Wonder Women 2020 Award Recipients

On Thursday, April 23, 2020, The Huizenga College of Business & Entrepreneurship in partnership with the NSU Career Development office announced their 2020 NSU Wonder Women virtually via zoom. Leading up to the event NSU faculty, staff, and students were ask to nominate individuals they felt represented all of the qualities of a wonder woman. Nominees were evaluated based on the following criteria:  Leadership, Academics Excellence & Career Focus, Community Service, Integrity/Ethics and Female Empowerment.

There were over 90 nominations and all of the nominees truly represented what it means to be a Wonder Woman.

Winner of the 2020 Wonder Women Award will receive a $500 scholarship and 2^nd and 3^rd place winners will receive a $250 scholarship.

1^st Place – Charissa Bacon

• Charissa is currently working towards her Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing
• She has been an exceptional leader on- and off-campus. As a student athlete with the women’s Track & Field Team, Charissa has also made the time to give back to the NSU community through her leadership roles as Athletic Senator for the Student Government Association representing student athletes and their concerns, as well as Peer Leader aiding first-year students and their transition to the university, while managing her academic, multiple jobs, and still trying to give back to others.
• Charissa has a strong GPA and is part of the Razor’s Edge Shark Cage Program for business students who want to become entrepreneurs. Outside of academics, Charissa is incredibly career focused and driven.
• Currently Charissa is doing an internship with the Emery, the first all-woman co-working space in South Florida, as their Social Media Marketing Coordinator. Last summer, she served as a Marketing Intern for Evolve Learning Community.
• She has also worked as a Photographer for NSU’s Office of Student Affairs Marketing, as well as a Photographer & Creative Team Member for the Office of Digital Media and Graphic Design with NSU Athletics. Charissa is constantly and consistently work forward and toward her career goals.
• As a young female entrepreneur, she is committed to empowering strong women and their businesses and has attended the Women Empower X event, as well as the opening of Power Space, Broward County’s first and only black woman owned co-working space.
• She also co-founded and is the executive director of Heart n’ Hussle, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization with the mission of uniting and empowering women with an entrepreneurial spirit.
• She has embodied all of the qualities that make up a wonder woman.

2^nd Place – Samantha Aessa

• Samantha is currently working towards her Bachelor of Science in Behavioral Neuroscience degree
• Samantha is a member of NSU’s elite program, President’s 64,which allows her to serve as a representative voice of the student body while interacting with the President and as an ambassador for the university.
• She currently holds the Public Relations Chair position within NSU SKY. Along with that position, she is involved in many other organizations, such as GreenHouse Ministries, Physician to Patient, Delight, and the Neuroscience Club. She is also employed at the NSU Writing and Communication Center as a Peer Writing Consultant, Biology Fellow, and COMP Fellow where she serves as a leader to those who come in for help with their writing and communication assignments.
• Samantha has the dream of one day becoming obstetrician and was an intern at California Medical Center, where she shadowed physicians on the delivery floor, observed a C-section in an operating room, and assisted in delivery rooms, from holding the patient’s legs to handing equipment to the physician.
• She has even taken a further step to take the opportunity in between semesters to go abroad on a service trip to Ghana, Africa. It was there where she was faced with life-changing experiences: helped deliver a dozen babies, performed CPR and resuscitated a newborn, assisted on multiple surgeries, and much more.
• She has embodied all of the qualities that make up a wonder woman.

3^rd Place – Serena Stevens

• Serena is currently working towards her Bachelor of Science in Biology degree at NSU.
• She is the Pre-Professional Ambassador for the Inter-Organizational Council (IOC) where she assists her respective organizations and all active organizations on campus in collaborating with one another, aiding in the development of event funding budget requests, hosting meeting and events, and completing community service projects.
• As an ambassador for IOC, Serena helps all organizations on this campus achieve their goals each semester. Along with her leadership in IOC, Serena also serves as the Secretary for Med-Ed which focuses on helping all pre-health students gain hands on experience in their future field of choice through workshops and discussion panels.
• Serena’s other leadership involvements on campus include being a member of the Emerging Leaders Experience, Secretary of the Unified Greek Council, and Community Service Chair for Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority, Inc.
• As a pre-dental biology major, Serena has spent several of her Winter and Summer breaks shadowing different professionals in the dental field and has had the opportunity to gain hands on experience.
• Along with this, Serena also participates with the Pre-Dental Society in the annual Give Kids A Smile service event at NSU’s College of Dental Medicine. In addition to her pre-health experiences, Serena has also been an employee of the Office of Orientation for the past two consecutive summers where she facilitated small group sessions
• She has embodied all of the qualities that make up a wonder woman.

Congrats to all of our winners and once again a big round of applause for all of our nominees and finalist as everyone nominated truly is a wonder women.