Featured Student: Lior Gross, Graduating Honors Scholar
Why did you choose to come to CU?
I knew that I wanted to study ecology & evolutionary biology specifically, and very few colleges offer that as a major, let alone one with an emphasis in field work. In addition, I loved the easy opportunity for outdoor recreation, the bikeability of Boulder, and the Jewish community.
What are you studying? What are your career aspirations?
I am studying EBIO and geology, specifically the restoration of desert ecosystems through biological soil crust. I look forward to using applied scientific research for ecosystem recovery, as well as being an educator and a community organizer.
What is your favorite part about being an Honors student?
I have loved every single Honors Program class I have been able to take; the small, active-learning format, combined with enthusiastic and knowledgeable professors as well as classmates who desire to learn and excel, has been absolutely essential to my time at CU. Some of the watershed moments for me in my academic development were when I went to Honors Program Distinguished Speaker lectures, such as Hip Hop and the Harlem Renaissance by Dr. Rabaka, that took an amazing systems-based, interdisciplinary approach to the subject matter and crystallized a connective way of thinking.
What is one piece of advice you’d give to your pre-college self?
Take your time. There are so many amazing opportunities available, and you do not have to know right away what you will be interested in. Give yourself space to learn and explore, though the uncertainty is terrifying.
What are you most looking forward to post-graduation?
I am excited to work as the Biodiversity & Food Web intern at the Center for Hyper-Arid Socio-Ecology, based in Ketura, Israel at the Arava Institute. Through this program, I will be researching the biological soil crust in the Negev Desert as well as learning with Palestinian, Jordanian, Israeli, and international students and researchers in order to build dialogue towards resilience and justice.
Anything else you’d like to add?
I am grateful for the opportunities provided by the Honors Program that greatly enhanced my experience at CU and shaped who I am as a learner and a researcher.
BLior Gross (they/them/theirs) is a BA/MA Candidate in EBIO who builds resilience towards sustainable systems change at the community level, guided by their Jewish values. They are an educator, a poet, a co-creator of the Nonbinary Hebrew Project (nonbinaryhebrew.com), a member of the Rad-ish Collective, and a leader of the Queer Trans Rosh Chodesh kehillah.