Congratulations to the College of Humanities’ Outstanding Senior for Spring 2022, Adri Boudrieau!
Boudrieau is graduating with a triple major in Classics, Anthropology, and Art History and an impressive extracurricular resume that includes internships at the University of Arizona Museum of Art and Arizona State Museum, work as a student assistant curator at the Bryant-Bannister Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, and three years as a College of Humanities student ambassador.
In a convocation speech, Boudrieau told fellow students about switching from being a STEM major with a promising future in biomedical engineering to “studying people long since dead and digging in the dirt.”
“You don't come into the Humanities unless you want to see change, unless you want to see this world become a place for everyone, where culture, language, and diversity is not only accepted but celebrated. You don't study Humanities unless you want to see the world be a better place for everyone,” Boudrieau said.
Boudrieau plans to intern at the State of Arizona Bureau of Land Management and continue work on archaeology collections at the Arizona State Museum while also learning more languages and pursuing further education on museum studies and archaeology.
Robert Groves, Associate Professor of Practice in the Department of Religious Studies and Classics, taught Boudrieau in courses in Greek, Latin, and Greek literature.
“Adri is a true phenomenon, the kind of student who makes success look easy,” Groves said. “She was flawlessly prepared, performed exceptionally on all course assignments. But even more impressive, I think, was the enthusiasm, curiosity, and energy that Adri brought to every single course. This enthusiasm was what made her such a successful spokesperson for Classics and for the Humanities in general as an Ambassador for our College.”
Boudrieau completed independent studies on Roman Glass and the significance of the hairstyles of Greek heroes and participated in archaeological field work in Italy.
“Adri embodies the best of what the study of the humanities have to offer. She is a thoughtful, hard-working, independent, disciplined, and excited first-generation college graduate who I am proud to have taught and worked with. Her curiosity, experience, and learning have built skills that will no doubt prepare her for a fabulous life and career. But more than those eminently admirable traits, she is also a genuinely decent human being. She overflows with kindness and compassion and lifts up those around her,” Groves said.