Provost’s Circle Scholars

Check out the stories of the 2022 Provost’s Circle Scholars below. You can also explore a full list of previous recipients.

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Jason Cobert
Baseball player Jason Cobert is a Neuroscience major from Bellevue, Washington, not far from Seattle. His parents are Steve Cobert and Sherilyn Smith.  After graduation, Jason hopes to go attend medical school. In his free time, he loves skiing, hiking, rock climbing, wake surfing and anything outdoors. Jason says he came to the University of Rochester because of “the mix of an empowering academic atmosphere, ability to engage in undergraduate research and, most of all, the unique culture of the baseball team where everyone is family.”

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Rachel Dennis
Rachel Dennis hails from Renton, Washington, less than half an hour from Seattle. A Cross Country, Track and Field athlete, Rachel is majoring in Mathematics and minoring in German and Computer Science. Rachel is interested in applying her degree towards a career related to environmental protection; likely by researching the effects of climate change or modeling potential solutions. In thinking back on her choice of colleges, Rachel says, “I really liked the atmosphere of the campus. It felt very supportive and collaborative, and I could easily picture myself living here.” When she’s not studying or involved in athletics, Rachel is involved in the Protestant Chapel Community on campus.  She is the daughter of John and Shelli Dennis.

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Lucy Haggerty
Majoring in Microbiology on the pre-med track, and minoring in Psychology, Lacrosse player Lucy Haggerty is from nearby Victor, New York! She hopes to attend medical school after graduation.  Outside of the classroom, Lucy also enjoys skiing, wake surfing, and spending time with friends and family, including parents John and Jennifer Haggerty. Lucy is an Organic Chemistry teaching assistant and coaches youth lacrosse for Aces Elite Lacrosse Club in Rochester. “I chose the University of Rochester because of the high quality of academics and athletics that the school has to offer. The opportunities for students are endless and the campus and team cultures are very special!”

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Maxwell Hughes
Men’s Track and Field athlete Max Hughes came the U of R from Bliss, New York, outside of Buffalo. Max is majoring in both Chemistry and Biochemistry.  He’d like to attend graduate school to further his studies in organic chemistry and prepare for a career in synthetic chemistry. This diehard Buffalo Bills fan is the son of Dawn and Mark Hughes. Outside of his regular academic and athletic commitments, Max plays French horn in the UR Chamber Orchestra and UR Wind Symphony.  He also enjoys playing other sports whenever he can.

Max chose University of Rochester because he didn’t know of anyone else coming here.  “I was excited for the opportunity to grow my independence. However, it is close enough to home that my family is still able to be there when I need them. Additionally, while being on the track team was not an initial goal of mine, I knew that by coming to UR I would be able to keep this door open.”

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Matthew Kiel
Coming to the University of Rochester from Marietta, Georgia, outside of Atlanta, men’s swimming competitor Matt Kiel specializes in the 200-yard breaststroke and 400-yard Individual Medley. He’s using his political science major and minors of Spanish, History, and International Relations to prepare for law school. Matt is involved in University of Rochester’s student government, and the Student’s Association, where he currently serves as the Speaker of the Senate. He also enjoys reading, watching TV, and spending time with friends and family, like his parents Cliff and Lisa Kiel. Someday, Matt hopes to compete and win the million-dollar prize on the television show, Survivor. “I chose U of R for its amazing political science program, the beautiful campus, its unique academic structure, the kindness and collaborative nature of the student body, and of course to be able to participate in an NCAA Division III swimming program.  I’d like to especially thank my parents, professors, and all of my friends who have helped to make my experience here both unforgettable and enjoyable.”

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Shitong Frederick Liu
Shitong “Fred” Liu is a Computer Science and Political Science major who also excels at Varsity Track and Field. From Shenzhen, China (near Hong Kong) and Raleigh, North Carolina, he hopes to pursue Cambridge’s Technology Policy MPhil program after graduation.  Then, he’d like to return to the states and attend law school studying Cybersecurity and IP Law. The son of Wenjun Victor Liu and Weihua Xie is also a soccer player and photographer in his spare time. Check out @bankruptphotographer on Instagram to see his work! Fred says he chose U of R “because of the open curriculum and the relatively small class sizes for my majors’ courses. The majority of the professors here are very accessible and friendly. I don’t think I could interact with professors that much if I had gone to a bigger school. Additionally, Coach Albert, Petch, and Hertwig are all very genuine, and I enjoyed working with them on track. Under Coach Albert, I have run my best times despite injuries. The same can be said with Coach Petch and Coach Hertwig. Coach Albert’s idiosyncratic “big arms” approach on sprinting mechanics helped me to shave my 60 meters time from a 7.51s to a 7.26s!”

