Luke Henkhaus – November 2018
Texas A&M Department of Economics Amazing Student
November, 2018
Name: Luke Henkhaus
Hometown: Brenham, TX
High School: Brenham HS
Degree objective: Bachelor of Arts in Economics, Minor in Journalism
Expected graduation: May 2020
University highlights, awards, scholarships: Texas A&M Foundation Excellence Award, Association of Former Students Endowed Scholarship, Headliners Foundation of Texas Scholarship Award Winner
Clubs/Organizations I am (was) a part of: Phi Eta Sigma academic honor society, Society of Professional Journalists
Current employment: I am currently the managing editor of Texas A&M’s student newspaper, The Battalion. I was previously a news reporter and news editor there. I have also worked at the City of Brenham as a community services intern
Family ties to Texas A&M: I’m a third generation Aggie. My grandfather, parents and brother all went to A&M, as well as quite a few extended family members.
I chose to attend Texas A&M because… Growing up nearby, I knew A&M was a big school with a lot of interesting history and a wide range of academic opportunities. I was excited to explore this university for myself.
My favorite things to do on campus are… I love working (and pretty much living) in The Battalion office in the Memorial Student Center. I really enjoy taking walks around campus and checking out areas I’ve never seen before.
When I have free time, I like… I like to read creative nonfiction books, go hiking or kayaking, or just take a good nap
The craziest thing I’ve done is… When I was a kid, I would always try to swing high enough to flip over the top of the swing set. I think I almost did it once. So yeah, I’d say that was pretty crazy.
My favorite place to study is… The skywalk between Rudder and the MSC is perfect. It’s a very quiet space with big tables and a nice view.
My favorite ECON professor is… George Naufal. He’s always full of interesting examples to help students connect the material to the real world.
My favorite part of being an Economics student is… Building a set of tools and a way of thinking that helps me analyze all kinds of problems and explore creative, efficient solutions. .
If I could share an afternoon with anyone, I would love to share it with… My dad’s parents. I would really love to walk around campus and show them everything I’ve been doing since they passed away.
If I knew I could not fail, I would… Start my own charitable foundation to promote education, human rights and freedom of expression around the world.
If money was not a consideration, I would love to… Buy my parents a really cool houseboat, RV or private jet so they could travel the world in style!
What is your passion and how are you committed to pursuing it? My passion is using my skills from both economics and journalism to tell interesting stories that help people keep up with the events shaping our world. I’m committed to pursuing this passion by further developing my writing, research and data analysis skills.
After graduation, I plan to… I plan pursue a master’s degree focusing on public policy and journalism. After that, I hope to cover education and politics for a major daily newspaper.
The one Texas A&M experience I will always remember is… When it snowed last December. It felt like a dream, and everyone was so excited. Seeing snowball fights and snow sculptures all around campus was almost surreal.