Spirit of the Billiken Award

Saint Louis University’s Office of Alumni Engagement annually recognizes 18 outstanding SLU seniors who represent what it means to be a Billiken.

A large group of students pose for a photo outside on campus.

2024 Spirit of the Billiken awardees.

Named after the University’s founding in 1818, the Spirit of the Billiken senior recognition program honors 18 students who are in their final year of study and are committed to being proud and dedicated SLU alumni. Honorees excel in academics, leadership, community service, commitment to SLU and dedication to living out our mission after graduation.

Role of Recipients

Spirit of the Billiken award recipients are invited to participate in various events sponsored by SLU’s Office of Alumni Engagement. We aim to create community among the cohort of recipients, help them network and connect with SLU alumni, and celebrate them throughout the year. All recipients are expected to attend the Spirit of the Billiken ceremony during the spring semester. Recipients may also be asked to serve as ambassadors of the Office of Alumni Engagement and give advice on programming for the senior class.

The Billikens who receive this award will continue their engagement with the University after graduation and be active members of the alumni community. Recipients have taken advantage of opportunities to assist SLU through volunteering, participating in alumni clubs or organizations, attending alumni events, and more.

To be eligible, Spirit of the Billiken applicants must:

• Be an undergraduate student enrolled at Saint Louis University
• Be an undergraduate student in their final year of study

Nominations for the 2026 Spirit of the Billiken class will open August 2025.

Past Spirit of the Billiken Awardees

2025

Reueline Arulanandam
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From St. Louis

Jackie Barnes
School of Social Work
From Omaha, Nebraska

Kit Bohn
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Franklin, Tennessee

Chris Brault
School of Science & Engineering
From Liberty Township, Ohio

Kelci Crandall
College of Arts & Sciences
From Lake St. Louis, Missouri

Anna Godlewski
College of Arts & Sciences
From Westlake, Ohio

Ben Kemper
College of Arts & Sciences
From Cincinnati

Claire Leingang
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Tipp City, Ohio

Kirti Madhu
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Chesterfield, Missouri

Michael Poirier
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Lombard, Illinois

Kaia Pritchett
College of Arts & Sciences
From Jefferson City, Missouri

Nate Reyes
School of Education
From Omaha, Nebraska

Kayla Reyna
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business
From Wentzville, Missouri

Andrea Sedano
School of Science and Engineering
From Las Vegas

Charlotte Schoen
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business
From St. Louis

Emily Tran
Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing
From St. Louis

Amelie Van Hess
College of Arts and Sciences
From Littleton, Colorado

Mariya Yasinovska
College of Arts and Sciences
From St. Louis

2024

Paige Allen
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Racine, Wisconsin

Alejandra Aviles
College of Arts and Sciences
From Tegucigalpa, Honduras

Sky Carroll
College of Arts and Sciences
From Louisville, Kentucky

Caroline Christ
College of Arts and Sciences
From Terre Haute, Indiana

Erin Conley
College of Arts and Sciences
From Knoxville, Tennessee

Kiran Depala
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Temecula, California

Molly Finucane
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Long Grove, Illinois

Katie Forrester
College of Arts and Sciences
From Eldon, Missouri

Brooke Kenworthy
School of Science and Engineering
From Memphis, Tennessee

Charlie Minerd
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Cleveland

Aarti Sahai
College of Public Health and Social Justice
From Sikeston, Missouri

Caroline Sear
School of Science and Engineering
From Libertyville, Illinois

Atman Shah
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Roselle, Illinois

Laurine Shoki
College of Arts and Sciences
From Jefferson City, Missouri

Saloni Shringarpure
School of Science and Engineering
From St. Louis

Lauren Sugiyama
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Los Angeles

Avyay Surampalli
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Aurora, Illinois

Allison Twohig
Valentine School of Nursing
From Mokena, Illinois

2023

Patrick Bausch
College of Arts and Sciences
From Omaha, Nebraska

Krysta Couzi
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Beirut, Lebanon and Westminster, Colorado

Antonio Donohue
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Fairfax, Virginia

Sally Gacheru
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Nairobi, Kenya

Aric Hamilton
College of Arts and Sciences
From Bridgeton, Missouri

Darren Manion
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business
From Hampton, Illinois

