Concluding a day-long Celebration of the Liberal Arts at Wittenberg University, the campus community celebrated the achievements of students and faculty members at the annual Honors Convocation, Friday, April 10, in Weaver Chapel. The faculty commemorated the occasion in full academic regalia as the university recognized high achievement of students and faculty members in academic and co-curricular activities.
During the ceremony, the 2015 Alumni Association Award for Distinguished Teaching was presented to Professor of English Robin Inboden. The award was established in 1960, and it is the highest recognition Wittenberg bestows on its faculty. It is accompanied by a stipend of $2,000. Candidates must have taught at Wittenberg for more than five years and are nominated by students, alumni, faculty and staff. Assistant Professor Biology Amber Burgett was also recognized for her work with the Omicron Delta Kappa Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award.
Kayla Villegas was named Alma Mater, an honor bestowed upon a junior woman on the basis of character and integrity, service to the community, concern for others and high standards of scholarship. Trevor Villegas was named Alma Lux, an honor bestowed upon a junior male student who possesses qualities of leadership, scholarship and service.
Kearstin Hickey received the Heimtraut Dietrich Award, which was established in 1981 to recognize the student who best emulates the spirit of the late associate dean of students' devotion to Wittenberg through faith and service. Brittany Goehmann received the The Dominic E. and Alyce G. De Marco Scholarship for Academic Excellence and Distinguished Service to Those Living on the Margins of Society, which is awarded to the senior with a GPA of at least 3.5 who has demonstrated – and will continue to demonstrate – a commitment to serving those persons who live on the margins of society, the sick, the material poor, the displaced, the homeless, and the elderly. The M. Alice Geiger Award was presented to Makenzie Daniels. The award, named for Wittenberg's first woman graduate, recognizes a senior woman for outstanding contributions to the campus in the areas of performing or literary arts, athletics, co-curricular leadership, new programming, special academic pursuit or through special representation at any time during her college career.
The John F. Mitchell Award, honoring the senior man who best represents the liberal arts tradition at Wittenberg, was presented to Eric Roberts. The award goes to a top student who is a positive force in academic, cultural and social aspects of the campus.
The Alpha Delta Pi Scholarship Award, created in 1990 by the Springfield Alumnae Association and Chi Chapter of Alpha Delta Pi sorority, recognizes two junior women, one Greek and one non-Greek, who best exemplify the characteristics consistent with the ideals and goals of the sorority. This year's recipients are Margaret Kramer (non-Greek) and Kayla Villegas (Greek).
The Global Awareness Award, instituted in 1992, recognizes seniors who contribute to greater global awareness within the Wittenberg University community. This year's recipient is Ya Haddy Sallah.
The Lou Laux Environmental Sustainability Award was presented to Tricia Hartman and Assistant Professor Geology Sarah Fortner for their effort and creativity devoted to cultivating a spirit of environmentalism on campus. The Community Service Champion Award recognizes a student’s commitment to service, the quality of her service, and her positive impact on the City of Springfield and Clark County. It is not merely the student’s hours of service, but the impact on the quality of life in the Springfield community that is most important. This year’s recipient is Alyssa Hughes.
The Charles J. Ping Student Community Service Award is presented in recognition of outstanding leadership and ability to meet the needs of the community by working in partnership with members of the community. It recognizes the student's effort to create an organization to lead and to involve others. Ohio Campus Compact, a statewide membership organization that serves to promote community service initiatives at colleges and universities, sponsors this award. This year's recipient is Meghan White.
The Excellence in Community Service Award was presented to Professor of Geology John Ritter in recognition of his substantial involvement in community projects, services and activities that contribute to the quality of life in the local community.
Mia Simpson and Nelson Laracuente are the recipients of the Martin Luther King Jr. Award for positive examples to members of the African American community and to the university.
Chebrya Jeffrey received the Broadwell Chinn Award, named for one of the first African American students to enroll at Wittenberg in the 1870s. The award honors the student holding the highest grade point average among African American juniors.
Introduced in 2009, The Lillian C. Franklin Diversity Award is granted each year to honor a student and a faculty/staff member who have made outstanding contributions in promoting and furthering our goal of rich diversity in the Wittenberg community. Candidates must uphold the tradition of diversity embodied by the award's namesake, demonstrate high standards of personal integrity, commitment to the education of the whole person, global vision and leadership. The 2015 student recipient is Menna Abaye and the faculty/staff recipient is Matevia Endowed University Pastor Rachel Tune.
Presidential Scholars, named for former presidents of Wittenberg, are the junior students having the top 13 grade point averages of their class. Those students are Allison Dunn, Rebecca Fiete, Katherine DeVantier, Elaina Vimmerstedt, Joseph Johnson, Kelley McCloy, Kara Seidenstricker, Kristen Quimby, Carly Gundlach, Rachel Tennison, Jacob Murray, Sarah Ellis and Matthew Briskey.
