Bridgewater College Students Recognized for Excellence in Economics and Business

A gold and red graphic that has the Bridgewater College seal and reads "College Awards: Honoring Outstanding Students"

The George S. Aldhizer II Department of Economics and Business at Bridgewater College recognized nine students for excellence during the 2021-22 academic year.

Mellser Aguilar Lopez, Evan Gagne, Cesar Martinez and Anna Woodward received the Robert L. Hueston Endowed Scholarship. The award honors the contributions Hueston made to the study of accounting at Bridgewater College while a member of the faculty from 1953 to 1986. Aguilar Lopez, Gagne, Martinez and Woodward each received a $7,591 scholarship for the 2022-23 academic year.

Aguilar Lopez, a first-year business administration major from Harrisonburg, Va., is a member of the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO) at BC. Upon graduating from BC in 2025, he hopes to pursue a career at a bank, accounting firm or as a contractor.

Gagne, a junior business administration major from Chapel Hill, N.C., is a member of the baseball team. After graduating from BC in 2023, he plans to attend graduate school for accounting.

Martinez, a junior business administration major from Bealeton, Va., is a member of the men’s soccer team. Following graduation from BC in 2023, he hopes to become a top manager at a business with the goal to eventually start his own business.

Woodward is a junior business administration major from Mechanicsville, Va.

Emily Dell and Faith Helm each received a $4,297 scholarship from the David E. Will Endowed Scholarship for the Support of Public Accounting for the 2022-23 academic year. The scholarship is named after Will, a 1983 graduate of the College, who was a partner and certified public accountant with the accounting firm of Mitchell Wiggins and Company LLP in Richmond, Va., before his death in September 2018. The award goes to students with a concentration in accounting who intend to pursue a career as a certified public accountant with a public accounting firm.

Dell, a junior business administration and economics double major from Keymar, Md., is a member of the women’s lacrosse team, Chi Alpha Sigma national college athlete honor society, the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, the student-athlete mental health awareness group Morgan’s Message and a BC student police cadet.

After graduating in 2023, Dell hopes to work as a forensic accountant for the government or law enforcement to investigate money fraud.

Helm, a junior business administration major from Woodbridge, Va., is the vice president of CEO and the Black Student Alliance. Helm runs Hard Knock Life 4 Us (HKL4U), which produces clothing that expresses individuals’ stories and who they are as a person.

Upon graduating in 2023, Helm plans to pursue a career that specializes in accounting that assists the elderly.

The David G. and Margie Messick Smith Endowed Scholarship was presented to Grace Elliott. The scholarship, which is awarded to a rising senior who has demonstrated exceptional promise in the field of management, was established by two Bridgewater graduates in memory of their grandparents, David G. and Margie Messick Smith. The award carries a $2,900 scholarship for the 2022-23 academic year.

Elliott is a computer science and business administration double major from Mount Sidney, Va. She is a member of the Sigma Beta Delta business honor society and in the Flory Honors Program at BC. After graduating from BC, she hopes to work in software development or project management.

Benjamin Chatterton and Erin Dietz were recognized with Outstanding Senior Awards for scholarly achievement and leadership in economics and business administration.

Chatterton is a senior history and political science major from Waynesboro, Va. He is a member of Phi Alpha Theta history honor society, Sigma Beta Delta business honor society, Alpha Chi physics honor society and the Philomathes Society, a society that encourages scholarship and recognizes BC students, faculty and alumni who have achieved unusual distinction in the pursuit of knowledge. In addition, he was a member of the Flory Honors Program at BC. During his time at BC, Chatterton completed two research projects, “The Ansons: A Virginia Household’s Relationship with the British Empire” and “The Low Countries at War: Responses of the Benelux Monarchs to Nazi Occupation.”

Chatterton plans to pursue a master’s degree in education this fall.

Dietz, a senior business administration major from Hopewell Junction, N.Y., was a member of the Flory Honors Program, Alpha Chi and Sigma Beta Delta honor societies and the Philomathes Society. In addition, she was a member of the women’s basketball team, on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, a staff writer for the student news organization BC Voice and in the Chordially Yours a cappella group. During her time at BC, Dietz completed an honors project titled “Coach and Athlete Perceptions of the Effects of the Menstrual Cycle on Female Athletic Performance.”

Dietz plans to pursue a master’s degree in sport management this fall.

Media Contact: 
Logan Bogert 
Communications Coordinator 
lbogert@bridgewater.edu 
(540) 828-5486 

Share