Our sociology majors (mostly!) are hard-working, activist, high achieving students. Over the years, in this newsletter, we have highlighted students who have done particularly exemplary work. This year, I thought I'd describe the wide range of awards our majors have earned, using this year's class as my exemplar.
Phi Beta Kappa, the national honor society, has awarded its prestigious memberships to a steady stream of sociology majors, including: Alyssa Penner '10, Virginia Anderson '10, Allison Brinkhorst '11, Hilary Clark '11, Liting Cong '11, and Susan Kikuchi '11.
At Commencement, various awards are announced. This year, the Jeanne Burkle Award in Women's Studies was given to Allison Brinkhorst '11, and the Barry M. Goldwater Award went to Stephanie Cheung '11. The Joe Wall Scholarship for 2011 went to Stephanie Cheung '11; Liting Cong '11 received it the previous year.
Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowships, established "to address the shortage of minority scholars on college and university campuses," by the Mellon Foundation, were awarded in 2011 to Katie In '13, and in 2010 to Lizeth Gutierrez '12 and Melissa Vasquez '12.
The most prestigious award distributed at Commencement is the President's Medal, awarded "For academic achievement, effective leadership, personal commitment to public service, and substantive contributions to the college community." In 2011, Ragnar Thorisson '11 received this wonderful recognition, following President's Medal awards to other sociology majors in the past: Alice Gates '97, Brandi Christie '99, and Ilana Golin '00.
The Sociology Department recognizes two majors each year with academic awards that are funded by donations to the department (note the subtle hint?). In 2011, the Senior Award (which involves loan forgiveness for graduating seniors) was split among Allison Brinkhorst, Liting Cong, and Ragnar Thorisson. The Junior Book Award (a credit in the book store) was awarded to Sophie Fajardo '12.
The Iowa Sociological Association recognizes undergraduate papers with a number of awards. While we don't always send our students to the ISA meetings, when we do they tend to win awards. The Weiting Paper Award from the ISA in 2010 went to Nichole Baker '10. The Manford Kuhn award for an outstanding paper by a junior-senior at the 2011 ISA meeting went to Miriam Barcus '12.
Sometimes we learn about awards that alumnae receive after graduating, so we know that Deisy Del Real '07 has been awarded a prestigious Soros Fellowship for New Americans and will use it to attend UCLA for a PhD in sociology. The goal of the Soros Fellowship for New Americans is "to provide opportunities for continuing generations of able and accomplished New Americans to achieve leadership in their chosen fields. The Program is established in recognition of the contributions New Americans have made to American life and in gratitude for the opportunities the United States has afforded the donors and their family."
We'd be delighted to publicize other awards and recognitions received by sociology alumni/ae. Please feel free to email Chris Hunter (hunter@grinnell.edu) with updates!
