a National Merit Scholar. His honors include Golden Key, Phi Kappa Phi and President’s List. He has written a computer game for MS-DOS and volunteers in the pediatrics unit at WVU Ruby Memorial Children’s Hospital.

Amy Moats of Aurora will graduate with a degree in political science. She received the Presidential, W. E. Chilton III , Margaret G. Powell, Scrivener Fund and George W.”Bud”Seibert Public Affairs Scholarships. She is a member of the WVU Honors Program and serves on its Honors Council.

Honors include Phi Kappa Phi, Pi Sigma Alpha, Mortar Board, Golden Key, Pi Sigma Sigma, and the President’s List. Moats is also an active member of the Young Democrats and Intergenerate. She volunteered at the Ronald McDonald Charity Night, the Thanks-For-Giving Food Drive and the World AIDS Day event.

Celena Morgan of Mt. Clare will earn a degree in animal and veterinary sciences. She received the WVU Presidential Scholarship, Gladys Davis Veterinary Scholarship and H. E. Kidder Scholarship.

Honors include Gamma Sigma Delta, Golden Key and Chimes Junior Honorary. Morgan is also a member of the WVU Honors Program. She is an active member of the WVU Collegiate 4_H, WVU Equestrian Team, WVU Block and Bridle Club and WVU Caving Club. She was a national qualifier for the WVU Quadrathalon Team, and has participated in programs such as Operation Christmas Child, Adopt-an-Angel, Rake and Run and Shop for Tots. She volunteers for the Chestnut Ridge Community Church and Ronald McDonald House.

Sushma Navak of Nitro will graduate with degrees in speech pathology and Spanish. She has earned the Global Education Opportunities Scholarship, College of Human Resources and Education Presidential Award of Excellence and is a USAA All-American Collegiate Scholar.

Honors include the President’s List, Chimes, Sigma Delta Pi and Alpha Phi Omega. She has studied abroad in Spain and Mexico, and is a member of Mountaineer Council, Indian Students Association, National Student Speech-Language and Hearing Association and the WVU Honors Program Study Abroad Committee.

She has volunteered at Health South Mountainview Rehabilitation Hospital and Morgantown Natural Resources Center.

Jason Ng of Cross Lanes will graduate with a degree in chemistry. He earned the Presidential Scholarship, Margaret G. Powell Scholarship, Omar W. Crim Scholarship, Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarship and has received the Certificate of Academic Achievement and Excellence.

Ng’s honors include Dean’s List, Mortar Board, Golden Key and Alpha Epsilon Delta. He is a member of the American Chemical Society, WVU Honors Council and WVU Executive Committee on Elections.

He is a volunteer at Ruby Memorial Hospital, Morgantown Health Right Pharmacy, Habitat for Humanity, and has participated in the Morgantown CROP Walk Against Hunger.

Jessica Nonnemacher of Reading, Pa., will earn a Bachelor of Science degree in public relations with a minor in sports management. She received a WVU full athletic scholarship in gymnastics and the George Gianodis Memorial Journalism Scholarship. Her honors include: GTE All-American Women’s at Large Gymnastics Team, Phi Kappa Phi, Kappa Tau Alpha, Dean’s List, and Athletic Director’s Honor Roll.

Nonnemacher participates in Division I Gymnastics, is a former WVU record holder in the uneven bars and balance beam and is a member of the Public Relations Student Society of America. She volunteers at Ruby Memorial Hospital, Make A-Wish Foundation and for the West Virginia Special Olympics.

Sharon Ritz of Morgantown will earn a psychology degree in May. She has received the Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarship and is a three-time recipient of the Certificate for Academic Excellence.

Honors include Psi Chi and Golden Key National Honor Society, and she is the

student co-founder and volunteer counselor at Mountainview Family Counseling and Consultation Center. She is also a volunteer counselor at Mountainview Elementary School and Bridgeport Middle School.

