Connections with Honors Alumni
Before the football game last Friday night (way to go Cougars!), Honors students joined alumni for a delicious dinner and engaging evening at the Hinckley Center. We welcomed BYU Honors alumni back to meet and mentor current students who were able to build their network connections with professionals in their fields. The evening included a catered dinner, great conversation and meaningful advice. The evening also featured a Q&A panel with some of our visiting alumni who offered insights into how their Honors experiences carried well beyond graduation. While some guests headed to the game after the closing amen, many students and alumni lingered to continue conversations and exchange contact information. We are sincerely grateful to the alumni who shared their time and wisdom with us on Friday. Thank you all!
Emily Ashcraft Andersen, 2019
Emily Andersen is a reporter at KSL. Emily graduated from BYU in Communications with an emphasis in News Media. She worked in political and legal news in Washington D.C. for about two years and has worked at KSL.com for the last three years covering legal, health and religion news. She and her husband, Michael Andersen, raise chickens, ducks and bees in their backyard.
Honors Thesis: The Impact of Media on the Scottish Parliament
KSL Author Page: https://www.ksl.com/author/Emily_Ashcraft
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-ashcraft/
Paige Crosland Anderson, 2011
Paige Crosland Anderson is an abstract painter. She is known for her geometric paintings that invoke pioneer quilts and Mormon culture and has shown her work in a number of galleries and shows. For Anderson, art is not only a profession, but a way to connect with her family and divine identity. As the mother of four daughters, she often creates her art with the help of her children. Notably, the BYU Museum of Art acquired her beautiful work, “Again, Glorified” which is currently on display in the Maeser building conference room.
Honors Thesis: The Turning: A Visual Exploration of Genealogy
Website: https://www.paigeandersonart.com/
Steve Densley, 1995
Steve Densley, J.D. is an attorney at the law firm of Strong & Hanni where he specializes in civil defense litigation. He graduated with University Honors from BYU in 1995 with a combined Bachelors and Masters degree in Public Policy and Political Science. He received his law degree in 1998 from BYU where he was a member of the Law Review and the National Moot Court team. He is the former COO & General Counsel of Cruise Lady. Before that, he was a Utah Assistant Attorney General in the Litigation Division and Employment Law Section. In 2018, he was awarded the Attorney of the Quarter Award for the Attorney General's office. Before that, he was a Senior General Attorney at Union Pacific Railroad where he handled a variety of litigation matters. Prior to that, he was a shareholder at the law firm of Strong & Hanni where he defended products manufacturers and construction companies in personal injury cases. In 2009 he was appointed by Governor Herbert to serve on Utah’s Privatization Policy Board. He has authored various changes to the Utah Rules of Civil Procedure and Utah Code. He has published articles in the Utah Bar Journal, and the Journal of Law and Family Studies. He is the Executive Vice President of The Interpreter Foundation and was the Executive Vice President of FAIR from 2013-15. He was the recipient of the John Taylor Defender of the Faith Award, and was a producer of FAIR’s podcast when it twice won the People’s Choice Award for Best Podcast in the Religion & Spirituality category. He is also a radio-show host, an award-winning photographer and a certified travel agent. He served a Hmong-speaking mission in the California Sacramento Mission. He and his wife Heather are the parents of four children and have two granddaughters. He has appeared on CNN, C-Span, BBC Radio, KUTV, KTVX, KSL Radio, KTKK Radio, and Swiss TV.
Honors Thesis: Redundancy as a Policy Option: An Examination of the Social Services Funded by CDBG in 1994
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/steven-densley-9736b18/
Joseph O. Evans, 2023
Joe Evans is a Technology & IP Transactions Attorney in the Salt Lake City office of Kirkland & Ellis. He graduated from BYU in 2023 with University Honors, completing a BS in Accounting, MAcc, and JD simultaneously. He enjoys challenging situations and using creativity to solve problems. He and his wife Ashley love their two dogs, and enjoy good food. Joe also enjoys movies, singing, comedy, and all things football.
