Hometown: Deep River, Iowa

Majors: economics and math, graduated summer 2011

Career plans: pursuing PhD in agricultural economics at the University of California, Davis

“I like the cause-and-effect aspect of economics, and it interests me to know why certain events are happening. When something like gas prices are spiking, I like to know what causes that.”

“I’ve worked hard to get where I am, and now I want to be a role model for my two younger sisters. I feel driven to go to grad school.”

“All of the classes in the economics department are small and the professors remember you. You can have a one-to-one connection that doesn’t always happen in every department.”