Lana Koepke Johnson
University of Nebraska–Lincoln agronomy major Matthew Blunck, of Osmond, Nebraska, has been named a Chancellor's Scholar. Blunck, along with forty-nine other Nebraska seniors, were recognized during the All-University Honors Convocation at the Lied Center for Performing Arts on April 23.
Chancellor's Scholars are students who have maintained 4.0 grade-point averages on all collegiate work at Nebraska and elsewhere. This is the highest academic honor awarded to graduating undergraduates.
Along with a perfect academic record, Blunck received exemplary praise from his professors.
“Matt is one of the best students I have had in the Agronomy 366 Soil Nutrient Relationships course,” said Martha Mamo, Weaver Professor of Agronomy and Horticulture. “He does an excellent job explaining what he learned. The questions he asks clearly demonstrate that he has a good understanding of the subject and a good foundation. Equally important is his character – respectful and humble.”
Blunck has also worked as a teaching assistant for the Agronomy 315 Genetics course taught by agronomy professor Don Lee.
“I was fortunate to have Matt Blunck as a part of our genetics teaching team. He was an effective teaching assistant in genetics for several reasons. He understood the importance of genetics concepts in making sense of variation observed in plants and animals. Matt had several ways he could explain a genetics problem and he would adjust his approach depending on the student,” Lee said. “Most importantly, Matt really cared about his students and wanted to see them succeed in learning.”
Reflecting on his time at Nebraska, Blunck said one of his favorite things is how friendly everyone is in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture. “The overall atmosphere is more comfortable than I thought it would be, as I was nervous upon transferring in,” he said.
And he highly recommends being a teaching assistant. “You really start to understand things better when you teach them,” Blunck said.
After graduation, Blunck will be returning to his roots in Osmond to work on the family farm, raising feeder cattle and growing corn, soybeans and alfalfa.
He will also begin work at Precision Point, LLC, scouting fields, installing and monitoring moisture probes, in addition to working with the other agricultural products and services offered by the company. Blunck interned with the company in 2014.
A complete list of 2017 Chancellor’s Scholars can be found at here.
