Bridgeport's Dakota Swiger is Named Mountaineer of Distinction
By Connect-Bridgeport Staff on November 19, 2024
West Virginia University has named Haley Bockius, Laasya Chennuru, Mary G. Roush, Christopher J. Smith and Dakota Swiger the 2024 Mountaineers of Distinction, a Mountaineer Week tradition that recognizes exemplary academic achievement and extracurricular involvement.
Distinguished by superior academic standing, and a spirit of volunteerism and service to others, the honorees were chosen by an interview selection panel from a pool of more than 70 students who were recommended from across campus.
The five seniors received the recognition during halftime of the WVU vs. Baylor University football game Saturday (Nov. 16) at Milan Puskar Stadium.
Swiger is pictured with her parents, Heather and Greg Swiger. A 2020 graduate of Bridgeport High School, Swiger is a first-generation college student and journalism major minoring in English. She was honored with the President’s Volunteer Service Gold Award for conducting nearly 700 service hours since her freshman year at WVU.
She has been an active member of the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership program since her sophomore year of high school and currently serves as director of programs for HOBY West Virginia. In this role, she is responsible for planning the annual four-day West Virginia State Seminar which brings together more than 9,000 high school students from across the state to learn how to become effective leaders in their communities.
One of her most rewarding experiences has been serving as a student in the Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program through the Department of English where she joined other students her sophomore year to help facilitate a drama class in a Pennsylvania prison. This experience inspired her to declare a minor in English.
She also works for the West Virginia Black Bears during the summer to help manage scoreboard and live production and has volunteered her time with the WVU Athletics and ESPN+ video production crews.
Swiger was accepted into the competitive Creative Consultant and Media Mentors Program, which pairs students with alumni and other professionals to help them succeed in their careers.
She plans to eventually attend graduate school.
Other Mountaineers of Distinction finalists were Suraya Boggs, a sociology and anthropology dual major from Spencer; Julia Chapman, a nursing major from Falling Waters; Megan Frappier, a criminology and political science dual major from Cliffwood, New Jersey; Charlie Long, a political science and philosophy dual major from Charleston; and James Cameron Speaker, a biomedical engineering major from Roanoke, Virginia.
Read more HERE at WVU Today.
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