Honors Thesis: Elevating the Silicon Slopes
Brandon Gassaway, 2011
Brandon Gassaway is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at Brigham Young University, whose research focuses on functionalizing protein post-translational modifications using thermal stability proteomics and phospho-amino acid orthogonal translation systems. He completed his PhD at Yale University, where he investigated mechanisms of insulin resistance using phosphoproteomic analysis. While at Yale, Brandon was named to the inaugural class of Gruber Fellows, and completed the Medical Research Scholars Program and received the Certificate of College Teaching Preparation. Brandon then began a post-doctoral fellowship in the laboratory of Dr. Steven Gygi, where he developed methods to functionalize protein post-translational modifications. During his fellowship, Brandon also joined the laboratory of Dr. Marcia Haigis, where he applied the methods he developed in the Gygi lab to models of T cell activation, as well as various cancer models. Brandon joined the faculty at BYU this year. His lab at BYU is currently investigating protein phosphorylation in models of Alk resistance in non-small cell lung cancer, liposarcoma, and will soon be working with Ewing sarcoma, as well as cysteine oxidation in an aging model of non-small cell lung cancer. He notes that a highlight of his undergraduate experience at BYU was performing with the International Folk Dance team and touring eastern Europe. In his spare time, Brandon coaches kids soccer.
Honors Thesis: The Role of Inwardly-Rectifying Potassium Channels in Drosophila Development
Website: https://labs.chem.byu.edu/gassaway-lab
Craig Hughes, 1986
Craig Hughes is a Partner at Hughes & Misener Law in Salt Lake City. Craig focuses on conflict-prevention estate planning; estate tax law; trust administration, and probate litigation. He received a BA in English from BYU, and JD from Duke University. Craig has litigated dozens of high-conflict inheritance cases in Utah courts involving parties ranging from hostile fiduciaries and second marriage parties to entitled beneficiaries. He has translated this experience into high-conflict full-proof estate planning. Craig is the author of three Utah Bar Journal articles, which relate to high-conflict prevention planning, and four Utah statutes passed by the Utah State legislature designed to prevent and contain high-conflict inheritance disputes. Craig has been married for 40 years to Karen Jonsson Hughes. He served a mission in Munich, Germany. He has four adult children and four grandchildren. He is an avid and dedicated swimmer, and he and Karen love to bike and hike. They both enjoy all kinds of music, love to read and he is an avid book collector with over 5,000 volumes, including many first editions!
Honors Thesis: Determining Hawthorne's Views of Puritanism: Some Distinctions
Website: www.EstateEssentials.com
Adam Johnson, 2023
Adam Johnson is Chief of Staff for the Cicero Group, a premier management consulting firm focused on implementing data-driven strategies for a broad mix of private, public, and social sector organizations across the globe. Cicero is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah. Adam serves on several nonprofit boards, currently working in Zimbabwe, Philippines, and Honduras. Adam graduated with a degree in Political Science with an emphasis in international strategy and diplomacy and was named a 2023 Truman Scholar. Adam is married to Deveney Reber, and is trying to learn the harmonica in his free time.
Honors Thesis: An Evaluation of EPA Communication on Climate Change from 1997 to 2022
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adamroyaljohnson/
Ian McLaughlin, 2019
Ian McLaughlin is a Law Clerk at the Utah Supreme Court. He graduated with a history degree in 2019. After a brief stint as a copy editor, he returned to BYU for law school. While there, he won the Best Brief Award in the Rex E. Lee Moot Court Competition and served as president of the American Constitution Society. He graduated cum laude in 2023. He then clerked for the Honorable Ryan D. Tenney of the Utah Court of Appeals and currently clerks for the Honorable John A. Pearce of the Utah Supreme Court. Outside of work, he continues to pursue an interdisciplinary education by acting in local theater; writing plays, screenplays, and essays; and publishing and presenting in the field of Mormon Studies, on topics ranging from sex and Star Wars, to fictional depictions of Emma Smith. He is happy to chat with any Honors Program student!
