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Graduating with Excellence and Distinction

Congratulations April '25 Honors Graduates!


Graduating from BYU with University Honors is no small feat, achieved by only one percent of the graduating class! It is the highest academic distinction awarded by BYU to students at the undergraduate level, and is widely recognized as an indication of exceptional academic achievement. It takes careful planning, hard work, and collaboration with faculty and students alike. Each Honors graduate has demonstrated broad thinking, creative problem solving, and influential leadership and joins the ranks of BYU Honors alumni serving their broader communities. We congratulate you for your remarkable achievements! Meet the April graduates below.

Annabella May Blowers

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Major: English
Thesis: Challenging the Master Narrative of Holocaust Victimhood: Examining the Holocaust Through a Gendered Lens
Awarded "Most Innovative Research" at the 2025 Thesis Poster Session (faculty vote)
Advisor: Robert Christensen
Plans After Graduation: Annabella will be attending BYU Law School this fall.

Siena Christensen

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Major: Linguistics
Thesis: The Effects of Social Learning on Second Language Acquisition andMemory: an fNIRS Study
Advisor: Dan Dewey
Plans After Graduation: Sienna will pursue a PhD in Language Science at UC Irvine this fall.

Holden Daniel Clark

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Major: Computer Science
Thesis: Seeing the Storm: Leveraging Multimodal LLMs for Disaster Social Media Video Filtering
Awarded "Favorite Thesis Poster" at the 2025 Thesis Poster Session (student vote)
Advisor: Amanda Hughes
Plans After Graduation: Holden will pursue a Master's in Computer Science here at BYU this fall.

Zoe Anne Cook

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Major: Communications
Thesis: Adjudicating Utah Public Records Requests: A Textual Analysis of Relevant Appellate and Supreme Court Decisions
Advisor: Ed Carter
Plans After Graduation: Zoe is attending law school this fall.

Sophia Claire Cranney

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Major: Psychology
Thesis: Supporting Student Mothers: A Study of Well-Being, Challenges, and Resource Accessibility at Brigham Young University
Advisor: Chelsea Romney
Plans After Graduation: Sophie will be working as a research assistant at the University of Utah.

Israel Davila Aleman

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Major: Physiology and Developmental Biology
Thesis: Extracellular Vesicle Markers of Disease Progression of Helicobacter Pylori Infection to Gastric Cancer
Advisor: Amber Gonda
Plans After Graduation: Israel will pursue an MD/PhD degree. 

Britton Parker Davis

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Majors: Economics / Spanish Studies
Thesis: Delaying Marriage and Its Impact on Future Income: A Historical Econometric Analysis (1900-1940)
Advisor: Joseph Price
Plans After Graduation: Britton will pursue a PhD in Economics at Notre Dame this fall.

Gabrielle Reece DeMarco

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Major: Environmental Science and Sustainability
Thesis: Determining the Influence of Habitat Complexity on Fish Diversity and Abundance in Hawaiian Coral Reefs
Awarded "Best Visual Presentation" at 2025 Thesis Poster Session (student vote)
Advisor: Richard Gill
Plans After Graduation: Gabrielle will attend law school.

Sarah Marie Denton

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Major: Family Life
Thesis: “It Is Now in Flames, But It Will Never Burn Down”: A Conservation of Resources Perspective on Resilience in the Yugoslav Wars
Advisor: Alyssa Witting
Plans After Graduation: Sarah will pursue a Master's in Psychology at the University of Chicago this fall.

Hope Elise Detweiler

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Major: Marketing
Thesis: ConnectHer: Connecting Women in the BYU Marriott School to the Workplace and to Each Other’s Success (With a Ten-Step Job Search Guide)
Advisor: Lisa Jones
Plans After Graduation: Hope plans to work in Marketing.

Ian Hyrum Goodwin

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Major: Mathematics
Thesis: Machine Learning for Time Series Prediction in Psychotherapy
Advisor: Zach Boyd
Plans After Graduation: Ian plans to pursue a Master's in Operations Research this fall.

Gloriana Chandelle Guillermo

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Major: Strategic Management
Thesis: Do ESGs Do Any Good? The Problem of Aggregation in Corporate Social Responsibility Literature
Advisor: Ben Lewis
Gloriana will attend law school at the Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law this fall.

