Trips & Traditions: QUESTees Look Ahead to Thanksgiving

With midterm season officially upon us, deadlines for final projects coming up, and other extracurricular activities in the mix, students and staff are definitely deserving of a break. Luckily, Thanksgiving break is just around the corner! With that in mind, I spoke with some fellow QUEST students and staff to hear about their upcoming plans.

First, I spoke with Pranav Katakam (Cohort 42) to hear the rundown for his plans this year. “So, our family doesn’t do too much but we try to all get together each year and watch a movie.” Katakam also mentioned his family cooks up some delicious meals, but they’re not the typical American Thanksgiving meals like stuffing or turkey. Instead, Katakam’s family chooses to make traditional food that they grew up with. “My family’s vegetarian and we usually just eat a bunch of Indian food.” These include dishes like Puri with Channa masala, palak paneer, and rice with cumin seeds. Katakam mentions he still likes to buy a couple of American dishes as well. “You can’t go wrong with some mac and cheese and Costco pumpkin pie!” Yum, those all sound delicious! I’m definitely hungry now.

After hearing from Katakam, I reached out to a couple of amazing QUEST faculty members. Emily Marks, the QUEST program coordinator, spoke about traveling to Philadelphia. “Usually, I just see my family for Thanksgiving, but this year we are switching things up! I’m meeting up with some friends and going to the parade in Philly.” On top of that, Marks mentioned they are planning to cook a meal together consisting of turkey, sweet potato casserole, cranberry sauce and apple pie for dessert! She is also joining a book club with her friends which will be a new tradition for her. “Overall I’m just really excited! I’m gonna have two Thanksgivings this year: one with my family in New Jersey and one with friends in Philly. I’ve never done that before, nor have I gone to Philly so this should be really fun!”

Lastly, I spoke with a fellow QUEST professor, Dr. Bardossy, who teaches QUEST course Applied Quantitative Analysis, (BMGT/ENES 438A.) Bardossy mentioned she originally is from Argentina, so Thanksgiving was not a holiday she grew up with. However, ever since she moved to the US, she’s tried to make the most of the break and have fun with family friends. These friends are originally from Chile and Uruguay. “I met them back in university and we all got along since we were all from South America and had that in common. It’s really great to be able to have this community.” In the past, she and her friends used to rent a house in the mountains down in West Virginia to celebrate together. Now that the friends are older and have kids of their own, the new tradition is to go to their friend’s house in Milwaukee. “It’s a really fun time. All of our kids are around the same age, so they have a chance to hangout and bond together while my friends and I can catch up too.” Although they didn’t grow up with American culture, Bardossy emphasizes the effort they still put into adopting some typical American traditions. These include preparing dinner with turkey and participating in a turkey trot fundraiser race each year! 

Wow! I’m ready to meet up with family and friends now, and I’m even more excited to eat some delicious food. Until then, I have some fellow QUEST friends and faculty to hangout with; join QUEST Social next Thursday, 11/21 for a fun QUESTgiving! In the spirit of Thanksgiving, that’s something I’m definitely thankful for!

Welcome Back to QUEST, Dr. Fox Troilo: Our Newest 190H Instructor

This semester, Cohort 9 QUEST alumnus Dr. Fox Troilo is making his return to the University of Maryland to be the newest BMGT/ENES190H instructor! He is co-teaching the QUEST introductory course with Dr. Ben Huffman. I had the opportunity to chat with him about his past experiences and life post-college, as well as his reason for returning.

Dr. Fox Troilo

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QUEST Serves: Giving Back

QUEST Serves is one of the seven student-led organizations that is dedicated to provide QUEST students with opportunities to get involved outside of the classroom. They focus on getting students involved in their community, helping students to plan events internally with QUEST as well as get involved in other charitable events in the community. I was able to sit down and talk with Ryan Goodman (Cohort 36), one of the leads for QUEST Serves, to get caught up on everything that QUEST Serves has already done this year and the events that are still coming up.

Ryan Goodman is a senior studying Finance from just outside of Philadelphia. One of the first few things we were able to talk about when we sat down was about why he joined QUEST Serves in the first place. “Ryan [Gerbes] (Cohort 33) was my inspiration. He always had an amazing passion and an energy.” It was Gerbes who helped Goodman find his community within QUEST (outside of his cohort) by getting Ryan involved in QUEST Serves. Goodman also said, “It is just such a rewarding experience to have a way to give back to the school.”

