RIVER FALLS - The following local residents were among 676 students receiving degrees from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls following fall commencement in Dec. 2023. Bachelor's degrees were awarded to 603 undergraduates, while 73 students received graduate degrees.  

Area students are listed below by name, hometown, degree, major and honors (if any). 

At graduation, four types of merit awards are recognized: 

• Senior Merit - Graduating seniors who have maintained a 3.500 grade point for their last 60 credits at UWRF. 

• Cum Laude - Graduating seniors with a minimum cumulative 3.700 grade point average for their entire college career at all institutions. 

• Magna Cum Laude - Graduating seniors with a minimum cumulative 3.800 grade point average for their entire college career at all institutions. 

• Summa Cum Laude - Graduating seniors with a minimum cumulative 3.900 grade point average for their entire college career at all institutions. 

Ellsworth: Jamie Gonzalez Diaz, Bachelor of Science, Modern Language, Senior Merit; Alexa Rasmussen, Bachelor of Social Work, Social Work; Riley Schumaker, Bachelor of Science, Biomedical and Health Science 

Elmwood: Araya Carson, Bachelor of Science, Health and Human Performance 

Hager City: Taylor Feuerhelm, Master of Science, Communications Sciences and Disorders; Allison Jennings, Bachelor of Science, Health and Human Performance, Cum Laude; Olivia Lynner, Bachelor of Science, Elementary Education, Senior Merit; MaKayla Mears, Bachelor of Science, Biomedical and Health Science, Magna Cum Laude 

Plum City: Bailey Beyer, Master of Science – Education, Math Secondary Education; Vanessa Seipel, Bachelor of Science, Elementary Education, Senior Merit 

Prescott: Wyatt Bauch, Bachelor of Social Work, Social Work; Rocky Blomker, Bachelor of Science, Marketing Communications, Communication Studies; Carolina Gathright, Bachelor of Science, Marketing, Finance, Magna Cum Laude; Morgan Rose, Education Specialist, School Psychology 
River Falls: Elias Aasen, Bachelor of Science, Communication Studies, Marketing Communications, Senior Merit; BreeAnna Ahlers, Bachelor of Science, Biomedical and Health Science; Austin Albright, Bachelor of Science, Stage and Screen Arts, Marketing Communications, Magna Cum Laude; Connor Alexander, Bachelor of Science, Applied Computing, Senior Merit; Tiffany Alexander, Master of Business Administration, MBA; Courtney Barrois, Bachelor of Science, Business Administration; James Bowers, Bachelor of Science, Physics, Mathematics, Cum Laude; Amber Brestel, Master of Science, Communication Sciences and Disorders; Jackson Califf, Bachelor of Science, Stage and Screen Arts, Senior Merit; Nicholas Chapdelaine, Bachelor of Music Education, Music Education; Yongsheng Chen, Bachelor of Science, Accounting; Evan Christianson, Bachelor of Science, Computer Science and Information Systems; Yihong Deng, Bachelor of Science, Food Science and Technology, Cum Laude; Grace Dickinson, Bachelor of Science, Psychology; Nathanial Dickrell, Bachelor of Science, Conservation and Environmental Planning; Barbara Dittrich, Bachelor of Science, Animal Science, Cum Laude; Amelia Evanoff, Bachelor of Science, Communication Studies, Marketing Communications; Andrew Everson, Bachelor of Science, Marketing Communications; Lauren Johnson, Bachelor of Science, Elementary Education, Cum Laude; Piper Juza, Bachelor of Science, Elementary Education, Magna Cum Laude; Ian Keller, Bachelor of Science, Chemistry; Emma Knobloch, Bachelor of Science, Elementary Education, Senior Merit; Kaylie Krueger, Bachelor of Science, Animal Science; Samantha Krueger, Master of Science, Communication Sciences and Disorders; Emily Kupka, Master of Science - Education, School Psychology; Patrick Langbein, Master of Business Administration, MBA; Loni Marra, Bachelor of Science, Animal Science; Izzy Melgaard, Bachelor of Science, Biology, Cum Laude; Kristin Pronschinske, Master of Business Administration, MBA; Amber Rappl, Bachelor of Science, Biotechnology, Biology, Senior Merit; Hannah Richards, Bachelor of Science, Biomedical and Health Science, Magna Cum Laude; Colin Rude, Bachelor of Science, Chemistry, Senior Merit; James Schertz, Bachelor of Science, Mathematics; Laura Schlacks, Master of Science, Communication Sciences and Disorders; Madelyn Schmidt, Bachelor of Science, Business Administration; Alexa Schretenthaler, Bachelor of Science, Psychology, Magna Cum Laude; Serina Scott, Bachelor of Science, Elementary Education, Senior Merit; Jasmine Stein, Bachelor of Science, Marketing Communications, Communication Studies, Cum Laude; Natalie Swick, Bachelor of Science, Psychology; Samuel Swick, Bachelor of Science, Health and Human Performance; Jack Thompson, Bachelor of Science, Biology, Cum Laude; Stephanie Thompson, Master of Science - Education, Montessori Education; Grace Wachtler, Bachelor of Science, Business Administration, Summa Cum Laude; Claude-Auren Walker, Bachelor of Science, Computer Science and Information Systems, Summa Cum Laude; Matt Weiman, Bachelor of Science, Physics, Cum Laude; Mason Wilhelmy, Bachelor of Science, Marketing; Sage Wren, Bachelor of Science, Psychology 
Spring Valley: Emma Esanbock, Bachelor of Science, Sociology, Modern Language, Cum Laude; Taylor Falde, Bachelor of Science, Marketing Communications, Summa Cum Laude 

