The Washington State University Graduate School and Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA) ceremony celebrated outstanding scholars at their annual Evening of Excellence Tuesday, April 11. The event welcomed over 150 attendees and was held at the Marriott Inn Courtyard, on the Pullman campus. This event marks the second time the Graduate School and the GPSA have partnered for the event.
Thanks to the contributions of benefactors, the two organizations awarded a total sum of $71,400 to outstanding graduate students who attended the ceremony alongside faculty mentors and organizational leaders.
To begin the evening, Vice Provost for Graduate and Professional Education, Tammy D. Barry recognized the accomplishments of participants from the Research Assistantship for Diverse Scholars (RADS) and Advancing Science in America (ARCS) Foundation Scholars programs. Afterwards, GPSA President Samantha Edgerton and Vice President Marwa Aly presented the awards for the GPSA Research Exposition prizewinners and the 2022/2023 GPSA Excellence Awards.
The award descriptions, winners, and nominees are listed below:
GPSA Excellence Awards
The Graduate and Professional Student Association conducts the GPSA Excellence Awards each year. The GPSA Excellence awards are broken up into 10 different categories: Graduate Assistant, Teaching Assistant, Research Assistant, Graduate Student Instructor, Academic Advisor, Registered Student Organization, Community Engagement, The Worthy, DePauw & Wang Service Leadership Award, Senators of the Year, and College Representative of the Year.
- Raven Weaver – Academic Advisor
- Gary Wayman – Academic Advisor
- Nouf Alqahtani – Community Engagement
- Annesh Mukhopadhyay – Graduate Research Assistant
- Suhina Deol – Graduate Research Assistant
- Marie Benedetti – Graduate Staff Assistant
- Abigale (Yu) Xue – Graduate Staff Assistant
- Autumn Decker- Graduate Student Instructor
- Mahedi Hasan – Graduate Student Instructor
- Corita Fernando – Graduate Teaching Assistant
- Sreya Mukherjee – Graduate Teaching Assistant
- Association of Bangladeshi Students and Scholars – Registered Student Organization
- Ninh Khu – Senator of the Year
- Carla De Lira – Senator of the Year
- Madison Hönig – Senator of the Year
- Magdana Kondaridze – College Representative of the Year
Research Exposition
A poster session and scholarship competition that allows students to present their original research, scholarship, and/or creative work to the University community while vying for scholarships.
College of Agriculture and Natural Resource Sciences
- First Position Jonathan Puglisi
- Second Position Morgan Southern
- Third Position Gabriely Maria Soncin Alfaro
- Third Position Giulia Berzoini Costa Leite
College of Physical and Social Sciences
- First Position William McLeod
- Fist Position Carolyn Pagan
- Second Position Mac Murphy
College of Arts and Education Sciences
- First Position Haixia He
- Second Position Oluwasola Oni
- Third Position Kevin Melendez
College of Business Communication and Political Science
- First Position Ramin Sepehrirad
- Second Position Jiyoon (Jennifer) Han
- Third Position Shirin Shahsavand
College of Engineering and Environmental Science
- First Position Zachary Colligan & Anna Post
- Second Position Jeffery Eakin
- Third Position Abodh Poudyal
College of Medical and Life Sciences
- First Position Phoebe Unger
- Second Position Kyra Parker
- Third Position Caroline Terry
Graduate School Awards
The Wang, Worthy, DePauw Award
The Worthy, DePauw & Wang Leadership Award recognizes exceptional graduate student leaders whose work seeks to improve the lives of fellow graduate students meaningfully. The Graduate School awarded $500 to each winner.
Recipients:
- Ajay Barman
- Jeremy Troy Boutin
Arnold and Julia Greenwell Memorial Scholarship for Social Sciences and Humanities
The Arnold and Julia Greenwell Memorial Scholarship for Social Sciences and Humanities is open to all doctoral graduate students in good standing. The winners of this award show outstanding leadership in their field and outreach in their projects that improve the human condition. Each award recipient was given $1500.
Recipients:
- Autumn Decker
- Shekinah Hoffman
Richard R. and Constance M. Albrecht Scholarship
The Richard R. and Constance M. Albrecht Scholarship is for all active doctoral graduate students in good standing who have successfully passed their preliminary examination. The winners had peer-reviewed publications/shows/recital. They also have successful grant proposals/awards while showing service to the institution, profession, and community. Each awardee was given $1500.
Recipients:
- Ali Asiri
- Danielle Malone
- Kathryn Bruzios
- Laura Nevins
- Leticia Couto
- Nazua Idris
- Rongge Zou
- Samantha Edgerton
Karen P. DePauw Leadership Award
The Karen P. DePauw Leadership Award was created in honor of DePauw’s service to WSU. The award started in 2003 to give recognition to doctoral candidates that demonstrate evidence of leadership skills and/or university involvement. Recipients were nominated by the Association for Faculty Women and awarded $1000.
Recipients:
- Julianna Brutman
- Reanne Chilton
Anne and Russ Fuller Fellowship for Interdisciplinary Research/Scholarship
The Anne and Russ Fuller Fellowship for Interdisciplinary Research/Scholarship is open to all doctoral graduate students in good standing. These students are conducting interdisciplinary research/scholarship with demonstrated scholarly productivity. Each winner was awarded $4000.
Recipients:
- Beatrice Caffe
- Jenifer Madigan
- Nicholas Glodosky
- Priya Panday-Shukla
Graduate School Dissertation Year Fellowship
This nine-month fellowship for doctoral candidates includes a stipend of up to $20,000 for the academic year. Also included is a two-credit tuition waiver and up to $1,000 for travel and/or research. The recipient has conducted a significant research project, and meets one or more of a diverse array of criteria, such as exhibiting a record of service that promotes equitable access to underrepresented groups, women, or racial minorities.
Recipient:
- Thao Vo
For a link to photos and more information, visit 2023 Evening of Excellence.