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Alumna Shares the Exciting World of Product Management with QUEST

The semester has started and for the second time, QUEST is offering a very exciting elective course: Product Management (BMGT438N)! This class is filled with twenty QUEST students, a lovely TA, an amazing professor, and many guest speakers that are excited to help the class learn about Product Management.

This semester, the course has a new professor, Jessica Alves De Sa, a Product Manager at Shopify and QUEST alumna from Cohort 16! She has experience in consulting and product management and is excited to share her knowledge with the class.

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Celebrating 30 Years of QUEST

It’s an exciting year for QUEST! This year marks the 30th anniversary of QUEST, formerly the IBM-Total Quality Program. This program was founded back in 1992 after winning a $1 million grant from IBM. Eight universities won the grant, but QUEST is the only program still in existence!

I had a chance to speak with Luke Muratore (Cohort 37), one of the QUEST students on the 30th anniversary planning committee to get more insight into what this celebration will entail.

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Priming Your Pitch: Tips From Hydraze CEO and QUEST Student Charles Grody

Charles Grody (Cohort 29) has been to countless pitch competitions. He has pitched Hydraze to CEOs and executives of companies including Under Armour and Hungry Harvest and traveled all the way to Toronto for a competition over winter break. He’s perfected his pitch and everything that precedes it. Because we have tons of entrepreneurial minds here in QUEST, I figured that it would be cool to capture his formula for many successes during his time growing Hydraze. I asked Charles some questions and his responses follow:

Charles, right, with his winnings at the Do Good Challenge

How do you find a “good” pitch competition?

Charles suggested that being active and engaged in entrepreneurship programs is key. He said, “I recommend finding the resources on campus that support entrepreneurs. I found out about the Do Good Challenge and Pitch Dingman through the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program (EIP). Then, competing in the Do Good challenge opened up my eyes to other resources.”

How do you prepare the content for a pitch?

Charles broke this down into four main steps.

Step 1: “If I’m doing a presentation from scratch, I like to storyboard ahead of time and figure out what the flow is. Start with a hook to draw people in and the way to do that really depends on what your product is. It is good to evoke emotion. That may mean pulling on people’s heartstrings or being funny. I choose the latter as I am talking about toilets. Use the storyboard outline to make sure you hit all the key points of the pitch.”

Step 2: “Once you have an idea of what you want to communicate on each slide, build out the slide deck with appropriate content.”

Step 3: “Create a script. The bottom line is to get your message across. For me, that means a script word-for-word. But for others, that may mean having three key points that need to be mentioned.”

Step 4: “Practice! And that may not be necessary for everyone. You don’t want to lose the right tone or passion in the pitch but definitely prepare in the way that makes you the most comfortable.”

What does the team do together to get ready? 

“As a team, the main thing is a good balance between individual and team practice, both of which are equally important. There’s a team chemistry component that can only be figured out when practicing as a group. You don’t have to be super nice when giving feedback as honesty will lead to progress.”

How do you get in the right mindset on the day of a pitch?

“I have to trust myself. You have to go up there knowing that you’ve practiced and that you’re well prepared.”

Charles at the Pitch Dingman award ceremony

Any final notes or advice?

“There is no such thing as a cookie-cutter pitch. Every pitch should have something special to it and should be able to stand out in its own right and impress people. Pitch what works best with your company, your passion, your feelings, and you’ll be an all-star.”

We cannot wait to see where Hydraze goes and where the next pitch will be. If you have any questions, Charles is happy to chat. He can be reached at cdgrody@gmail.com.

Celine Moarkech (Cohort 29) is a senior studying Data Analytics in Biotechnology.

QUEST Students Tackle The Unilever Case Competition

In mid-February, Unilever came to campus with a radical idea for a case competition: analyze the current Unilever product portfolio and create a new product line for the company that encompasses the Unilever values and connects with their Sustainable Living Plan.

Multiple teams competed, and it’s no surprise that each finalist in the case competition had at least one QUEST student on the team. I was able to speak to the members of the top three teams to get their opinion on the case competition and what they believe contributed to their success.

