Gabriela Ruiz

Gabriela Ruiz is a 2024-2025 Self Memorial Scholar pursuing a Master’s Degree in Economics at the University of Kansas. She graduated with distinction from KU in 2024 with B.A.s in English, Humanities, and Economics. In English, she received departmental honors and was named an outstanding senior. She also received two minors in Global and International Studies and History and was admitted into the history honors society, Phi Alpha Theta. As an undergraduate, Gabriela was an active member of the KU Model United Nations club. She competed for KU at Model UN conferences in Washington D.C., Chicago, and Los Angeles and served on the club’s executive board. She was also a founding member of HawkMUN, an annual Model UN conference for local high schoolers hosted by KU. In 2022, she participated in the Millennium Fellowship, a leadership development program through the United Nations Academic Impact. Her Millennium Fellowship team collaborated with the local non-profit organization Friends of the Kaw to develop a social impact project focused on ecological preservation and the rehabilitation of the Kansas River. Gabriela spent the past four years as a member of the University Honors Program, and she was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa honors society during her junior year. Following her master's degree, she plans to pursue her J.D. beginning in fall 2025.