Purdue News
Purdue NewsSara Elaine Cheaney, Greenwood , received the 1997 Flora Roberts Award for the outstanding graduating woman. Travis Dale Park, Franklin , received the 1997 G.A. Ross Award for the outstanding male graduate.
Ming-Teh Sun, West Lafayette , earned the Louis Sudler Prize for excellence in the arts. Melanie Ann Bachman, Jasper , received the Bruce Helfert Memorial Award for the outstanding junior student majoring in science or engineering.
Other students who excelled academically also were honored during the event in Elliott Hall of Music.
The Flora Roberts Award is given to a senior woman student for outstanding scholarship, leadership, character and service to the university community. The award was established by the will of Flora Roberts, a member of the Purdue Class of 1887. The recipient receives the Flora Roberts medal, $400 cash and a certificate. Cheaney's name will be inscribed on a marker on the Purdue Mall.
Cheaney, a nursing major, has been active in Purdue's Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps. She has been battalion executive officer, squad leader, mustering petty officer and public affairs officer. She was among 26 Purdue students who completed the Marine Corps Marathon. She represented Indiana at the International Cancer Nursing Conference in Brighton, England. She was secretary to the Purdue Student Nurses Association and the Nursing Student Council. She was education chair and secretary for Kappa Kappa Gamma social sorority and was 1996 Homecoming Queen.
The G.A. Ross Award goes to the outstanding senior man based on academic achievement, leadership, character and overall contribution to the university. An endowment provides the recipient with a gold medal, a $400 cash award and a certificate. Park's name will be engraved on a marker on the Purdue Mall.
Park graduated in December with a degree in agricultural education and had been active in agriculture-related organizations since first enrolling at Purdue. He was an Agricultural Ambassador for three years and was vice president of the Student Agriculture Council. In 1992, he left Purdue to become national president of the FFA. After returning to school, Park spent a summer at the Ukraine National Agricultural University where he studied the culture and food-production system of the former Soviet republic.
The Louis Sudler Prize in the Arts is given to the graduating senior who displays excellence in the creative or performing arts at Purdue. Sudler, a deceased Chicago businessman, created an endowment that provides a $1,000 cash prize for the winner.
Sun will graduate in May with bachelor's degree in mathematics. He plans to enroll at the Indiana University School of Music to study violin performance. He has studied violin since he was 8 years old. He has been a member of the Purdue Symphony Orchestra since 1992 and serves as the organization's concertmaster. He is the winner of the 1996 Allan Keller Competition and the 1996 and 1997 Indiana Music Teachers National Association Collegiate Artist Competition. Sun was vice president of the Taiwanese Students' Association during 1995-96 and was a photographer and writer for The Exponent, the student newspaper.
The Bruce Helfert Memorial Award is presented to a junior in the School of Science or the Schools of Engineering who demonstrates outstanding academic achievement and an understanding of the impact of science and technology on humanity. The award is made possible through a gift from Sylvia Helfert, Marina del Ray, Calif., in memory of her son. Bruce Helfert, a 1964 Purdue graduate. He was a surgeon at March Air Force Base, Calif., when he died from injuries received in an automobile accident.
Bachman has maintained a straight "A" grade average while majoring in industrial engineering. In addition to her coursework, she has been a cooperative student with United Parcel Service, working in the company's Operations Research Group. She is a member of Tau Beta Pi Engineering Honor Society and Alpha Pi Mu Industrial Engineering Honor Society. She held several officer positions in the Institute of Industrial Engineers and was named the outstanding sophomore and junior woman in engineering in 1996 and 1997. She also has been a teaching assistant and a professor assistant in the School of Industrial Engineering.
Others who were recognized for their academic achievements were eight current or former students who received National Science Foundation Graduate Fellowships. The fellowships provide tuition for three years of graduate study and a $15,000 annual stipend. Also recognized were 39 seniors who maintained straight "A" averages during their college careers.
CONTACTS: Marvin Schlatter, assistant vice president for student services, (765) 494-5779.
Steve Akers, executive associate dean of students, (765) 494-1747.
David A. Leppla, director of bands, (765) 494-0770.
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
