FHSU

Beaton Joins Accelerated Master’s Degree Program and Accepts Internship

We are excited to share that Honesty Beaton, East High, 2022, has been admitted to the Accelerated Master’s Degree program at Fort Hays State University(FHSU), set to begin in the spring 2025 semester. This program will allow Honesty to complete nine credit hours of graduate coursework in Cybersecurity while finishing her senior year. This accelerated path means that by December 2025, she will have completed her bachelor’s degree (in three and a half years) and anticipates earning her master’s no later than May 2027.

In addition to her academic pursuits, Honesty has secured an internship as a Data Engineering Intern with Centene, a healthcare insurance company. This role will involve updating backend documentation, where Honesty will gain valuable insights into programming, business, and healthcare laws. The internship offers a blend of her healthcare and computer science passions, building on her experience as an Attendant Care worker at the Iroquois Center for Human Development and as a Student Mixed Reality Developer at FHSU.

Honesty shared, “I’m thrilled for the upcoming start of my Accelerated Master’s in Cybersecurity this spring, followed by the opportunity to start as a Data Engineering Intern with Centene this summer! This year will be an incredible journey as I explore my passions for healthcare, technology, and cybersecurity. I’m looking forward to deepening my programming skills, learning about business and healthcare laws, and exploring the intersection of these fields in new and meaningful ways!

Beaton Recognized with New Media Research Scholarship

FHSU

We’re excited to share that Honesty Beaton, East High, 2022, has received the New Media Research Scholarship from the Institute for New Media Studies at Fort Hays State University (FHSU) for the 2024-2025 academic year.

Last spring, Honesty took the opportunity to enroll in the “Video Game Creation” course, a sporadically offered class taught by Dr. Carlson. Working alongside five classmates, she co-created a game titled “Ace in Space,” which honed her game design skills and showcased her creative talents. This project led to further collaboration with Dr. Carlson on a research project called “Realtime Video Overlay.” The Institute for New Media Studies works to create projects that are 80% of the industry standard for 20% of the cost, and Realtime Video Overlay does this by recreating sports broadcast graphics, such as football’s first-down line, using cost-effective technology that is accessible to schools of all sizes.

Because of her work on Realtime Video Overlay, Honesty was also offered the opportunity to work with Dr. Carlson and the institute as a Student Mixed Media Reality Developer, allowing her to develop Realtime Video Overlay further and work on other institute projects throughout the year.

Reflecting on her experiences, she shared, “Realtime Video Underlay was one of eight finalists for the 2024 Faulkner Challenge at FHSU, a business proposal competition. It was a fun competition, and although we were not one of the three winners, it was an eye-opening experience to see how a project I have had the opportunity to work on could be used in monumental ways. I think it is a neat project I’ve had the pleasure of working on, and I am excited to continue to develop it further over the next year.”