Danielle McTigue
School of Science and Engineering
From Barnhart, Missouri

Emma Murphy
College of Arts and Sciences
From Indianapolis

Aakash Nagarapu
College of Science and Engineering
From Hoffman Estates, Illinois

Sudeepti Nareddy
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Westminster, Colorado

Ajit Perla
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Ballwin, Missouri

Blake Recupido
College of Arts and Sciences
From Matteson, Illinois

Jacqueline Short
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Arlington Heights, Illinois

Taylor Stalling
College of Arts and Sciences
From Chicago

Rebecca Townley
College of Arts and Sciences
From Omaha, Nebraska

Amanda VanNierop
College of Arts and Sciences
From Wentzville, Missouri

Merideth Vieson
College of Arts and Sciences
From Akron, Ohio

2022

Dominic Antony
College of Arts and Sciences
From Streamwood, Illinois

Yichen Fang
Parks College of Engineering and Aviation
From Chico, California

Lauren Hamby
College of Arts and Sciences
From Tulsa, Oklahoma

Peyton High
College of Arts and Sciences
From Springfield, Illinois

Justice Hill
College of Arts and Sciences
From Columbia, South Carolina

Jackson Johnston
College of Arts and Sciences
From California, Missouri

Lexi Kayser
College of Arts and Sciences
From O’Fallon, Missouri

William Kinczewski
Parks College of Engineering and Aviation
From Rockford, Illinois

Elyse Lewandowski
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business
From Sartell, Minnesota

Ellie Messerschmidt
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Omaha, Nebraska

Shalmali Mirajkar
College of Arts and Sciences
From St. Louis

Daniel O’Connell
College of Arts and Sciences
From Geneva, Illinois

Elizabeth Potterf
College of Arts and Sciences
From Kansas City, Missouri

Dhvanii Raval
College of Arts and Sciences
From Roselle, Illinois

Anushah Sajwani
College of Arts and Sciences
From Schaumburg, Illinois

Alexa Santamarina
Trudy Busch Valentine School of Nursing
From Loveland, Ohio

Poorva Sheth
College for Public Health and Social Justice
From Chesterfield, Missouri

Ananta Sriram
Doisy College of Health Sciences
From Novi, Michigan

2021

Nosa Ali
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Zainab Alramadhan
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Jori Brewer
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Caroline Doherty
College of Arts and Sciences

Ella Dotson
School of Education

Gabriela Keator
College of Arts and Sciences

Maggie Kenney
College of Arts and Sciences

Jemma Kim
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Joe Laughlin
College of Arts and Sciences

Dawson Myers
College of Arts and Sciences

Megan Ng
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Malaney Papke
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Twinkle Patel
College of Arts and Sciences

Benjamin Rael
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Joe Reyes
College of Arts and Sciences

Tayla Slay
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Nirali Thakkar
College for Public Health and Social Justice

2020

Kerry Anderson
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Makaila Anderson
College of Arts and Sciences

Chandler Beck
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Maia Delkamiller
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Jeffrey DeMond
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Jeremy Erickson
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Aaron Frazee
College of Arts and Sciences

Julia Griffin
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Sonia Jolly
College of Arts and Sciences

Suzanne Kickham
College of Arts and Sciences

Katherine Kopriva
School of Nursing

Cole McNeil
College of Arts and Sciences

Raymond Moylan
College of Arts and Sciences

Natalie Seidl
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Emily Seiler
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Kateri Sherber Howard
School of Nursing

Olivia Smithhisler
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

2019

A group of students pose for a photo with a Billiken on the wall behind them.

Maya Abrahamian of St. Louis
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Bezawit Alemu of Addis Adaba, Ethiopia
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Austin Armstrong of Lake Jackson, Texas
College of Arts and Sciences

Esther Chinwuko of Sikeston, Missouri
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Beatrice Connaghan of St. Louis
College of Arts and Sciences

Hile Ermias of St. Louis
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Douglas Fritz of Hazelwood, Missouri
College of Arts and Sciences

Conner Gibson of Barrington, Illinois
School of Nursing

Samantha Kiss of Streamwood, Illinois
College of Arts and Sciences

Jacob Linomaz of St. Louis
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Katlyn Martin of La Vista, Nebraska
College of Arts and Sciences

Awais Paracha of Ashburn, Virginia
College of Arts and Sciences

Neej Patel of Northville, Michigan
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Puja Patel of Edwardsville, Illinois
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Clare Schrodt of Louisville, Kentucky
College of Arts and Sciences

George Tharp of Jefferson City, Missouri
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Meredith Walker of Pittsburgh
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Mana Yacim of Jefferson City, Missouri
Doisy College of Health Sciences

2018

A group of students pose for a photo outside on campus.