Derek Xiao is a junior and member of Q28, Sameera Polavarapu is a junior and member of Q27, and Jeff Zhao is a junior and member of Q28.

Jeff Zhao and his teammates (also QUEST students): Mingkai Xu (Q27), Joyce Zhou (Q29), and Megha Reddy (Q27).

1. Did you think the subject matter of this case competition was different from those you have done in the past? If yes, then how so?

Derek Xiao

I think this case competition was completely different than case comps I have done in the past because the prompt was a blank canvas that allowed for a lot of creativity. The prompt the teams were given was to analyze Unilever’s current product portfolio and introduce a new product that connected with their Sustainable Living Plan (SLP).

Sameera Polavarapu
My team is grateful to have been in the finals of this competition last year as well and the structure and content of the case was definitely similar. Both years, Unilever did a great job of using the case competition to teach company values to students.

Jeff Zhao

Definitely! In hindsight, this case competition’s focus was definitely focused on brand management and creativity of idea as opposed to the nitty-gritty details of the business plan and execution. Unilever as a company also has a huge focus on corporate social responsibility with its established “Unilever Sustainable Living Plan” and Bright Future platform. This added a unique “non-profit” twist on the case.

2. How did your team approach the problem you were given?

Derek Xiao

We approached the problem by diving into their 2016 annual report. This gave us a great understanding of Unilever’s segment performance, which brands they were expanding, and the mission of SLP. While one team member parsed through the 10-k, the other two members were gathering external market data about consumer trends in packaged goods. Ultimately, we leveraged this information during our ideation phase to capitalize on the current direction of the market.

Sameera Polavarapu

The prompt we were given asked us to design a new, purpose-driven brand for the Unilever portfolio, specifically one that followed Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan. Our team’s approach was to first find a gap in the portfolio, which we were able to do by creating a brand map. Next, we identified market trends within that gap and tried to align them with current issues we are passionate about. This allowed us to build a current, cohesive brand with a core purpose. The result was GLOW, a premium skincare line that supports the women’s rights movement by sourcing from solely female-owned, sustainable companies.

Jeff Zhao

The prompt was to introduce a purpose-driven brand to add to Unilever’s product portfolio. Instead of the traditional problem dissolution, we focused on the issues and social problems that our team members were passionate about and then focused on a product around that cause.

3. Were you able to leverage any knowledge from QUEST when working through the case?

Derek Xiao

I think my experience in QUEST had the most pay-off when designing our slide deck and preparing our presentation. At some point during our ideation phase, all the parts fell together, and we realized we had a winning product. However, having a great idea and communicating your idea are two separate beasts altogether. Thankfully, we were able to pull from our design and presentation experiences from QUEST successfully communicate our product and business model to the judges.

Sameera Polavarapu

Our team decided to enter our submission pretty last minute, so rather than spending the last moments fine tuning, we were rapidly working to craft a smart, well-thought-out brand.

I think that QUEST has really taught us to stay level headed at any moment, even when things seem stressful. The endurance and experience that QUEST has given us, whether that be from working in teams or designing slide decks, was at the core of our success.

Jeff Zhao

Of course. My favorite QUEST workshop was “How to Present 101.” Being able to build an aesthetically pleasing presentation and present a convincing argument are arguably even more important skills than coming up with the solution itself.

4. What do you think made your team so successful?

Derek Xiao

Our team was successful because we were passionate about our product. We had found a product that the market clearly needed, and we pushed each other to continue thinking outside the box when building the business model.

Sameera Polavarapu

My teammate, Didac Hormiga (Q28), and I both have relevant experience regarding case comps and marketing that was really valuable to our team in this competition. My internships have all been brand strategy based, and Didac is an entrepreneur. Using our collective knowledge, I think we were able to come up with an idea that is really primed for the market we were given to tackle.

Jeff Zhao

Not taking the case or ourselves too serious. Every meeting we were joking around and throwing around crazy ideas. This led to our team feeling extremely comfortable around each other and helped us end up with a pretty cool presentation and idea.

5. What advice to you have to other students in QUEST about approaching case comps?

Derek Xiao

I don’t know if this applies for all cases, but for prompts around introducing or changing a product, it is vitally important to understand the prompt before jumping into ideation. We spent a full 4-6 hours just reading through research before even beginning to throw out ideas. This way you will have an understanding of the customer needs and can build around them. Once you have your idea, storyboard out your deck, and write down the main point for each slide. It’s an investment that will pay off 10x moving forward in helping to build a cohesive story.