UW-Stout 

MENOMONIE - The following students from the area graduated on May 4, 2024, from University of Wisconsin-Stout in Menomonie, Wis. The university graduated 1,037 students, with 828 undergraduate and 209 Graduate School students this spring. 

UW-Stout, Wisconsin's Polytechnic University, offers more than 70 industry-aligned undergraduate and graduate degrees and 40 professional certificate programs.  

Established in 1891, the university prides itself on the success of its students in the workplace, with more than 1,000 national internship placements and an employment rate of 99% for recent graduates.  

Ellsworth: Jen Langer, MS Education; Annabelle Meyer, BS Packaging; Carter Smith, BS Manufacturing Engineering 

Plum City: Katherine Hassing, BS Early Childhood Education 
Prescott: Samantha Matze, BS Early Childhood Education 

River Falls: Katee Belisle, EDS School Psychology; Lauren Bryan, BS Hotel, Restaurant & Tourism Management; Cole Causby, BS Business Administration; Joe Czech, BFA Game Design & Development – Art; Brett Delwiche, BS Packaging; Alex Ewing, BS Business Administration; Nathan Kinsley, BFA Graphic Design & Interactive Media; Hallie Krueger, MS Applied Psychology 
Spring Valley: Alexandra Lee, MS School Counseling; Madeline Matthys, BS Psychology 

 
Minnesota State University Mankato 

MANKATO, Minn. - The Academic High Honor and Honor lists (Dean's lists) for the past spring semester at Minnesota State University, Mankato have been announced by Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs David Hood.  

Among 3,679 students, a total of 1,150 students qualified for the High Honor List by achieving a 4.0 straight "A" average, while 2,529 students earned a 3.5 to 3.99 average to qualify for the Honor List.   

To qualify for academic honors, undergraduate students must be enrolled for at least 12 credit hours for the semester. 

Ellsworth: Tea Hill, High Honor List; Bo Hines, Honor List; Tess Kinney, Honor List; Carson Nugent, Honor List; Kaitlyn Nugent, High Honor List; Jana Weber, Honor List  

Prescott: Kyla Bessermin, Honor List; Ilah Little, Honor List; Carter Lubich, Honor List; Connor Lubich, Honor List 

River Falls: Taryn Gullickson, Honor List; Hayden Rock, Honor List; Amaya Schultz-Shodin, Honor List; Blake Spiczak, Honor List 

St. Olaf College 

NORTHFIELD, Minn.- Angeline Domeyer, daughter of Neal and Stephanie Domeyer, River Falls, was named to the Spring 2024 Dean's List at St. Olaf College. The Dean's List is a scholarly award for students who demonstrate academic excellence, have earned a GPA of 3.75 or above, and completed at least three credits for that semester. 

Domeyer is studying Studio Art and Psychology. 

Carthage College 

KENOSHA – Congratulations to the students who have been named to the Carthage College Spring 2024 Dean's List in recognition of their outstanding academic achievement! 

Dean's List honors are accorded to Carthage students who achieve a minimum 3.5 grade-point average while carrying at least 12 letter-graded credits in a given semester. 

Ellsworth: Addison Huppert  

Spring Valley: Maxwell Schmitt  

Kutztown University 

KUTZTOWN, Penn. – The Kutztown University athletic department's banner year in the athletic realm continued into the classroom as KU recorded 243 student-athletes on the 2023-24 Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference's scholar-athlete list, including Rhi Stutz of Prescott. 

