Nigerian emerges US varsity’s best graduating student

Nigerians just keep breasting the tape and earning their due recognition and respect in foreign institutions.

Peace Eze with a GPA of 3.82 is the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s 2017 Outstanding Graduate of the fall graduating class.

She is a Geology major with a concentration in Petroleum Geology and a minor in Mathematics.

Each spring and fall semester, deans from the university’s eight academic colleges nominate a student as an Outstanding Graduate, based on leadership, scholarship and service.

A selection committee of the alumni association then interviews the candidates and selects one to receive the overall award.

 

This year, it is Peace Eze.

According to information gleaned from the website of the University of Louisiana, Peace Eze is the Outstanding Graduate for the Ray P. Authement College of Sciences.

She was vice president of the University Honors Council, multicultural officer for the University Program Council, and secretary for the African Students Association.

Miss Eze was named Outstanding Senior at Ragin’ Recognition and Miss Umoja Scholarship Queen.

She was said to have collaborated with faculty members from Stanford University on a research project called ‘Seismic Characterization of the Terrebone Mini Basin: A Hydrate Rich Depositional System in the Gulf of Mexico’. At the university, she conducted research in paleoclimate studies.

Her scholarships include the Fleur des Lis International Scholarship and a National Association of Black Geoscientists Scholarship.

She is a member of the UL Honors Program.

(The Honors program, according to its Director, Dr Julio Frederick, “is a program which allows students to seek excellence in their scholarship and deeper learning.

“To do just that, it allows them to pursue active learning and allows them to pursue, in many ways, a sort of network of knowledge that they create.”)

Peace is also a member of the Alpha Lambda Delta Honors Society and the National Collegiate Honors Council. She is the vice president of the UL Lafayette National Society of Black Engineers.

She developed a tutoring program in mathematics, science and English for underprivileged students, and volunteered with Habitat for Humanity, the Big Event and New Hope Community Development of Acadiana.

Peace, the daughter of Peter and Lillian Eze, who both reside in Lafayette, La., plans to pursue a master’s degree in Geology from the university.

Other awardees together with Peace include Annie B. Briley, who is the Outstanding Master’s Graduate (both received their awards Monday ceremonies at the UL Lafayette Alumni Center, and were later recognised during the Fall 2017 Commencement at the Cajundome).

Eze was nominated by the Ray P. Authement College of Sciences. She joined seven other Outstanding Graduate nominees, including: Lauren Lawson, College of the Arts; Andrew Albritton, B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration; Julia Ross, College of Engineering; Brandy K. Milliman, College of Education; Ashley Bernard, College of Liberal Arts; Patrick Williamson, College of Nursing and Allied Health Professions; and Sarah Martin, University College.

Briley is the Outstanding Master’s Graduate for the B.I. Moody III College of Business Administration. Other nominees included: Donald J. Arceneaux, Department of Industrial Technology; Dylan Harrell, College of Liberal Arts; Yi He, Department of Civil Engineering; and Bin Wang, Department of Petroleum Engineering.