Honors Program Graduates

Gunderson, and helped develop “Keep Me in Mind,” a new musical by Simón Gómez Villegas, for which she was the stage manager and swing for the last mounting of the show (April 2019/Wanda L. Bass School of Music, Project21) and acts as the composer/playwright’s dramaturg for ongoing development. She also was able to participate in Oklahoma Scholar-Leadership Enrichment Program’s intercollegiate seminar titled “Memoir as a Manifesto” where students created their own memoirs and manifestos. After graduation, Ginger will be continuing at OCU to pursue an MA in non-profit leadership with a focus in arts administration.

EMILY HERNANDEZ from Mustang, Oklahoma, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science in cell and molecular biology with a minor in chemistry. During her time at OCU, she was elected as the regional president for the South-Central Region of Tri-beta, the biological honor society. She presented her research at several conferences and was awarded a grant from TriBeta to continue her research on antibiotic producing bacteria. She discovered and named two mycobacteriophage through her research and will present it before graduation. After graduation, she plans to take the DAT and apply to dental school in the 2021 cycle. She would also like to share that she has had the honor and privilege of being Mary Ellen and George R Randall Great Plan Scholar, and is thankful for the Randall family and all fellow scholars she has met and made connections with over her four years at OCU.

DIONE HORNE from Broomfield, Colorado, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in vocal music. While at OCU, Dione sang in a masterclass for Kristin Chenoweth, who then selected Dione to sing in another masterclass for Richard Jay Alexander. She also was able to graduate early. After graduation, she plans to take a gap year in order to continue training with Joe Fitzgerald and prepare for a master’s degree in vocal coaching.

OLIVE KOEHLER from Oklahoma City will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in theatre and performance with a minor in political science. Some of her successes while at OCU include writing, producing, and starring in the original play “Straightening Up”; working on and performing in the sophomore jury project “It’s Not About You”; and performing in Maxwell McIntire and Liv Story’s play “123/60-100.” After graduation, she plans to pursue a master’s degree in library and informational studies with the goal of becoming a children’s librarian as well as continuing to write and perform comedy that has important messages.

OLIVIA LASKIN from Richmond, Virginia, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting with minors in children’s theatre and directing. While at OCU, she performed the role of Thomasina in Tom Stoppard’s “Arcadia,” served as artistic director for Out of the Box, and received the Claire Jones Award for Excellence in Children’s Theatre her junior year. After graduation, Olivia plans to move to New York City to start pursuing an acting career in plays and musicals and work as a teaching artist at a children’s theatre.

ELISE LEVY, from St. Louis, will be graduating with a Bachelors of Fine arts in acting with a minor in directing. While at OCU, she directed “John Proctor Is The Villain” by Kimberly Belflower for Out of the Box in the fall of 2019, was the president of OCU Jewish Stars, directed “The Revolutionists” in Spring 2021, was business manager of Out of the Box, and was the artistic director of Stripped. She also enjoyed working on a scene between Suffolk and Margaret from “Henry VI Part II” for Shakespeare Showcase her junior year, as it was a difficult yet rewarding experience. After graduation, Lisi has plans to return to St. Louis to direct her first musical with a non-profit theatre arts organization, Gateway Center for Performing Arts, this

summer. After this, she hopes to join an acting or directing apprenticeship in New York City once it is safe to do so.

LOREN MATRONE from Frisco, Texas, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science in cellular and molecular biology with a minor in chemistry. While at OCU, she was the founder and president of the OCU Pre-Health Professionals Club, represented OCU as a voting delegate at the 2019 Oklahoma Student Government Association Fall and Spring Congresses where she passed legislation that advocated for increased dental health care resources on college campuses, and studied abroad at the University of Cambridge in England where she won the Pembroke-Kings Summer Programme 2019 Blog Competition. After graduation, Loren plans to attend University of Texas School of Dentistry at Houston to receive her Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) degree.

KATHRYN MCGAHA from Edmond, Oklahoma, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in studio art and design with an emphasis on graphic design. While at OCU, she has been on the president’s honor roll each semester, designed the skateboard trophy that was given to the winners of OCU eSports River Rumble competition, and participated in an OSLEP seminar titled “Memoir as Manifesto.” After graduation, she plans to begin employment with a marketing or graphic design firm.

MAXWELL MCINTIRE from Wichita, Kansas, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting with minors in design and production, costume technology, and directing. While at OCU, he played Bernard in “Arcadia” by Tom Stoppard (OCU School of Theatre 2019-2020 season, directed by Hal Kohlman). He served as co-writer of “123/60-100,” a play produced by the Shadow Collective, a theatre organization consisting of OCU students. He also collated a proof-of-concept scene for a later verbatim theatre project on environmentalism, currently titled “Silent Spring” as part of his Honors Jr/Sr Seminar: Peace & Nonviolence, taught by professor Robin Meyers. After graduation, he will begin his professional career in theatre, focusing on acting and playwriting.

