Purdue students, organizations earn awards

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The annual Student Activities and Organization awards were presented Wednesday (April 10) in the Purdue Memorial Union North Ballroom. More than 100 nominations were received for the awards, which are given to outstanding students, student organizations and organization advisers.

The Emerging Leader Award is given to those who have demonstrated knowledge of, and interest in, campus activities and organizations. The recipients are expected to display enthusiasm, motivation, communication and organizational skills. This year's winners were Cory Back, Seokhun Bang, Rachel Bibler, Zachary Brantly, Tori Clift, Jani Dominguez, Amanda Green, Jorge Guerrero, Ashlee Janczak, RuQin Liu, Jeremy Patterson, Jake Ramsey, Jennifer Sacksteder, Hannah Scott, Kay Starzynski, Meher Taleyarkhan, Matt Tellas, Taylor Webb, Sam Walburn and Preston Zhang.

The Outstanding Adviser of the Year is awarded to the student organization adviser who serves as a role model to students and has a strong belief in the organization they represent. Nominees show a willingness to commit sufficient time to the organization and promote students' personal growth by involving them in the organization's decision-making process. The winners for this year's award were Antonia Munguia and Robert Proctor. Other nominees were Monica Allain, Saurabh Bagchi, Heather Beasley, Strother Brann, Beth Holloway, Chad Johnson, Margie Jones, Galen King, Benjamin R. Lawton, Seokcheon Lee, Lauren Logan, Annie Murray, Kelly Pistilli, Renee Roames and Pankaj Sharma.

The Helen B. Schleman Scholarship is awarded to students who have taken a nontraditional path to higher education. This year's recipients were Jeffrey Evans, Lynda Glover, Byron Kruger, Lou Underwood, Terry McNeil, Shawn Putman, Devon Armstrong, Ebony Barrett-Kennedy, Megan Farley, Dillon Mills, Sandra Service, Timothy Spano, Hamid Zamenian and Mariam Addeeb.

The Linda Hurd Ewing Memorial Scholarship is dedicated to a student who best exemplifies the characteristics and qualities of scholarship, leadership, integrity and the ability to communicate to all ages. This year's recipients were Mariam Addeeb and Cassie Michele Cox.

The Class of 1937 endowed a scholarship to reward students who show leadership and leadership potential. The 2013 recipients were Milad Alucozai, Casey Oliver, Alissa DeJongh, Andrew Battiato, Calvin Pham, Michael Mattern, Shannon Morton, Rachel Svetanoff, Mary Buente, Ronit Patnaik, Anne Marie Thieling, Nicholas King, Rachel Borsa, Brooke Sacksteder, Emily Pearce, Cassie Cox, Caleb Shoup, Anne Dooley, Anne Rodino and Brittany Vacchinao.

The Peggy Sullivan Achievement Award honors and celebrates the accomplishments and contributions of Peggy Sullivan, Span Plan's third director. She provided 30 years of dedicated service to traditional, as well as nontraditional students, at Purdue University from 1962-2002. This year's recipients were Mariam Addeeb, Jeffrey Evans, Byron Kruger, Jun Zhang, Melissa Gokmogol and Diana Moreno Sarmiento.

The Office of the Dean of Students Nontraditional Student Scholarship is awarded to full- or part-time, beginning or continuing adult nontraditional students who have a cumulative grade index of 2.0 or above, clear academic and career goals, and evidence of good character and persistence. Recipients were Jeffrey Evans, Byron Kruger, Melissa Gokmogol, Timothy Spano, Hla Thaung, Mariam Addeeb, David Long, Nikeytha Ramsey, Ebony Barrett-Kennedy, Vijitha Obeyeserkera, Dillon Mills and Megan Farley.

One Purdue is awarded to a Boilermaker who has shown pride in Purdue and has actively sought to create change on campus. The 2013 recipient is Mike Asem.

The Charles O. McGaughey Leadership Awards were established by McGaughey, a 1939 Purdue graduate, to honor undergraduate students who show leadership abilities and appreciation for basic American values. The recipients, who each will receive a $3,375 scholarship, were Milad Alucozai, Nick King, Victoria Loong, Katie McCalley, Scott Oliver, Bradley Pierson, Muhammad Soofi, Arianna Sweis, Kenneth Tan and Jessica Wedow. 

The Cecelia Zissi Graduate Student Grant honors the memory of the second Span Plan director who served from 1970-1987. Recipients were Lisa Beringer, Patricia Maule, Omobola Thomas, Cynthia Davies, Natalie Byler, Sarah Lewis, Jiyoung Chae, Geoffrey Kanani and Michael Loeffelman.

The Co-Sponsorship of the Year Award is presented to organizations that have provided the most outstanding co-sponsorship program or program series for the betterment of the campus, students and Purdue. Eight events were nominated for this award. Purdue Student Government, Purdue Student Union Board and Residence Halls Association won for their collaboration on the "Purdue 360."

The Outstanding Program Award is presented to the student organization that has implemented the most outstanding campus program during the academic year. The 2013 award was presented to Purdue University Chinese Students and Scholars for organizing its Chinese New Year Show.

The Community Engagement & Involvement Award is presented to the student organization that provides outstanding service to other people or a place. The event can be a large, one-time activity or a series of smaller projects that meet community needs. This year's recipients were Alpha Phi Omega and Students for a Better Life.

The Boilermaker Pride Award honors a student organization for outstanding participation in a tournament competition. The organization must display outstanding sportsmanship, compete against a Big Ten opponent and have active participation by all members in most competitions. This year's recipient was the Society of Women Engineers.

The Excellence Award is a "lifetime achievement award" for student organizations that demonstrate outstanding continuous programs, leadership and service. This year's recipient was the Purdue Reamer Club.

The Office of the Dean of Students-Student Ambassador Program welcomes new Boilermaker families to campus and spreads the word about services available to students through the Office of the Dean of Students. The seven outstanding ambassadors for 2013 were Michelle Cox, Jordan Edwards, Amanda Gee, Marcus Glick, Marcel Kuttab, Aiman Nawari and Alex Zawodni.

The Fall Harvest Food Drive Award this year went to the Engineering Student Council (442 pounds).

Nominations for these awards are taken throughout the course of the year and are reviewed by a committee of students and faculty. Award winners receive plaques, pins or certificates for their organization and have their name inscribed on perpetual plaques on campus. 

Sources: Jungsun Kim, graduate administrative professional, 765-494-1231, kim929@purdue.edu