Hannah Haberecht can’t help herself. Whether it’s doodling elaborate sketches in between classes, creating dragons out of duct tape, or composing songs from organic chemistry reactions, she’s constantly creating art.

“It’s something I’ve always done,” says Haberecht, a biomedical sciences Honors student. Her lifelong passions for science, art and helping others have flourished and intersected in unexpected ways throughout her undergraduate career.

Haberecht recently won the visual arts category award at CSU’s annual Celebrate Undergraduate Research and Creativity (CURC) showcase for creating a woman out of paper.

“I enjoy the problem-solving aspect of using materials that people don’t traditionally use,” Haberecht says. “Part of the reason I was drawn to study anatomy is that it is such a visual science. The human body is beautiful and having the opportunity to constantly be exploring and sketching out structures has been really interesting to me.”

Inspired by anatomy class

A Fort Collins native, Haberecht attended Rocky Mountain High School and was inspired to pursue a biomedical sciences degree at CSU after her 11th-grade anatomy class participated in the Engaging Kids in Science and Health through Hands-on Anatomy Exercises outreach program.

“After taking that anatomy class and seeing the program at CSU, I realized that I wanted to work directly with people in a health-care setting,” Haberecht says.

And she has been giving those same tours and presentations to youth throughout her undergraduate career. “It’s fantastic to get to share passion and knowledge with young students,” she added.

Haberecht, who also participated in the first anatomy and physiology Todos Santos outreach experience, is the lead organic chemistry tutor for CSU’s Institute for Learning and Teaching (TILT) and serves as a Presidential Ambassador.

In addition to her talent for art and love of outreach, Haberecht conducted antimicrobial resistance research with Associate Professor Elizabeth Ryan in the Environmental & Radiological Health Sciences Department.

“Hannah is a gifted individual finishing as the top student in the fall human gross anatomy course and is on track to do so in the spring human functional neuroanatomy course,” says Tod Clapp, an assistant professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences. “However, it is her willingness to share her gifts with others that inspires everyone around her. She makes CSU a better place.”

After graduation, Haberecht plans to unwind with a 500-mile bike ride across Iowa with her dad as well as a trip to Denmark with her family that has been 10 years in the making. She then plans to apply to medical school and pursue a career in health care.

“Hannah is a student many of us will remember for years to come,” says C.W. Miller, who recently retired as biomedical sciences professor and associate department head. “She is always smiling and upbeat, exceedingly helpful to her colleagues and academically stellar. Above all, she has been an inspiration to us all and an example of what a student can accomplish in a four-year undergraduate program.”