By Micaela Myers
The University of Wyoming reaches every corner of the state through outreach, delivers a world-class education to undergraduate and graduate students in more than 200 areas of study, conducts important research in a broad array of disciplines, offers Division 1-A athletics and proudly shares Wyoming’s famous bucking horse icon. For all these reasons and many more, friends and family of the university enjoy a unique sense of pride and devotion to UW.
UW embraces incoming students with support and opportunity, and by the time students don their caps and gowns at graduation, most are already becoming lifelong supporters of the university. Here, we explore this cycle of life that keeps the UW family growing strong.
Students at UW have a wealth of opportunities beyond the classroom, including Division 1-A, intramural and club sports; the WYO-Gold Student Alumni Association; Associated Students of UW (ASUW); more than 250 recognized student organizations through the Wyoming Union Campus Activities Center; residential leadership development experiences through UW Residence Life and Dining Services; undergraduate student research experiences; recreation and outdoor programs; fraternities and sororities; student professional societies; and mentoring programs. In addition, UW offers the single largest study abroad scholarship endowment in the United States, with hundreds of students studying abroad each year. These opportunities allow UW students to gain an international perspective, meet people around the world, learn leadership skills, shape their own experiences and create their own adventures.
“Being a student at UW provided me with the chance to study abroad at the University of Costa Rica,” says Daniel De Cecco of Green River, Wyo., who also traveled to Mexico before graduating with degrees in business economics and international studies in May 2014. “Understanding our world from the perspective that people are different but that we share many of the same values has been very important to me.”
Student Claire Dinneen of Cheyenne, Wyo., wasn’t sure she wanted to go to school in state, not realizing the opportunities available at UW or that the university is home to students from all 50 states and more than 94 countries. Since arriving, she’s made the most of her experience with a plethora of activities that helped her determine who she is and where she wants to go in life.
"I’ve been an ASUW senator for the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources for two terms and am also chair of the ASUW Programming Committee,” says the senior majoring in microbiology and French. “I’ve learned a lot about myself leadership-wise.”
Dinneen also serves as an Ag Ambassador, an orientation leader and a prospector for UW’s student visit programs. “I like to talk to potential students, especially since I can relate to someone coming from Wyoming,” says the third-generation UW student. “I like to provide insight to new students when arriving on campus to encourage them to try to accomplish anything that comes to mind. UW students are the ones who represent this really great institution—we represent a lot of pride and a lot of good opportunities.”
Dinneen’s involvement includes being a member of the Student Affairs Student Advisory Board, teaching fitness classes at Half Acre Gym and conducting undergraduate research in partnership with the Laramie Downtown Clinic to determine the efficacy of probiotics supplements provided to patients. She also studied abroad at Shanghai Normal University in the summer of 2012 and is participating in a 2014–15 student exchange with the University of Massachusetts
Dinneen believes her extracurricular involvement goes hand in hand with coursework. “I don’t think I’d be the same student in class if I weren’t involved in leadership on campus,” she says.
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"I like to provide insight to new students when arriving on campus to encourage them to try to accomplish anything that comes to mind. UW students are the ones who represent this really great institution—we represent a lot of pride and a lot of good opportunities." —Student Claire Dinneen |
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