Bonnie Thornton
Graduation year: 2016
Majors: Honors History, Spanish
Activities: Phi Beta Kappa, Augustana Symphony Orchestra, Phi Alpha Theta honor society (history), Omicron Delta Kappa leadership honor society, Sigma Alpha Iota music fraternity, American Model United Nations, History Club.
Internship: Archival intern at the Clinton (Iowa) Herald.
Post-grad plans: Attend graduate school for library and information sciences.
Why Augustana?
I received a good financial aid package and would be able to continue playing my cello.
Are you where you thought you'd be four years ago?
No. I thought I’d become an environmental biologist. I took one history class, however, and the rest is... well, you know.
Who helped you?
My family, faculty and mentors from both the history and Spanish departments, as well as the friends I made here at Augustana.
A peak experience?
Presenting my Senior Inquiry project for history at the Phi Alpha Theta Biennial Convention in Orlando, Fla.
What did you learn about yourself that has surprised you?
I was surprised to realize how much diversity there is within the Midwest, how people are shaped by where they come from, and how their experiences related to those places affect their future choices and pursuits.
How did you use Augie Choice?
I used Augie Choice to help fund my Summer in the Andes experience. I spent 10 weeks living and studying in Cuenca, Ecuador.
What will you miss the most?
The people.
Advice for the Class of 2020?
Don’t major in something because you think it’s the practical thing to do, and don't limit your friends by major or activity group. Interactions and friendships between people from a variety of backgrounds and diverse fields of study will make you grow as a person and enrich your college experience.
“Bonnie is one of the best students I’ve taught at Augustana College. What instructors most love about Bonnie is that she is intellectually curious, and hence more interested in new experiences, skills and research than in her grades. She also thinks on both local and global scales, so she is as engaged when doing in-depth research into the creation of Black Hawk State Historic Site, a local landmark which was the focus of her History Senior Inquiry project, as she is when learning about Latin America during study abroad and her Spanish major coursework.”