A Lifetime of Impact
Campaign Pillar: Student Experience
From a NASA-inspired student startup to a college career rooted in serving others, high-impact experiences help Tommies turn what they learn into purpose.
A Lifetime of Impact
From a NASA-inspired student startup to a college career rooted in serving others, high-impact experiences help Tommies turn what they learn into purpose.
Standing together, three St. Thomas students began talking at once. They kept going until the business competition judges in front of them were confused. That was the intention. They were illustrating what a person with a traumatic brain injury might experience. It was how the students introduced CognitionIQ, their technology designed to help assess concussion risk and monitor cognitive health.
This snapshot captures what Student Experience, one of three priorities of Be Brilliant. Be Bold. The Campaign for St. Thomas, makes possible. St. Thomas students get more than an excellent education from expert professors – they put their learning to work.
Through internships, undergraduate research, entrepreneurship, global learning, community engagement, service to others, on-campus leadership roles and athletics, the St. Thomas experience goes beyond the classroom. By testing ideas, solving real problems, building relationships and working with others, students learn where their gifts and talents can make a difference.
For the CognitionIQ team, the work began through the Innovation Scholars program, where Sam Mahannah ’26, Ilham Mohamud ’26, Breanna Ranglall ’26 and Olivia Keller ’26 worked with NASA researchers. They explored how eye-tracking technology could measure cognitive health, pursued patent protection for their algorithm and turned the concept into a venture.
The team’s studies span finance, biology, computer science, data science, neuroscience and Spanish. Their collaboration reflects the holistic experience at St. Thomas: A broad, liberal arts education that illuminates connections across areas of study, majors, colleges and schools.
Tommie Award winner Rachel Obeakemhe Theophilus ’26 shaped her St. Thomas experience by helping others find their place in it. As a resident adviser in Dowling Hall, she mentored 40 first-year students through the everyday challenges of college life. She took on a leadership role in the Black Empowerment Student Alliance and helped found Black Christian Fellowship, a student group where students can connect their cultural experiences and faith.
A business law and compliance major, Theophilus completed internships in state government and spent a semester studying in London. Each experience helped her explore the relationship between law, fairness and accountability, a perspective she will carry into law school.
“Don’t wait for anyone to create your own experience,” Theophilus said. “You shape the college experience you want.”
Tommie men’s basketball player Carter Bjerke ’26 put that same spirit into service. Through Business 200, the finance major completed 40 volunteer hours with Keystone Community Services. Working at its food shelf changed how he viewed something he had taken for granted. Seeing people’s gratitude for everyday food “gave me a different perspective,” Bjerke said. The experience reflects “comprehensive excellence,” a phrase from his coach, Johnny Tauer, that is part of St. Thomas' mission of personal formation.
The CognitionIQ team, Theophilus and Bjerke show the range of experiences that shape a St. Thomas education. Through Be Brilliant. Be Bold., St. Thomas will broaden those opportunities so more students can apply their learning, discover their purpose and prepare to contribute to their professions and communities.
Learn more about how Be Brilliant. Be Bold. supports the St. Thomas student experience.