Carrie Ruddle of Franklin will earn a degree in agricultural and environmental education. She has received the Mountaineer Scholarship, Order of Vandalia Scholarship and Three Little Pigs Scholarship. She earned the American FFA degree and was named 4-H All_Star recipient.

Other honors include the President’s List, Golden Key, Gamma Sigma Delta, Phi Kappa

Phi, Helvetia Sophomore Honorary, Alpha Tau Alpha and Mortar Board.

She is a member of Collegiate 4_H and FFA and assists with both programs.

Carolyn Satterfield of Fairmont will graduate with a nursing degree. She was named to Who’s Who Among American College and Nursing Students for three consecutive years. Other honors include the National Collegiate Nursing Award, Morgan-Robertson Award from the WVU School of Nursing and Spirit of Nursing Award from the WV League for Nursing.

She was also named as the National Student Nurses’Association Foundations Outstanding Nursing Student.

Memberships include Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Theta Tau, Dean’s List and Golden Key.

Satterfield has volunteered at Ronald McDonald House, Bartlett House, WVU and Monongalia Hospital’s Health Fairs and with the WV Cardiac Kids Research Project. She has participated in the Stocking Project for Vintage Adult Day Care, WV Multiple Sclerosis Society’s MS Walk, the CROP Walk and American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life.

Marcelle Simms of Mt. Claire will graduate with a degree in music education and secondary education with a specialization in mathematics. She has received the Radiological Consultants Association Presidential Scholarship and is a WV MTNA (Music Teacher’s National Association) State Collegiate Winner.

Honors include Golden Key, Phi Kappa Phi, Mortar Board, Chimes Junior and Helvetia Sophomore Honoraries. She is also the WVU Collegiate 4_H Club president.

Simms has taught singing class at the WV 4 _H Teen Leader Charting Weekend, played the flute at Student Support Services Student Recognition Banquet and for a reception at the WV Dairy Workshop. She also volunteers with Adopt-A-Street Clean Up, Ronald McDonald House, Heritage Christian School and Caritas House.

Heather Skinner of Fairview will graduate with a biology degree. She has received the WVU National Merit and Presidential Scholarships and the Eberly Family Arts and Sciences Scholarship. Her honors include: Dean’s List, Alpha Epsilon Delta, Beta Beta Beta, Golden Key, and Gamma Beta Phi.

Skinner represented WVU at the Society for Neuroscience meeting, has been involved in two scientific abstracts and is a volunteer at Monongalia General Hospital.

Christopher Stroech of Kearneysville will earn degrees in political science and history. He has received the Larry Angus Eagle Scout Scholarship, George”Bud”Seibert Public Affairs Scholarship, Williams Political Science Scholarship, Presidential Award for Excellence in

Scholarship, Eberly College of Arts and Sciences Academic Award and H&RL Academic Excellence Award.

Honoraries include Mortar Board, Alpha Phi Omega, Gamma Beta Phi and Golden Key.

He is a member of the National Residence Hall Honorary, Helvetia Sophomore Honorary, WVU Judicial Committee, Mountaineer Council, Honors Program Study Abroad Committee and the WV Governor’s Honors Academy Alumni Association.

Jennifer Tasso of Buford, Ga. , will graduate with a degree in linguistics and minors in Spanish and English. She has received the Dean’s Merit Scholar Academic and Music Scholarships, and the Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarship and the Eberly College of Arts&Sciences Certificate of Achievement.

Honors include Dean’s List, Golden Key, Gamma Beta Phi, Alpha Phi Omega, Mortar Board and Phi Kappa Phi. Tasso has studied abroad in Cuernavaca, Mexico, and is a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars. She has volunteered more then 250 hours with community organizations, including tutoring at Stepping Stones and Shack Neighborhood House, where she is a certified tutor for Literacy Volunteers of America.

