Meriel LeSueur Reflects on her Honors Colloquium Coursework
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Interviews with TCU Students About their Research
Video Segments:
How did you first learn about honors colloquia? 0:04-0:52
What classes have you taken? 0:52-1:13
Do you have a favorite? 1:13-1:54
What have these classes taught you? 1:54-3:05
What is the most challenging part of these classes? 3:05-4:03
What are the benefits of these classes? 4:03-5:05
Advice for those choosing between departmental honors or colloquia? 5:05-5:55
What’s your advice for students going into colloquia? 5:55-6:45
Comments from Mentors
"I had the great pleasure of getting to know Meriel during my Music, Technology, and Values colloquium in Fall 2016. Meriel is in many ways the ideal University Honors student: intelligent, inquisitive, and eager to make meaningful connections between seemingly disconnected courses and experiences. She frequently brought in topics from her other colloquia, and put in the time and energy to discover how our in-class discussions could enrich her own research interests."
"In addition to pursuing University Honors, Meriel has also pursued Departmental Honors in Biology. As part of this endeavor, Meriel began volunteering in my Environmental Toxicology laboratory as a sophomore. She has worked on a variety of projects since joining the lab and has been a pleasure to work with. Working alongside graduate student Leah Thornton, Meriel assisted with a project aimed at developing the fathead minnow, a small fish species, as a model for immunotoxicity assessments. Her participation on this project has led to several presentations at scientific meetings, a Best Student Poster Award from the Texas Chapter of the American Fisheries Society and a peer-reviewed publication in Fish and Shellfish Immunology. Meriel is now completing her honors thesis project, which aims to better understand how exposures to chemicals that suppress thyroid hormone production alter immune function and disease resistance. Needless to say, Meriel has been quite productive as a student researcher! On a more personal note, Meriel is driven, hardworking and always strives for excellence, making her a standout student. Though I am excited to see what Meriel’s future holds, I will miss her affable and witty nature and her endless supply of Abraham Lincoln factoids!"