{"id":194019,"date":"2021-04-20T11:15:48","date_gmt":"2021-04-20T15:15:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=194019"},"modified":"2023-01-05T18:41:11","modified_gmt":"2023-01-05T23:41:11","slug":"class-of-2021-senior-profile-tamashi-hettiarachchi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2021\/04\/class-of-2021-senior-profile-tamashi-hettiarachchi\/","title":{"rendered":"Class of 2021 Senior Profile: Tamashi Hettiarachchi"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Class
\u201cTake the class that you have a sliver of interest in just to take it,\u201d says graduating senior Tamashi Hettiarachchi \u201921 (ED). (Photo courtesy of Tamashi Hettiarachchi)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Editor\u2019s Note: As Commencement approaches, we are featuring some of our Neag School Class of 2021 graduating seniors\u00a0over the coming days.
\n<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Major:<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Chemistry Education\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n

Extracurriculars:<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Leadership in Diversity<\/span><\/div>\n

Scholarships:<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Dr. Victor Rizza Memorial Scholarship, Paula Riggi Singer Endowed Scholarship, Hamilton Sundstrand Challenger 7 Science Education Fund<\/p>\n

Hometown:<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Glastonbury, Connecticut<\/span><\/div>\n

Why did you choose to study this major\/minor?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I initially chose to pursue chemistry education because of my passion and interest in chemistry in high school. However, as I continued through my studies, I was drawn towards assessment analysis and the intersection of social justice and science education.<\/p>\n

Who is your favorite professor and\/or class? Why?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

My favorite professor, hands down, is Todd Campbell<\/a>. He has had unwavering support for me since I met him, and I have been so fortunate to work with him throughout my time at UConn. Campbell has provided me with numerous opportunities to grow as an individual and professional, and I am forever grateful.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cI would not be where I am today without the countless opportunities to connect with and learn from others at UConn<\/span>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

What did you accomplish during your college experience that you\u2019re most proud of?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Student teaching during a pandemic.<\/p>\n

What do you plan to do after you graduate?\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Live.<\/p>\n

How has UConn prepared you for your future career?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

I absolutely would not be where I am today without the countless opportunities to connect with and learn from others at UConn.<\/p>\n

How has UConn shaped you as a person?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Without UConn, I would not have met one of my closest friends.<\/p>\n

If you could summarize your experience at UConn in three words, what would they be?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Arduous, Ever-changing, New<\/p>\n

What advice would you give to a student just starting at UConn?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Take the class that you have a sliver of interest in just to take it. Find professors who share similar passions and interests as you and connect with them.<\/p>\n

Do you have anything else interesting you\u2019d like to share?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Sunday breakfast sandwiches at South Dining Hall hit differently.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As Commencement approaches, we are featuring some of our Neag School Class of 2021 graduating seniors\u00a0over the coming days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":59,"featured_media":194020,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1855],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[1879],"class_list":["post-194019","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-neag"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-07-24 00:13:50","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194019","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/59"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194019"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194019\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":194021,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194019\/revisions\/194021"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/194020"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194019"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194019"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194019"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=194019"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=194019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}