James Oren Hamilton

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Major: Economics
Thesis: The Efficient Judges Hypothesis: Testing the Role of Public Sentiment in ALJ Decisions
Advisor: Riley Wilson
Plans After Graduation: James will be working as an analyst for Analysis Group.

Bethany Elisabeth Hartwell

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Major: Psychology
Thesis: Intermittent Pneumatic Compression and Heart Rate Variability
Advisor: Michael Larson
Plans After Graduation: Bethany is applying for medical school for 2026.

Hannah Zelta Hendricks

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Major: Sociology
Thesis: Between the Bear’s Ears: Content Analysis Exploring Concerns About the Designation of the Bears Ears National Monument
Advisor: Michael Cope
Plans After Graduation: Hannah will be pursuing a MS/PhD from Penn State in Rural Sociology this fall.

Sophie Elisabeth Hirtle

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Majors: Comparative Literature / French Studies
Thesis: More Than a Vessel: Presentations of the Mother in Lucie Delarue-Mardrus’ Marie, Fille-Mère; Pagu’s Parque Industrial; And Nella Larsen’s Quicksand
Advisor: Sara Phenix
Plans After Graduation: Sophie plans to attend graduate school this fall.

Anna Louise Jacob

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Major: Sociology
Thesis: How Length of Residence Moderates the Relationship Between Time and Community Satisfaction in Rural Utah
Advisor: Michael Cope
Plans After Graduation: Anna will pursue a PhD in Sociology at The Ohio State University this fall.

Ellen Elisabeth Jensen

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Major: English
Thesis: Hoping for a Better World: Utopian Performatives in Jez Butterworth's "The Hills of California"
Advisor: Wade Hollingshaus
Plans After Graduation:  Lily will pursue a Master's in English here at BYU this fall.

Parker Nicholas Johns

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Major: Chemical Engineering
Thesis: Measuring the Growth of a Bacteria Encapsulated Within a Droplet of Growth Media Suspended in Oil for Rapid Antibiotic Susceptibility Tests in Microfluidic Devices
Advisor: William Pitt
Plans After Graduation: Parker will be working as a Project Engineer at Cascade Energy.

Nicholas Brian O'Connor

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Majors: Mathematics / Economics
Thesis: Exploring the Effects of Red-Light Camera System Policy on Intersection-Related Crashes
Advisor: Emily Leslie
Plans After Graduation:  Nicholas will be working as a public policy analyst.

Brooklyn Clark Olson

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Major: Mechanical Engineering
Thesis: Improvement of a Novel Motorized Quinoa Washer for Single-Family Farmers
Advisor: Randy Lewis
Plans After Graduation: Brooklyn will pursue a Master's in Mechanical Engineering here at BYU this fall.

Olivia Marie Osguthorpe

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Major: Sociology
Thesis: Adding Virtue: The Leadership of Elaine Dalton
Advisor: Barbara Gardner
Plans After Graduation: Olivia will pursue a graduate degree in Instructional Psychology and Technology here at BYU.

Elijah Lorence Pearce

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Major: Editing and Publishing
Thesis: The Readable Scriptures: Creating a Dyslexia-Friendly Book of Mormon
Advisor: Jeffrey Green
Plans After Graduation: Elijah plans to work in the editing and publishing field.

Kendra Alexis Pinegar

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Major: International Relations
Thesis: Measuring Support for Democracy Through Public Understanding: A Conjoint Survey Approach
Advisor: Darin Self
Plans After Graduation: Kendra plans to attend graduate school.

Marcia Jones Tagg

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Majors: Comparative Literature / Portuguese Studies
Thesis: Environmental Justice: Healing Environmental and Societal Wounds in The Overstory and Torto Arado
Advisor: Rex Nielson
Plans After Graduation: Marcia will attend graduate school here at BYU in Comparative Studies or Portuguese

Hannah Madeline Tran

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Major: Computer Science
Thesis: Regulation of Cell Cycle Proteins at the Extremes of Copy Number Variation in Cancer
Advisor: Matthew Bailey
Plans After Graduation: Hannah will pursue a Master's in Biology here at BYU this fall.