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Shray Parimoo
Shray Parimoo from Warren, New Jersey (less than an hour from New York City), competes on the Men’s Varsity Soccer team. A Junior majoring in Computational Biology with a minor in Clinical Psychology, Shray hopes to go to medical school and work towards becoming a Sports Medicine doctor. He’s an Executive Board member and Co-Director of the Projects Committee in GlobeMed. He has also spent two semesters being a chemistry and organic chemistry teaching assistant. Shray is hoping to gain more experience in the biology department next year. In his free time, Shray has a great interest working in the emergency field and volunteers alongside other EMTs.  Shray also enjoys reading self-development books and listening to a wide variety of music. “I am a family-oriented person, and value spending as much time with my family as possible,” including proud parents Vijay Parimoo and Arti Jinsi Parimoo. Shray says that the U of R “was the perfect balance of my academic and athletic careers in a close-knit community. With a top-notch medical facility nearby, I knew I had the opportunity to pursue my passion for soccer while also creating lifelong opportunities for myself in the medical field at the same time.”

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Rebecca Rust
Rebecca “Becca” Rust is a competitor on the University of Rochester Women’s Soccer team. She originally chose the U of R because it gave her the opportunity to continue playing soccer while receiving an excellent education. “The open curriculum and access to a variety of research experiences as an undergrad peaked my interest. When I met the team while visiting, I immediately knew Rochester would be the perfect fit for me. Everyone was welcoming and the culture on the team created a nourishing environment that has helped me grow into the person I am today.” From Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Becca is double majoring in Environmental Science and Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies.  Her goal is to attend graduate school with a focus in either oceanography or atmospheric sciences. The daughter of Mark and Michelle Rust, Becca enjoys hanging out with her family and friends, hiking, and cooking.

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Iva Savic
Women’s Track and Field competitor Iva Savic majors in Psychology with minors in Russian and Statistics.  She hopes to continue her education by pursuing graduate school. Iva is from Belgrade; the capital and largest city in Serbia.  Her parents are Zorica and Veljko Savic. Outside of Track and Field, Iva enjoys having conversations with friends, walking in nature, and learning languages. “I spent a lot of time exploring different colleges until I read about the University of Rochester. I was astonished with the flexible curriculum and research opportunities offered.”

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Jaelyn Shaver
Microbiology major and Chemistry minor Jaelyn Shaver is on the university of Rochester Women’s Swimming team.  Her specialty is Springboard Diving (1 meter and 3 meter) Jaelyn does research at URMC for Shawn Murphy’s lab in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, which is her current field of interest.  She hopes to attend medical school after a small gap to gain work experience. Coming from Dallas, Pennsylvania, about 35 minutes from Scranton, she loves any opportunity to get to the beach, ski, do yoga, or spend time with her dogs, cats, and turtle. Her parents are Jack and Jackie Shaver. Jaelyn teaches gymnastics to young children, as she did competitive gymnastics for 10 years.

Jaelyn says she chose the U of R because of all the “amazing opportunities and programs for students in STEM. With the medical center right next to the river campus, students can find endless ways to get involved in healthcare and/or research, which was a major factor in me choosing UR. The school is big enough that you are able to meet many diverse people, but small enough to make meaningful connections with those people. This made Rochester feel like home to me. Rochester has allowed me to branch out and grow as a person, while providing me with the skill set and experience to prepare me in my career and in life.”

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Vanessa Wish
Vanessa Wish, from South Brunswick, New Jersey, near Princeton and New Brunswick, came to the University of Rochester because she “was excited by the way that the flexibility in curriculum allowed me to study things related to all of my interests — language, education, and music.  I also loved that I would be able to continue athletic competition and musical studies at Eastman without having to prioritize one over the other.” Vanessa is studying for her B.A. in Linguistics, with an anticipated interdepartmental major in Ethnomusicology, and Advanced Certificate in ‘Teaching English as a Foreign Language’ through the Warner School of Education. She leads workshops for the Linguistics Department and is currently a student teacher at the School of the Arts in downtown Rochester. The daughter of Alan and Amy Wish, Vanessa completes on the U of R’s Track and Field team and specializes in Throws (Discus, Hammer, Weight Throw). Besides track, she is very involved with music on campus.  Vanessa plays and is a mentor for the Carillon Bells at the top of the library.  She’s a part of the Mbira ensemble at Eastman School of Music, and also plays piano. Off campus, she likes to hike, garden, and be outside. Vanessa says that after graduation, she will be applying for a Fulbright grant to teach English in a high school in Galicia, Spain.  After that year, she will likely either pursue graduate school in Linguistics/Ethnomusicology or continue teaching English as a Second Language in the United States.

Jaelyn says she chose the U of R because of all the “amazing opportunities and programs for students in STEM. With the medical center right next to the river campus, students can find endless ways to get involved in healthcare and/or research, which was a major factor in me choosing UR. The school is big enough that you are able to meet many diverse people, but small enough to make meaningful connections with those people. This made Rochester feel like home to me. Rochester has allowed me to branch out and grow as a person, while providing me with the skill set and experience to prepare me in my career and in life.”