It is the most Golden Bears represented in the last three years when a school-record 252 student-athletes were honored. This year also marks the fifth year in a row that the Golden Bears have eclipsed the 200 honoree mark. 

Kutztown is tied for the eighth-most student-athletes on the list. 

In order to be eligible for PSAC Scholar-Athlete honors, student-athletes must maintain a cumulative GPA of at least 3.25. The conference instituted a new policy last year, honoring athletes meeting the academic requirement in only PSAC sponsored sports. This change directly affected Kutztown's acrobatics & tumbling and women's bowling teams, which do not compete under the PSAC banner. Acrobatics & Tumbling is part of the National Collegiate Acrobatics & Tumbling Association (NCATA) and does not have a conference affiliation, while women's bowling is an associate member of the East Coast Conference (ECC). Bowlers are eligible to be named to the ECC Commissioner's Honor Roll, which is usually released in late July. 

The 2023-24 PSAC Scholar-Athlete total of 4,037 (52% of the entire PSAC student-athlete population) marks the ninth consecutive year the PSAC has awarded at least 40% of its student-athlete population with "Scholar-Athlete" status. The total number of PSAC Scholar-Athletes increased by 199 from 2022-23's total of 3,838. 

St. Cloud State University 

2024. CLOUD, Minn. - St. Cloud State University graduated more than 860 students during spring semester 2024. 

Plum City: Halli Martin, Bachelor of Science, Elementary/K-6 Education, Summa Cum Laude 
River Falls: Jack Bye, Master of Business Administration, Business Administration (Graduate) 

UW-Platteville 

PLATTEVILLE - The University of Wisconsin-Platteville announced its Chancellor's List, honoring those with perfect 4.0 grade-point averages for the spring 2024 semester. 

Students from this area who earned the 4.0 grade-point average include: 

Hager City: Brianna Giese, Health & Human Performance 
Prescott: Preston Raden, Industrial Tech Management 

***  

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville announces its Dean's List, honoring those full-time students who earned high honors in the spring 2024 semester. 

 College of Business, Industry, Life Science and Agriculture and the College of Liberal Arts and Education require grade-point averages of 3.75 and above for Dean's List honors, while the College of Engineering, Mathematics and Science requires students to reach at least a 3.50.  

Students from this area on the Dean's List include:  

Hager City: Brianna Giese, Health & Human Performance  
Maiden Rock: Mackenzie Wieser, Civil Engineering 
Plum City: Katie Stoudt, Criminal Justice 

Prescott: Preston Raden, Industrial Tech Management 

River Falls: Michael Conway, Mechanical Engineering 

***  

The University of Wisconsin-Platteville awarded diplomas to more than 700 undergraduate students for the spring of 2024.  

Maiden Rock: Mackenzie Wieser, Civil Engineering 
Prescott: Lane Budworth, Industrial Technology Management 

 
Iowa Lakes Community College  

ESTHERVILLE, Iowa - With more than 150 scholarships available and a high average award, students planning to attend Iowa Lakes Community College can overcome financial obstacles and receive a quality education. For the 2024 Fall term, the Iowa Lakes Community College Foundation awarded 574 scholarships to 342 students, totaling $807,215.25 to date. 

Morgan Kolodzienski, Beldenville, received the HG Albee Arts & Sciences Scholarship.  

UW-Oshkosh  

OSHKOSH - University of Wisconsin Oshkosh officials have released the names of students who qualified for the Dean's List and Honor Roll in spring 2024 across its three campuses (Fond du Lac, Fox Cities and Oshkosh). 

The term grade-point average (GPA) requirement for University Honor Roll is 3.3; the term GPA requirement for Dean's List is 3.75 out of a possible 4.0. 

To qualify, a student must have been enrolled in a minimum of 12 credits. There can be no individual grades below a "C" and no incomplete or non-reported grades at the time the process is run. 

Prescott: Harrison Oney, Honor Roll 

River Falls: MacKenna Anderson, Dean’s List; Carl Bjornstal, Honor Roll 

South Dakota State University 

BROOKINGS, S.D. – The following students graduated after the spring 2024 semester at South Dakota State University. More than 1,500 students completed all requirements for a degree and/or certificate program. 

Ambrea K. Kjos, of River Falls, graduated with a Bachelor of Science in SDSU's College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. 

Hayley Jo Lindaman, of River Falls, graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Nursing in SDSU's College of Nursing. 

Wichita State University 

WICHITA, Kan. - More than 2,380 students completed a total of 2,645 degrees and certificates at Wichita State University in spring 2024. Jennifer M. Kieren, River Falls, completed a Graduate Certificate in English Literature and Composition Pedagogy.