Sameera Polavarapu

My advice would be to find a great team, don’t be too afraid of the results, make it fun, and just jump in! QUEST teaches us so much about working efficiently in teams, working under pressure, and thinking strategically—all skills that have prepared us really well for opportunities like case competitions.

Jeff Zhao

Be thorough and diligent with every single aspect of the case: budget, financials, go-to-market strategy, pricing, etc. Always generate ideas in 5 and take the top 3. Design is important. Telling a convincing story is just as important. Anticipate the questions and reflect that in your appendix. Ask yourself, “What can I do in 5 minutes to take this presentation to the next level?” at the end of every work session.

 

 

Reflecting on QUEST’s First Winter Orientation

QUEST Camp (or Orientation) is the first introduction students have to the culture of quality and innovation within QUEST. In only two days, teams are formed, relationships are made, and pilot products are pitched. All these activities prepare the students for not just 190H, but the program as a whole.

I spoke to four students who recently went to QUEST Camp to gain a better understanding of how they feel it’s shaped their experience so far. Cece and Andrew are both members of Q26 and are mentors for Q30 this spring. Carly and Barret are both members of Q30 and just started 190H this spring.

Carly (third from right) with her team and mentor!

Questions for the Q30 Students

What pushed you to apply to the QUEST program?

Barret – I wanted to be surrounded by some of the most ambitious and knowledgeable students at UMD and use this community to grow my personal skill set.

Carly – Everyone who I had met at the business school had been driven and had already gotten heavily involved with multiple organizations within Smith. I had also been searching for a community of people to be with that would inspire me to think outside of the box and talk about important issues. QUEST seemed like the perfect opportunity to meet those kinds of people and really expand my way of thinking.

When you first heard about QUEST camp, what were you expecting?

Barret – A bunch of team building exercises and ice breakers. I was excited to meet my team and my cohort, but I thought the ice breakers were going to be cheesy and repetitive.

Carly – I was expecting a lot of ice breakers and tents when I first heard about QUEST camp. Also, we were the first cohort that was going to be going in the winter, and I figured we were going to be absolutely freezing and outside the whole day. I think that most of my cohort knew very little about QUEST camp so we would be surprised when we got there. None of us were expecting to get so close to our team so fast or to be inspired by design thinking within the first hour of being there.

What was the most exciting part of the experience?

Barret – My team, Q Debut, won the pitch competition with our idea Drop Stop, which is a rubber lip that is placed on the end of gas nozzles to ensure that no gas is spilled onto the ground. This helps the environment and then saves money. I never win anything, so it was nice to see our team achieve some early success.

Barret presents during the pilot products presentations

Carly – The most exciting part about QUEST camp for me was learning about the values of all the people in my team. I was surprised that most of us valued time management and careful planning which made me excited to enter into group projects with them. I’ve never been in a group project where I really thought that everyone as going to put all of their effort into it. I’m excited to work with my team and learn more about areas I know absolutely nothing about.

What part of the camp pushed you the farthest out of your comfort zone?

Barret – The improv. I hate dancing/acting in front of other people, but my team just went for it full speed, and we had a great time. The activity definitely brought us closer together as a team and might have helped contribute to our success in the pitch competition.

Carly – One problem my team really struggled with was coming up with problems before we came up with solutions. QUEST really challenges you to go beyond surface level thinking and find the root cause of problems before trying to solve them. This is something I hadn’t thought about before and definitely has challenged me to reflect more on my day-to-day life. Our mentor constantly kept putting us back on the right track when we would get derailed.

How do you think the QUEST camp experience is going to help you as you move forward through the program?

Barret – QUEST is all about the people, and whether or not you have a good experience can depend on whether or not you have a good team. My team is closer because of camp, and I hope this carries into the semester.

Carly – As we move forward into the semester, I know that I have already learned the basic idea of QUEST from the days spent at QUEST camp. It was made extremely clear to us that everyone who has been through the 190H-490H experience (our mentors) has grown immensely from it. The professors that joined us at QUEST camp were so excited to welcome us into the program and appeared extremely passionate about the work they do here. It’s clear that the program really impacts students, and QUEST camp has definitely laid the foundation for that learning.

