COMMENCEMENT SPEAKERS

Student Achievement Award Recipients

In 2009, the UCCS administration decided to showcase a graduate as the main speaker during the Spring Commencement ceremonies. They chose to designate the speaker honor to the recipients of the Student Achievement Award.

The Student Achievement Award is an annual award that has been in existence since 1982. It is presented during the annual Campus Awards Ceremony to two students who have excelled in one or both of the following areas:

• Made a significant personal accomplishment in conjunction with earning a degree (e.g., overcame a personal barrier, or undertook a special student research project)

• Made a substantial contribution to the quality of student life at UCCS (e.g. served with a student organization, launched a new program or group)

This year’s speakers are:

Aja Zamundu (10:30 Ceremony)

Aja Zamundu is graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She has received President’s List honors for every semester that attended at UCCS. She is a member of the Honors Psychology cohort, the National Society of Leadership and Success, the Undergraduate Research Academy, and serves as treasurer for the UCCS chapter of Psi Chi.

Aja has immersed herself in academic activities at UCCS. As a lead undergraduate research assistant to Dr. Littleton in the Lyda Hill Institute of for Human Resilience, her research as a member of the Undergraduate Research Academy earned her the Top Scholar Award at Mountain Lion Research Day. In addition to her work in the psychology department, Aja also has a deep interest in the humanities, and served as the teaching assistant to Dr. Kirsten Ortega in Poetry for the People class. She continues to collaborate with Dr. Ortega on Poetry as Life Practice, a project that aims to reform the creative writing curriculum for grade school students. Aja also served on the editing staff for the Riverrun Arts Journal.

Outside of her academic commitments at UCCS, Aja is an accomplished musician and performer. Her band, The Reminders, is a nationally and internationally acclaimed touring act with strong commitments to community service. As the mother of three children, she is passionate about youth advocacy and works with several community organizations to implement and support programs for the youth. She has been a featured speaker and musical guest for several organizations, including TedX, the Denver Non-Profit Convention, Boys and Girls Club of America, Citizens Project, Youth On Record, UC Health, Education Through Music, and the Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking.

This fall, Aja will pursue a Master of Arts in Clinical Psychology at UCCS. Her research will examine the relationship between trauma and creativity and explore representations of trauma in popular media. Her goal is to eventually obtain a PhD in Clinical Psychology and use her background in creativity to assist others navigating traumatic life experiences.

Seth Lindsey (2:30 Ceremony)

Seth Lindsey is graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Visual and Performing Arts with an emphasis in Theatre and a minor in Leadership. Seth is involved on campus through the Chancellor’s Leadership Class; the Office of Admissions where he works as the School Group Coordinator; and his multi-faceted engagements with arts on campus such as serving as the Student Representative on the TheatreWorks Advisory Board.

Seth has created and collaborated extensively with the arts on campus. Over his four years, he has been part of 17 productions and served for two years as the Theatre Representative on the VAPA Chair’s Council—helping to organize the All Arts VAPA Festival. Through his minor and the Chancellor’s Leadership Class, Seth has also had the privilege of engaging in a variety of rewarding community service experiences. Not the least of which was his Leadership Capstone where he partnered with non-profit cancer organizations to raise funds and awareness about blood cancer. Being a cancer survivor himself, he is particularly proud of this aspect of his college journey.

A personal mantra for Seth has always been, “Nothing ventured, nothing gained” and he is glad to have taken risks and tried his hand at new opportunities during college. One of the most fulfilling pathways being with University Advancement as Seth has been increasingly involved with CU donor events as an emcee, most recently sharing his CU story at the annual Benson Society Gala in April.

The next act in Seth’s play with be working with El Pomar Foundation as part of their Fellowship program. He is elated to continue developing his skills as a leader and interacting with the non-profit sector in Colorado, right alongside his ongoing pursuit of refining his craft as a theatre-maker and artist.