Spring 2004
Awards & accolades
Students
Maya Babu (senior honors student, psychology and neuroscience) has been named a 2004 Truman Scholar. (Read her story)
Richard Hermes (graduate student, creative writing) is one of 15 scholars nationwide to receive a Luce Scholarship for a professional internship experience in Asia. (Read his story.)
Gladys Mambo (junior, political science, English) founded The Griot, a journal of news and opinion for black students at the U.
Photo by Bridget Brown
Honors senior Zachery Coelius has been named to USA Today's All-USA Academic first team. Coelius also received the prestigious 2004 George C. Mitchell Scholarship, which will take him to Ireland for a year of study toward a master's degree in foreign policy and international relations. From the University, he received the 2004 University Of Minnesota President's Student Leadership Award.
Photo by Bridget Brown
"I am absolutely stoked at this good news," says Coelius. "This continues to be a year beyond my wildest dreams. I don't think I can say thank you enough to all who have made this possible."
Dance Program students Rob Leadley, Mariah Meyer, Eva Mohn, and Ben Rasmussen were selected to perform at the American College Dance Festival Association's National College Dance Festival at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. The group was selected for its performance of "Here We Are," choreographed by Cowles Chair Guest Artist Scott Rink, at the Southwest Regional Dance Festival in March. This is the seventh time Dance Program students have received this prestigious honor.
Graduate student Mira Lee (journalism) won the 2004 American Academy of Advertising Doctoral Dissertation Award.
University of Minnesota President's Student Leadership and Service Awards for 2004 went to Ph.D. candidate Joel Helfrich (English) and undergraduates Andrew Hestness, Eunice Yburan, Scott Ferguson, Mary Skokut, Andrea Good, Chris Ruen, Mara Sheldon, Amanda Krause, Christopher Driscoll, Daniel Weiske, Richard Nicholson, Ashley Sierra, Laura Dammer, Clarence Peterson, Holly Benson, Daniel Levin, Srividya Rao, Zachery Coelius, Leila Babaeva, James Delong, Scott LeBlanc, Surbhi Madia, Maggie Cosgrove, Aaron Scherbring, and Tyler Richter.
"My Understanding One Day of Foxgloves," a poem by John Lee Clark (English), appeared in Poetry magazine in March. Clark is publisher of The Tactile Mind Press, which publishes signing community literature in both English (in print) and American Sign Language (ASL, on digital video). Clark, who is deaf and blind, is an award-winning rhetor, presenting frequently on signing community issues, ASL and English literacy, and Deaf-Blind culture.
Jennifer Sherry (sociology) was crowned Queen of the Snows for the 2004 Winter Carnival, held in St. Paul. Sherry is helping to raise money for the American Diabetes Foundation and is involved in a program to provide senior citizens with assistance to help them stay in their homes.
Faculty and Staff
CLA's 2004 Scholars of the College are Mary Dietz (political science), Robin Stryker (sociology), and John Watkins (English).
Jeylan Mortimer (sociology) is the 2004 CLA Dean's Medalist. The Dean's Medal recognizes significant accomplishments in research, scholarship, and creative work.
Photo by Terry Faust
J.B. Shank (history) was named a 2004–06 McKnight Land-Grant Professor. The award honors the University's most promising tenure-track assistant professors.
John Watkins (English) was awarded the 2003–2004 Morse-Alumni Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education.
Photos by Patrick O'Leary
Kathryn Sikkink (political science) and Madelon Sprengnether (English) received the 2003–2004 Morse-Alumni Award for Outstanding Contributions to Postbaccalaureate, Graduate, and Professional Education.
Albany Records has issued Calisto—Music for Piano, a survey of music professor Judith Lang Zaimont's most significant recent piano compositions. Zaimont also received the 2003 Aaron Copland Award.
Regents Professor Emeritus Dominick Argento (music) won a Grammy for best contemporary classical composition for his piece "Casa Guidi," recorded with the Minnesota Orchestra and mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade in 2001. Argento was also nominated for best choral performance for "Walden Pond" and best classical vocal performance for "Casa Guidi."
Photo by Jayme Halbritter
Catherine Ceniza Choy (American studies) received an American Journal of Nursing (AJN) book of the year award in the history and public category for her recent book Empire of Care: Nursing and Migration in Filipino American History.
Nora Paul (journalism; director, Center for New Media Studies) was honored by Minnesota First Lady Mary Pawlenty as one of 40 women named "Minnesota's Women of Accomplishment."
Charles Baxter (Edelstein-Keller Distinguished Chair in Creative Writing) and Ray Gonzalez (English) were nominated for 2004 Minnesota Book Awards. Baxter was nominated for his novel Saul and Patsy. Gonzalez was nominated for editing the anthology No Boundaries: Prose Poems by 24 American Poets.
Mirjana Lausevic (music), with students Kimberly Bahmer and Kristin Irving, performed with 37 other singers in the Sacred Harp choir at the 76th annual Academy Awards. The group performed the nominated song "Scarlet Tide" from the film Cold Mountain.
Ruth-Ellen B. Joeres (German) received the University's Distinguished Women Scholars Award in Humanities, Social Sciences, and Arts for 2004.
George Green (history) received the University of Minnesota Community Service Award for his contributions to K–12 education throughout Minnesota through College in the Schools. Abdi Samatar (geography) received the same award for his work on behalf of Somali immigrants and in support of education and the peace process in Somalia.
Sam Kortum (economics) received the Econometric Society's Frisch Medal for his paper "Technology, Geography, and Trade," coauthored with Jonathan Eaton and published in September 2002 in Econometrica.
Liz Boyle (sociology) was elected Review Editor of the Law and Society Review by the Law and Society Association.
Erika Lee (history) received the 2003 Theodore Saloutos Prize from the Immigration and Ethnic History Society for her book At America's Gate: Chinese Immigration during the Exclusion Era, 1882–1943.
Marco Bassetto and Julia Thomas (both from economics) received Alfred P. Sloan Fellowships from the Sloan Foundation to support their research on the American standard of living and industrial and economic performance.
Judith Preckshot (French) received the Outstanding Director of Graduate Studies Award for her work with graduate students.
Alexander Braginsky (music) received the Josef Dichler Gold Medal at the Vienna City Hall for his contributions as a performer and teacher.
Sally Taylor Lieberman (CLA honors) was awarded the John Tate Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Advising.
Susan Prahl (psychology) received the Outstanding Graduate Studies Assistant Award for her work with graduate students.
Alumni/ae
Rabbi David B. Starr (history '89) serves as Dean of the Me'ah program at Hebrew College, a college of Jewish studies in Newton, Mass.
Karlind T. Moller (M.A. '67, Ph.D. '70, communication disorders) received an honorary fellowship in the International College of Dentists from the American Dental Association for her contributions to the dental profession and oral sciences.
Mark Anderson (M.F.A. '99) was nominated for the 2004 Minnesota Book Award for his memoir Jesus Sound Explosion, which won the AWP Award for Creative Nonfiction. Alison McGhee (M.A. '93, English) was nominated for her novel Was It Beautiful?
Jon Butler (B.A. '64) has been named dean of the Graduate School at Yale College. Butler, a historian of American religion, is currently the William Robertson Coe Professor of American Studies and History and professor of religious studies.
Worth a nod:
August Nimtz (professor, political science) made history on March 1, 2004. He was the last person to ever buy and use a subway token in New York City.