Katie Anderson
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Emma Bottin
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Blake Braun
College of Arts and Sciences

Smrithi Chidambaram
College of Arts and Sciences

Jay Hardin
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Victoria Harris
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Will Higgins
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Layla Husen
College of Arts and Sciences

Katrina Ludwig
School of Education

Carly Masinelli
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Arielle Melliza
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Molly Meyer
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Alex Mueller
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Paula Otero Santos
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Soumya Ramireddy
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Daniel Sprehe
College of Arts and Sciences

Aaron Stonecipher
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Tram (Alex) Tran
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

2017

Brittany Balzano of Glenview, Illinois
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Rosemary Bornstein of Show Low, Arizona
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Sarah Bowen of Sleepy Hollow, Illinois
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Gloria Campbell of Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Colleen Carroll of Rocky River, Ohio
School of Nursing

Michael Degnan of Naperville, Illinois
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Raquel Dominguez of Lawrence, Kansas
College of Arts and Sciences

Andrea Gabaldon of Roeland Park, Kansas
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Mikel Green of Jacksonville, Florida
College of Arts and Sciences - SLU Madrid

Betty Goodwin of Des Peres, Missouri
School of Education

Max Hammond of Evergreen, Colorado
College of Arts and Sciences

Audrey Hunter of La Quinta, California
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Jason Maddox of St. Louis
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Ada Oguejiofor of Missouri City, Texas
College of Arts and Sciences

Rachel Scott of St. Louis
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Braden Spratt of Elsberry, Missouri
College of Arts and Sciences

Hope Williams of Greenfield, Indiana
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Kenya Young-Bosley of St. Louis
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

2016

A group of students pose for a photo outside with a campus building in the background.

Kelly Anderson
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Alyssa Archdeacon
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Suraj Arshanapally
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Madison Barney
College of Arts and Sciences

Ajay Chatrath
College of Arts and Sciences

Nicholas Eisenberg
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Helen Farnan
College of Arts and Sciences

Brinda Gupta
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Merette Khalil
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Nicole Kuhlman
College of Arts and Sciences

Lauren Longacre
College of Arts and Sciences

Pallavi Mukherji
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Lauren Owen
College of Arts and Sciences

Connor Richardson
College of Arts and Sciences

Camilo Rivera
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Caitlin Whiteley
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Anne Yoon
College of Arts and Sciences

Jessica Young-Eleazar
School of Education

2015

A group of students pose for a photo together outside on campus.

Ruchi Aggarwal
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Katherine Arora
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Stephen Deves
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Morgan Elliott
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Jennifer Ernst
College of Arts and Sciences

Jaime Heede
Doisy College of Health Sciences

James Ideker
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Richard Joubert
College of Arts and Sciences

Nicole Kim
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Claire Mispagel
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Nishita Patel
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Roger Perkey
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Dharti Shah
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Erin Steiner
College of Arts and Sciences

Kathryn Sulkowski
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Mary Stuart Wannamaker
College of Arts and Sciences

Nygel Williams
Doisy College of Health Sciences

Luke Yamnitz
College of Arts and Sciences

2014

Amanda Bartelson
School of Nursing

Jacques Briam
College of Arts and Sciences

Jacob Fechter
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Kelsi Feltz
College for Public Health and Social Justice

Jason Feraris
Parks College of Engineering, Aviation and Technology

Phoebe Heibeck
College of Arts and Sciences

Elizabeth Lampe
College of Arts and Sciences

Barrett Lanham
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Maureen Mahon
School of Nursing

Casey Munn
School of Education

Diane Reilly
Richard A. Chaifetz School of Business

Sarah Sikora
School of Nursing

Kathryn Smith
College of Arts and Sciences

Michael Toth
College of Arts and Sciences

Nicholas Trottier
College of Arts and Sciences

Rebecca Wallace
College of Arts and Sciences

Allison Walter
College of Arts and Sciences

Amanda Waltos
Doisy College of Health Sciences