Fairfax College Students Receive Academic Honors From Their Schools

FAIRFAX, VA — To shine a light on the academic achievements of college students from the Fairfax City area, Patch shares information provided by the students' families and Merit News.

John Fahmy, a resident of Fairfax, was named to the Bob Jones University Bruins men's soccer team roster for the 2022-23 academic year. Fahmy is a junior majoring in business administration at BJU's campus in Greenville, South Carolina.

Neal Devkaran of Fairfax was among the 18 student-athletes who chosen to represent the men's and women's tennis teams for the 2022-2023 at Kutztown University in Kutztown, Pennsylvania.

Fairfax residents John Asbaghi and James Cho were among the 1,660 graduate and undergraduate students to be awarded degrees at the end of the summer 2o22 semester at The Georgia Institute of Technology at Atlanta, Georgia.

Julius Gibson of Fairfax was one of the more than 650 cadets and students to receive gold starts in recognition of their academic achievements during the spring 2022 semester The Citadel in Charleston, South Carolina. Gold stars are awarded to cadets and students at The Citadel who achieved a 3.7 grade point average or higher. Cadets and students who achieve gold star recognition are also placed on The Citadel's dean's list.

The following people recently were initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines:

• Faisal Alanazi of Fairfax at George Mason University
• Tohfe Beidas of Fairfax at George Mason University
• Sophia Castle of Fairfax at George Mason University
• Nia Corpuz of Fairfax at George Mason University
• Mina Parsa of Fairfax at George Mason University
• Isabel Pigott of Fairfax at George Mason University
• Junchen Xia of Fairfax at George Mason University

Brigid Smullen of Fairfax performed in School of Music Professor Dr. Jeffery Ames' Nov. 4, 2022 debut of his masterwork composition Requiem for Colour at Belmont University's Fisher Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Music composition major Smullen performed in Belmont's Oratorio in front of an audience of more than 1,200 people.

Hunter Hoopes of Fairfax was among the 25 University of Alabama student-athletes who received diplomas during Winter Commencement in December. Hoopes was a member of the UA baseball team.

Tegan Pentek, an accounting major from Fairfax, competed in Alvernia University's debut Mock Trial tournament at the 17th annual Justice Louis D. Brandeis Mock Trial Invitational at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts. Students from various majors put their knowledge to practice and prepped with local Berks County attorneys through this experiential learning opportunity.

Celine Koko, a member of the Colgate University Class of 2024, earned the spring 2022 dean's award with distinction. Koko is a molecular biology major from Fairfax and is a graduate of St. Stephens & St. Agnes School. Students who received a term grade point average of 3.6 or higher while completing at least three courses during the spring 2022 semester earned the dean's award with distinction.

Twila Smith, a freshman history major from Fairfax, was among approximately 720 students named to the fall 2022 president's list at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. The president's list recognizes students who earn a 3.75 or higher grade point average for the semester.

Kendra Smith, a freshman special education major from Fairfax, was among approximately 850 students named to the fall 2022 dean's list at Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina. The dean's list recognizes students who earn a 3.00-3.74 grade point average during the semester.

The following were among the 429 students to be named to the president's list for the fall 2022 semester at Shenandoah University in Winchester, Virginia:

• Madison Shand of Fairfax
• Hannah Black of Fairfax
• Rachel Apostolico of Fairfax
• Kenna Malone of Fairfax
• Melon Semma of Fairfax
• Vinay Gadde of Fairfax
• Kelly Mickelson of Fairfax
• Margaret Hackshaw of Fairfax

To be named to the president's list at SU, students enrolled in baccalaureate degree programs must complete at least 12 semester hours and earn a semester GPA of 3.90 or higher.

Stacey Geissler of Fairfax was named to the dean's list for the 2022 fall semester at Midway University, in Midway, Kentucky. To be named to the list, full-time students must obtain a 3.60 grade point average for the semester.

Laura Ryan of Fairfax was named to the president's list for the fall 2022 semester at Mount St. Mary's University in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Ryan achieved a 4.0 grade point average. An additional 579 students made the Dean's List, for which a grade point average of 3.4 is required.

The College of Charleston in South Carolina recently awarded degrees to the following students during the winter 2022 commencement ceremony:

• Grace Westphall of Fairfax graduated with a bachelor of arts in computing in the arts and a bachelor of science in computer science.
• Catherine Howard of Fairfax graduated with a bachelor of science in special education.

Maxwell Bailey of Fairfax was named to the fall 2022 dean's list at the University of North Georgia in Dahlonega, Georgia, for achieving at least a 3.5 grade point average, carrying 12 or more credit hours in one semester and having no grade lower than B.

Darby Schmidt, a Fairfax student majoring in music, was named to the fall 2022 dean's honor list at Cedarville University, in Cedarville, Ohio. Students receive this achievement for obtaining a 3.75 GPA or higher for the semester and carrying a minimum of 12 credit hours.

Don't see your award-winning scholar among those appearing in this academic honors list? Send the details to Patch editor Michael O'Connell at michael.occonnell@patch.com and Patch will include them in a future post.