 

Questions for the Mentors

What do you think of the staggered QUEST camp model (excursions in the summer & winter)?

Cece – As a member of Q26, I experienced the old model. It was nice to be able to spend part of a day with our sister cohort Q25. However, during the semester, my cohort, including myself, felt detached from QUEST. I think this new model allows for there to be a natural flow and connection between what is learned at QUEST camp and what is experienced during 190H.

Cece (bottom middle) with her team

Andrew – I think that this model worked out well, given the circumstances! I think it provides the new spring cohort with a smoother transition into their QUEST journey with 190H following shortly after. Some of the activities had to be changed around for weather-related reasons, but I thought that the new activities (i.e. improvisations instead of high ropes, bonfire inside instead of outside) that replaced the summer ones were still effective and fun in their rights.

What was the hardest part about going through QUEST camp as a mentor?

Cece – As a team member and participant of QUEST, the activities are structured to help you break down barriers and build bonds with your team. As a mentor, you have to understand and recognize that. Therefore, I had to determine what my role should be in every activity to ensure I was assisting but not partaking in their QUEST camp experience as if it was my own. It was hard to find that line and make sure not to cross it.

Andrew – It was hard to hold myself back from acting like a team member, especially during the pilot products activity. Having gone through 190H, 390H, 490H, and other courses having team-related projects, I was caught by surprise at the difference the role of a mentor entails rather than being simply a team member. However, it soon became an easy adjustment to overcome, learning to leverage my previous experiences and insights to these situations.

In what way did your team exceed your expectations?

Cece – I worked with my team in brainstorming ideas for the Pilot Products but let them build the idea by themselves. So it wasn’t until the following day that I saw their full presentation, and it was better than I expected. The skit was funny and well planned and they communicated important information in a succinct way. It was better than my 190H team and our “nano-fibers.”

Andrew – Letting the team take most of the initiative to develop their product, I was surprised and excited to see the level of aptitude that this team had, both individually and collectively as a team. They developed ideas and built off each other’s idea for what they presented at QUEST camp without any knowledge of the lessons they’ll learn in 190H. In addition, they all indicated that each of them shared an attribute of effective and clear communication, something that will be vital to their success with the QUEST Honors Program, and it clearly showed when I was and wasn’t with them. 

How do you think the QUEST camp experience is going to help you as you move forward as a mentor?

Cece – It helped me begin to understand what my role is as a mentor. Making sure to be helpful but not helping will take a while to learn. It also helped me build a bond with my team. Playing the different games and getting more comfortable was important for my team to experience and myself as a mentor.

Andrew – The opportunity to meet my team and see how they function together provided me a clear idea of my role and position I need to have as their mentor this semester. Being able to see them work together as a team in a stress-free, grade-free environment provided me insight into better understanding the backgrounds of each team member, as well as served as a basis for which all my mentees can improve upon for the semester.

Andrew and his mentee, Kevin, during Improv

Four QUEST Students Selected as Philip Merrill Presidential Scholars

Four QUEST seniors, Chineme Obiefune (Q25), Sarina Haryanto (Q26), Miriam Silton (Q26), and Cece Ukejianya (Q26), were selected as 2017-2018 Philip Merrill Scholars. This award is bestowed to only three students per college and recognizes students for their outstanding achievements throughout their undergraduate career at UMD. Additionally, as part of the award, winners are able to recognize their mentors and teachers from K-12 and college who have helped them get to where they are today. The QUEST student winners represented a few of those chosen from the Robert H. Smith School of Business and A. James Clark School of Engineering. I had the recent pleasure of interviewing three of the award winners from QUEST: Chineme, Sarina, and Miriam.

Sarina Haryanto (Q26) and her mentors at the Philip Merrill Presidential Scholars Event

How did you get selected for the Presidential Scholars Award?

 Sarina: While I don’t know the exact details of how I was selected as a Presidential Scholar, I am aware that selection is determined through a nomination process. I received a letter from the Office of the Provost and Dean for Undergraduate Studies towards the end of the spring 2017 semester. Thank you to the individual or group in the Smith School who nominated me as a Presidential Scholar. I appreciate the recognition of my academic excellence and engagement in the Smith School. In addition to connecting with my peers in the QUEST and Smith communities, I believe that developing relationships with the wonderful and supportive Smith faculty and staff since my freshman year played a major role in this award.