VIRGINIA (GRACE) MERTZ from Prairie Grove, Arkansas, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science in biomedical science with a minor in psychology. Some of her successes while at OCU include being crowned Miss Indian OCU for 20182019, serving as the co-president of Kappa Phi 2019-2020, and being a part of the Wesley Leadership Team 2018-2019. After graduation, Grace will begin the entry-level doctorate program for occupational therapy at the University of Kansas Medical Center.

KAYLILA PASHA from Meridian, Mississippi, graduated in December 2020 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in acting with a minor in directing. While at OCU, she studied Advanced Shakespeare abroad at Roehampton University, London, and performed in TheatreOCU’s Mainstage production of “The Laramie Project” (2020). She was the Undergraduate Research Day Fine and Performing Arts winner in 2019 for “Disability and Special Needs Awareness in Contemporary Theatre” and Interdisciplinary Humanities winner in 2019 for “International Child Slavery: Pakistan.” She has already joined the staff for the Meridian Symphony Orchestra in Meridian as the marketing manager and executive assistant. She is also the founder and creative cirector of Kaylila Creative, her marketing business founded in 2018.

ELIZABETH PRUITT from Edmond, Oklahoma, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Music Education in vocal education. She has spent her spring semester of 2021 student teaching choir at the Classen School of Advanced Studies in Oklahoma City. During her time at OCU, she has served as a resident assistant for three years and been a member of CNAFME.

SARAH SCHULZ from Moorhead, Minnesota, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Music in music theatre. While at OCU, she helped create OCU CARE and became its first secretary, presented a project at the National Collegiate Honors Council 2020 virtual conference titled “The Five Stages of Grief and Recording Attributes in Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody,’” and served on the Out of the Box committee for 3.5 years as the music school representative, helping raise money for the program by organizing biyearly fundraisers. Sarah plans to “consciously take time to explore facets of myself and my interests, with the goal of accepting my uncertainty, embracing my wandering, and building a foundation for a meaningful life.”

SARAH STOUT from Norman, Oklahoma, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Music with pre-med track with an emphasis in instrumental music (violin). While at OCU she presented bacteriophage research at the 2019-2020 Undergraduate Research Day, was the associate concertmaster of the 2020 OCU symphony, and performed in the pit orchestra of several OCU musical theater and opera productions. After graduation, Sarah will be working as a medical scribe in addition to volunteering and shadowing to prepare for applying to physician assistant programs.

OLIVIA TARDIBONO from Oklahoma City will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science in dance management with a minor in business entrepreneurship. During her time at OCU, she served as the Alpha Phi vice president of finance, performed as a dancer in “All that Jazz” at MT Sessions, and was a sound technician for American Spirit Dance Company’s “Home for the Holidays” and “Broadway Revue.” After graduation, she plans to start creating entertainment content as well as working for a non-profit organization.

TAYLOR TWEEDELL from Quincy, Illinois, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science in dance management. Some of her successes at OCU include receiving the OCU Outstanding Leadership Award in 2019, serving as president of Students of Arts Management for the 2019-2020 school year, and working as the co-head of the film/editing department for the Student Choreography Showcase. After graduation, Taylor plans to move to St. Louis to pursue a career in the arts management industry.

BAILEY WEBB from Oklahoma City will be graduating with a Bachelor of Science in psychology with a minor in child advocacy studies. Some of her successes while at OCU include becoming captain of the women’s soccer team, completing an internship at Palomar and the Oklahoma Bureau of Investigations, and winning the SAC soccer conference during her sophomore year. After graduation, she plans to enroll in the Kramer School of Nursing at OCU.

JORDYN YOUNGER from Jefferson, South Dakota, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Music in music theater and vocal performance. While at OCU, she was awarded as junior marshal, served as the national live auditions coordinator for the Wanda L. Bass School of Music, and sang the role of Adele in OCU’s production of “Die Fledermaus,” which won first place in its division in 2019-2020 from the National Opera Association. She hopes to pursue a performance career in NYC after the pandemic has resolved.

ZECHARIAH ZUBIA from Edmond, Oklahoma, will be graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in music, pre-med track. Some of his successes while at OCU include performing his senior recital in Fall 2019, working as the student assistant honors director (Honors StuPro), and serving as vice president of Lambda Chi Alpha. His favorite Honors Program memory was in Honors LAS with Dr. Starkey. Zac plans to seek out medical school opportunities and either start his medical career or take the year off and reapply for the following year. He is also getting married in late July and plans to stay in Oklahoma City for at least a year post graduation. 8