You've probably heard about the recent boost in popularity for the KU Beekeeping Club (KUBC), who signed up nearly 300 Jayhawks at this fall's Hawkfest and Unionfest alone. Not only is the club experiencing rapid growth in membership; they've also found success as a small business, making use of their members' wide-ranging talents to sell everything from honey and lip-balm to stickers and t-shirts.

The opportunities and applications that can stem from subjects like Numerical Analysis and Scientific Computing seem to be endless in a world where technology grows at a rapid pace. KU's Avary Kolasinski has utilized her love for these subjects to produce meaningful research and to program theoretical results. The applications of this research affect a variety of fields including but not limited to physics and computer science.

Fengxue Zhang, a junior from Hays, is studying economics, political science, and creative writing. After moving to the United States from China as a child, Fengxue jumped from major to major before finding a home in the College.

In addition to her studies, Fengxue is a Student Advisory Board member of the Dole Institute, the Co-Curation Director for TEDxKU, and the Public Relations Director for the Chinese Students and Scholars Friendship Association. Learn more about Fengxue in our latest student feature.

Growing up in Kansas City, Courtland Triplett always knew he wanted to bring positive change to the world but struggled to find the right path to achieve that goal. After carefully considering his options, he found that path in government, and at KU, he discovered a program and people dedicated to equipping him with the tools necessary to tackle real-world problems faced by communities at home and across the globe.

How are social norms about gender and sexuality perpetuated through portrayals of robots and other digital entities in sci-fi storytelling? What can these treatments in popular media tell us about the societies in which we live, and how can scholars challenge these narratives?

Trevor Bashaw has found an outlet for his creativity in KU’s Department of English. He’s the winner of the Spencer Museum Brosseau Creativity Award for his diverse media project that combines poetry, critical and philosophical writing, personal accounts and visual art. Committee members were impressed by his ability to “connect personal experience in such a complicated, multilayered work.” Learn more about Bashaw and his award winning project in our student spotlight.

Hometown: Santa Monica, CA

What are your research interests and why did you choose them? Was there a moment when you decided this is what you wanted to study? What was that journey like?

Where are you from? And why did you decide to come to KU?

Where are you from? And why did you decide to come to KU?

I’m from Overland Park, Kansas. I decided to come to KU because I attended a summer camp here with Duke TiP in middle school, and I absolutely fell in love with campus. It’s also a nice mix of just close enough to home, but just far enough, too.

Program of study and year: 3^rd year Ph.D. Student in Theatre

Hometown: Kansas City, MO

Hometown: Tonganoxie, Kansas 

Major(s) / Minor(s): Communication Studies / Journalism 

Internship title and organization:  Social Media and PR intern for the Kansas City T-Bones 

What were your responsibilities during the internship? I was responsible for running the team Snapchat account, and I helped out with the other social media accounts. I was also responsible for helping out with promotions and really just assisting my boss in any way she needed. 

Preferred Name: Everyone calls me A-A-Ron, but Aaron works too!

Major(s) & Minor(s): I’m not going to lie, I’ve been jumping around in the Biology field quite a bit, but I’m currently majoring in microbiology pre-medicine.

Where are you from? And why did you choose to come to KU? 

I’m from El Paso, Texas originally, but as a child we moved quite a bit and settled in Newton, Kansas. My mother wanted me to stay in state and study Engineering. KU had all of those and the distance from home made it the best fit.