Superstar student Sophia Curran-Moore wins Honors Prechel Scholarship

Fourth year Blugold Sophia Curran-Moore recalls how she struggled to make friends during her first year at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (UWEC), so now she works to help freshmen find their place on campus.

Curran-Moore, a teaching English and language arts major with a minor in Spanish, has worked with freshmen as an Honors 100 mentor, as an Honors Helping Honors guide and as a Blugold Welcome leader. 

“Working with freshmen is important to me because I want to help people find a sense of community,” Sophia says. “It can be scary and difficult to start college. You are suddenly in a new environment, you're far away from your family, you don't know anyone and you have to learn how to be independent.”

The Prechel Scholarship

Sophia Curran-Moore is the 2025 UWEC Honors Prechel Scholarship winner. The Prechel Scholarship is named after 2005 UWEC graduate Ryan Prechel, who was a student leader on campus and president of the Honors student organization. Sophia received this scholarship because she displays both a passion for service and exceptional leadership across campus and in the Honors Program.

The Prechel Scholarship winner receives an award and has the opportunity to donate $500 to an organization of their choice. Sophia chose the Pinky Swear Foundation, an organization that means a lot to her. “[Pinky Swear] raises money to support kids with cancer and their families,” Sophia explains. “Almost all of us know someone who has had cancer, and it is a very difficult experience. It's also very expensive, and I hope this money will help lessen that burden.”

Dr. Heather Fielding, professor of English and director of the University Honors Program, noted that Sophia “cares a lot about the educational environment on campus — from making sure that students with allergies feel supported in the dining hall to helping new freshmen find their place on campus. Her dedication to helping her fellow students make the most of their experience is one of the ways she embodies Ryan Prechel’s legacy of service and leadership.”

The inside scoop

Sophia’s passion for service has shown through her work with UWEC freshmen in programs such as the Honors Helping Honors Program (HHH). This program helps freshmen get acquainted with campus and learn how to navigate this new and exciting adventure. “A lot of my fond memories come from the Honors Helping Honors program,” Sophia stated. She has been an HHH guide for two years. As an ice cream enthusiast, Sophia recalls a fond memory of taking the freshmen on an ice cream run to Eau Claire’s beloved Olson’s Ice Cream and getting to grow in community with each other.

In addition to helping freshmen learn the ins and outs of UWEC in the HHH Program, Sophia was an Honors mentor for the Honors 100 freshman seminar course. Already having experience in this area, Sophia excelled in this role. She enjoyed lesson planning and being able to decide how to structure the class to best prepare these freshmen for the rest of their UWEC journey.

As a freshman herself, Sophia was one of the select students to be in the Honors Fellowship program. With a group of students, Sophia worked on a service project about the quality of the food on campus. They were able to present that research to those overseeing campus food. She felt that the project was a great opportunity where she bonded with her Honors Fellows and learned a great deal about research her first semester in college. 

Honors abroad

Sophia’s dedication to her Spanish minor started at a young age. She went to a Spanish immersion elementary school from kindergarten to fifth grade, where her classes were exclusively in Spanish. Sophia took these Spanish skills with her when she studied abroad in Chile and completed an honors contract. 

For her project, she volunteered at a Chilean university in an English classroom to help answer student questions. Reflecting on her time in the classroom, Sophia remembers all of the students being wonderful. This experience in Chile solidified Sophia’s idea that “it would be cool if I could teach in a district with a lot of native Spanish speakers, because my Spanish skills would help me connect better with the students and their families.” She learned a lot during this experience and was able to make the most of it through her Honors contract.  

Honors impact and beyond

Her experience as an Honors student and a Blugold Fellow helped Sophia to make personal relationships in college. Sophia explained how she “met a friend in my Women of the Civil Rights Movement Honors class that encouraged me to join the philosophy club, and I'm now the secretary of the club. Since Honors classes are smaller, it's easier to network, which can lead to great opportunities.”

Looking to the future, Sophia plans to enter teaching right away. She explained, “I’ve been a student for a long time, so I’m excited to be on the other side of that.” Being a teacher wasn’t always her calling. However, during the coronavirus pandemic, Sophia said she “realized how important school is for kids and wanted to be a part of that.”

Sophia will be able to take all of her experiences at UWEC, inside and outside of Honors, to excel in her post-graduate plans of becoming a teacher.

Written by Eve Quick, UW-Eau Claire student and University Honors Program intern.