Congratulations to the College of Humanities’ Outstanding Senior for Spring 2019, Chelsea Forer!
Forer graduates with honors, completing a double major in Religious Studies and Biological Anthropology and spent two years as a College of Humanities Student Ambassador. This summer, she will intern at the International Rescue Committee and has plans to continue her education in graduate school.
“More than I can express, the College of Humanities is where my community exists, where I find my home,” she told fellow graduates at the Spring 2019 Convocation.
“We are where we have been. My journey began on the Hopi Reservation, continued to the hillsides of Monticello, the Dragon Kingdom of Bhutan, and the linguistic treasures of Jordan, and promises to lead to unknown and beautiful places in the future,” Forer said. “No matter which department we are in, we are the countless ways in which we embody languages, literatures, and cultures. We seek to understand culture by traveling abroad and engaging with communities both local and global.”
Rae Dachille, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies, was Forer’s mentor and honors thesis advisor, and nominated her for the award.
“Chelsea is a rising star in her cohort. She has embraced the highest standard of religious studies scholarship expanding her efforts beyond the classroom to conduct study and research abroad in Bhutan and Jordan and to undertake intensive language study in Arabic,” Dachille said. “Chelsea’s incredible commitment to service to the College of Humanities as well as to the broader Tucson community while balancing a rigorous program of interdisciplinary research and study truly set her apart. Her intellectual promise, emotional maturity, willingness to collaborate, and deep respect for alternative ways of thinking about the world are exemplary.”
Forer said Humanities majors embody an interdisciplinary approach to education that will serve her and her fellow graduates well in any field they pursue.
“Within our intellectual pursuits, in which we have demanded integrity, encouraged rigor, and inspired intellect, we have also cultivated empathy and competence, awareness and compassion,” she said. “As Humanist scholars, we are uniquely suited to address our communities’ most pressing issues. We are the present and future stewards and leaders of our globe.”