Melissa Thornhill of Shinnston will graduate with degrees in French and International Studies. She has received the Key Club Scholarship, Wal_Mart Scholarship, WVU Presidential Scholarship, Kanawha Valley Foundation Scholarship and Phi Beta Kappa Scholarship. She earned the Eberly College of Arts&Sciences Undergraduate Academic Enrichment Grant, Elsie M. And Ethel M. Jones Scholarship for Foreign Language, the WVU GEO Grant and the Robert C. Frasure Memorial Scholarship for Excellence in International Studies.

Honors include: Alpha Phi Omega and Pi Delta Phi.

She also was an exchange student at Moscow Institute for Advanced Studies and Univeriste Pierre Mendes-France.

Thornhill is a member of Mountaineer Council, Dadisman Hall Council and the

Eberly College Dean’s Student Advisory Board. She has volunteered with Christian Help, Adopt-a-Street Program, Red Cross, Metropolitan Theater Clean-up and Mountain State AIDS Network.

Jennifer Vincent of Mt. Claire will graduate with a psychology degree. She is an Eberly Scholar and has received the Certificate of Achievement for Academic Excellence, Presidential Award for Excellence in Scholarship, the WVU Leadership Award and has been nominated to participate in Research Experiences for Undergraduates.

Honors include the Dean’s List, President’s List, Golden Key, Psi Chi and Gamma Beta Phi. She is a member of WVU ’s Scholars Program and the West Virginia Department of Psychology Honors Program. She is a WVU cheerleader and volunteers at Children’s Hospital and reads to children at local schools.

Brian Warner of Danville will graduate with a degree in finance and a minor in history. He has received the Presidential Scholarship and is a member of the WVU Honors Program. He is also a member of the Finance and Banking Clubs, Honors Mentoring Council and participates in intramural basketball, bowling and tennis.

Honors include Beta Gamma Sigma, Golden Key and President’s List.

He is a youth basketball coach and volunteers at Ronald McDonald House, Krepps Park Clean-Up and Relay for Life.

William Whitt of Bluefield will earn degrees in journalism (broadcast newsemphasis) and psychology. He has been inducted into several honorsocieties and honor fraternities on the basis of his strong GPA , service and leadership. They include: Gamma Beta Phi Honor Society, Kappa Tau Alpha Journalism Honor Society, Golden Key National Honor Society, National Society of Collegiate Scholars and Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society.

He has also been active in the School of Journalism, leading the effort to redesign their TV newscast which aired on West Virginia Public Television statewide. He has received the Best Produced News Story award four times in a row and is an off-camera reporter and videographer for the KDKA -TV/WVU School of Journalism partnership. Currently, he is interning as an on-air reporter at WBOY -TV in Clarksburg.

In his previous years, Whitt served as president of the Baptist Student Union, assignments editor of the Society of Professional Journalists and secretary of Brooke Hall Council.

He also does consulting work for Bluefield High School’s journalism classes and produces videos and Web pages for freelance work. Whitt has served as Webmaster for several WVU organizations, including Alpha Phi Omega Service Fraternity and the Office of Student Life. He also devotes a lot of his time now to his own Website atwww.planetbilly.com. He was translator of a missionary group in Mexico last summer and plans to do that again this summer.

Toby Williams of Pentress will graduate will dual degrees in electrical engineering and computer engineering. He received the Homer E. Nutter Scholarship and Bell Atlantic Scholarship. Honoraries include Alpha Phi Omega and Eta Kappa Nu.

Williams has had work published in”Math Horizons”and placed 81st in the nation on the Putnam Exam. He represented WVU at the Putnam Competition, is a tutor for student

support services and a member of the Friendship Co-op Association.

Xiangyang Xin of Pittsburgh, Pa. , will earn a degree in graphic design. He received the PGA scholarship and has placed first for his two-dimensional work in an art competition at California University of Pennsylvania. He is an All-American Scholar and his honors include Dean’s List and Golden Key.

He presented slide lectures in China to promote cultural exchange with WVU ’s Graphic Design, Landscape Architecture and Interior Design Departments. Xin is also a member with the Mainstreet Morgantown City Design Committee and has demonstrated three traditional Chinese painting lectures at Carnegie Mellon University.