Jonathan Bush is one of 12 University of Kansas students being honored for their community engagement, leadership and academics. The University Awards, among the most prestigious awards presented at KU, were established to recognize students who embody service excellence, dedication or whose academic achievements are stellar. The winners will be honored at an awards reception May 18.
Bush is one of two students being honored with the Class of 1913 Awards. These annual awards go to two graduating students who show evidence of intelligence, devotion to studies, personal character and promise of usefulness to society. The other award winner is Emily Boyd.
A KU senior from Leawood majoring in math, physics and astronomy, Bush’s experience at KU has been shaped by his leadership and involvement in KU Hillel and Delta Upsilon fraternity, by service as a teaching assistant in the Department of Math and by research experience with Professor Bozenna Pasik-Duncan in the mathematics subfield of stochastic control. This fall, Bush will begin working toward a doctorate in physics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to study extrasolar planets.
“KU has provided me a platform to explore the fundamental nature of our universe and has prepared me to take
the next step toward becoming the scientist and teacher I dream of becoming,” Bush said. “Most importantly, I have garnered the tools to pass on a love for learning and the importance of the pursuit of knowledge to future generations. I am honored and humbled to represent my family, friends, teachers and advisers in accepting the Class of 1913 University Award.”
He is the son of Erica and David Bush and the grandson of Ann Tannenbaum, the late Lenny Tannenbaum, Kenneth Bush and the late Victoria Bush. Bush is a member of The Temple, Congregation B’nai Jehudah.