Contact: imclaugh33@gmail.com
Honors Thesis: The paternal care of a Patriot legislature: Legislative Instructions, Rhetorics of Representation, and the Contested Boundaries of the Political Nation in Revolutionary War-Era Ireland, 1779-1785
Michael Nixon, 2020
Michael Nixon is Director of Strategy at Weslandia Ventures. He began his career at Anglepoint Consulting where he worked on a small team to pioneer a product that would later become the group’s primary product. After several years on the consulting side of the business, he recently made the shift to a more entrepreneurial role helping manage strategy for a portfolio of Utah based startups. Along the way, Michael has also worked as Managing Director of The Outdoor Adventure Crew, a 501c4 non-profit organization focused on helping people build relationships with the outdoors and each other. He has led The Crew through near exponential growth and expansion into 4 different states. Michael also serves on Utah’s Martin Luther King Jr. Human Right’s commission where he advises the Governor and other state leaders on certain human rights issues. From renovating a school bus for 3 months to travel to all the contiguous US national parks, to starting an outdoor group that runs 40+ trips annually, to building a Turo empire, Michael and his wife Allison are perpetually working on a variety of projects. They also just welcomed their first son. In his free time, Michael enjoys working out, swimming, meeting new people and trying new things.
Honors Thesis: Fight, Flight, or Freeze: Human Responses in a Business Strategy Environment
Andrew Orme, 2018
Andrew Orme is a Corrosion Control Process Engineer for Hill Air Force Base near Ogden, UT. He received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering with University Honors in 2018. He stayed at BYU to complete his M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, where he studied turbomachinery using computational fluid dynamics. After completing his Master’s degree in 2020, he took a position in mechanical engineering with the U.S. Air Force. In his current position at Hill Air Force Base he supports programmed depot maintenance processes for fighter aircraft. He plans to remain with the Air Force and explore the variety of jobs available to Mechanical Engineers. Andrew enjoys collecting and listening to vinyl records and roots for the McLaren Formula 1 racing team in his free time.
Honors Thesis: Evolution of MG AZ31 Twin Activation with Strain: A Machine Learning Study
Scott Perry, 1999
Scott Perry is a Radio Frequency Engineering Manager at Lockheed Martin. Scott graduated in 1999 with a BS in Physics, with University Honors and Honors in Physics. He then completed his MS in Physics at BYU, with thesis research in particle physics and analytical chemistry. Since then, Scott has worked in aerospace, in RF payloads and antennas. He currently works as an RF Engineering Manager at Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, CO. Scott continues to apply his training from BYU Singers, as he sings professionally as a soloist and chorister. He is the proud father of two current and two future BYU students.
Honors Thesis: Design, Construction, and Testing for an External-Beam Pixe System for Coin and Manuscript Analysis at Brigham Young University
Lorena Perry, 2002
Lorena Perry is a Music Teacher and Graphic Designer. Lorena graduated in 2002 with a BA in Graphic Design, and minors in Music, Dance and Family Science. While at BYU she performed with the BYU Singers, Concert Choir, Women's Chorus, Modern Dance Ensemble, Ballroom Dance summer team, the Folk Dance back-up tour team, and the Folk Music Ensemble. She has worked as a Graphic Designer for Close to My Heart, LogoWorks, Excutive Excellence and continues freelance work. She has a private music studio teaching voice, violin, piano, cello, viola and guitar. She is the founder and director of the Castle Rock Children's Choir, and performs professionally with the Opera Colorado (Denver), Ars Nova Sinters (Boulder), Gaudium Vern (Denver), and St Martin's Chamber Choir. She is also the section leader and soloist for several Denver area churches. She and her husband Scott (also a BYU Honors alum) have 4 children, two who are freshmen at BYU this year. Lorena has 10 siblings and 49 adorable nieces and nephews!
Honors Thesis: Classical and Ancient Near Eastern Influences on the Architectural Design of the Latter-Day Saint Nauvoo Temple
Facebook: https://m.facebook.com/CastleRockChildrensChoir/
Chelsea Romney, 2015
Dr. Chelsea Romney is an Assistant Professor of Psychology who specializes in introductory psychology, psychology of gender, psychological statistics, and social psychology. Dr. Romney earned her Doctorate at the University of California Los Angeles in health psychology with a minor in quantitative psychology and earned her Bachelor of Science in psychology with a minor in statistics here at BYU. Her research areas include social relationships and health, and inclusive classroom practices. Dr. Romney enjoys snowboarding, yoga, flag football, and audiobooks. You can also find her going to plays and concerts with her husband and building forts with her three-year-old daughter.
Honors Thesis: Exogenous Oxytocin Increases Heart Rate Variability