Ricardo Ramirez wins 2017 Riddle Prize
When Ricardo Ramirez started his undergraduate career at UIC, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do.
“I knew I was really good in math in high school, so I picked industrial engineering,” Ramirez said. “Then I figured out it wasn’t my passion.”
He switched gears and decided to study mathematical computer science and psychology, and later decided to focus on psychology and pre-occupational therapy.
Ramirez has thrived since finding his passion — he graduates next month with a perfect 4.0 GPA.
He’s this year’s winner of the Donald and Leah Riddle Prize for Outstanding Graduating Senior. The prize, named for a former chancellor and his wife, is among UIC’s top undergraduate honors.
“I was always thinking in the back of my head that maybe I’m not good enough for this award or that opportunity,” said Ramirez, senior in the Honors College. “But I thought, ‘Maybe if I push myself a little harder or stay up a little longer, I can push myself further along toward my goal of being an occupational therapist.”
Ramirez decided on occupational therapy to combine his interest in physical and mental health with his passion for service. He focused his Honors College capstone project on evaluating the usability of three accessible smartphones among users with cerebral palsy.
“The primary mode of input for smartphones is touch, and that may not be accessible for someone who has a physical disability affecting their upper-extremity,” he said.