Miriam: In the spring semester of 2017, I was notified by my advisor that I should apply for this award. After seeing what it was for, it was mainly for honoring mentors and teachers who have helped me along the way, and I don’t think they get enough recognition most of the time. So it was an opportunity for me to put in some work to do the application, and in the end, having [the teachers] know they’re appreciated, as well as providing a scholarship from my school to come to the University of Maryland. I was fortunate enough to be chosen for the award and help benefit a bunch of people as well.

Chineme: I got selected for the program by being nominated by the business school. To be completely honest, I don’t know about the specifics of the nomination process, but I work in the Smith Office of Undergraduate Studies with Dean Mullins so I have a feeling that may have had something to do with it.

Can you tell me about the teachers/professors that have influenced your academic career? 

Chineme Obiefune (Q25) and his mentors at the Philip Merrill Presidential Scholars Event

Sarina: In fifth grade, Miss Stuart nurtured my joy of reading and writing. I recall wandering around the media center and leaving with a bundle of books (Magic Tree House and the Alice series were some of my favorite reads!). I also remember reading The Phantom Tollbooth and writing my first “research paper” on grizzly bears in her class. Last year in SIF, Dr. Kirsch encouraged me to explore how business can create social and environmental impact. I loved engaging in SIF class discussions and learning new concepts that challenge my perspectives. Dr. Kirsch also provided my SIF team the opportunity to present our social enterprise ecosystems paper at a research conference in Italy.

Miriam: The K-12 mentor I chose to honor was my Calculus teacher from high school. She was an engineer for a few years and then switched career paths to become a high school teacher. She managed to make Calculus fun for me which stopped me from hating math. She encouraged me to pursue independent study Calculus 3, which helped prepare me for college, as well as showed me that women can go into engineering. She also provided the insight into the possibility of becoming a high school teacher or college lecturer in order to give back to the community in the same way.

Chineme: Life can be challenging, but I’m blessed to have mentors that I can look up to and consult for advice when it comes to making big decisions. Ms. Irene Bademosi was one of my strongest supporters in high school. When people underestimated my potential, she made sure I never undervalued myself. She taught me to hustle for what is mine and to be grateful for all the blessings that I receive. Here at Maryland, Dr. Pamela Armstrong helped to give my career some direction. I came to college not knowing where I fit in the world of business, but after joining the QUEST program and working with Dr. Armstrong, my path became much clearer. She exposed me to design thinking and the importance of empathy in business and modeled these behaviors in all aspects of her life. Both Ms. Bademosi and Dr. Armstrong have made valuable contributions to my life. I’m still figuring a lot of things out, but with their guidance, I am confident that I will be able to navigate the multitude of decisions awaiting me in the years to come.

How has this award influenced you academically, professionally, personally, etc.?

Miriam Silton (Q26) and her mentors at the Philip Merrill Presidential Scholars Event

Sarina: This award has made me realize and better appreciate the role of educators in my life. All too often people focus on the result rather than the process. For example, college students can be obsessed with grades. I value academic excellence and am interested in graduate school, so of course, I strive to do well in my classes. However, exploring things out of curiosity and intrinsic motivation is so much more fulfilling than “checking the box” for required classes.

Learning and sharing knowledge outside of the classroom goes a long way. My mentors have inspired me to embrace lifelong learning and explore a different kind of supply chain, “the education supply chain.”

Miriam: It was nice to be recognized in a way that gave credit to those mentors who’ve helped me get to where I am today. It made me stop and think and really look back and think who I want to pick out and honor. So by looking back and thinking of all the teachers that I’ve had and how much I’ve grown since first grade walking into public school for the first time, it really made me appreciate things, especially at this point in my college career as I’m getting ready to graduate and move forward and provide mentorship to other people.

Chineme: This award has been most influential personally. It’s forced me to reevaluate myself and figure out how to improve all aspects of my life. The people that spoke at the luncheon were smart, poised, and passionate. Listening to them speak and receiving this award was another reminder of how much more I need to learn and experience in life to truly call myself successful.

 

Congratulations to these QUEST seniors for being selected for the award. A comprehensive list of the awardees from each college can be found here.