2005 Student Recognition Awards

On April 21st, as part of the campus wide Student Recognition Reception, the Humanities Division recognized three students for outstanding work in humanities courses. The student-scholars are as follows:

Amanda Patterson
Amanda is a Communication major, but she has made significant contributions to two programs in the Humanities Division. She has been a willing tutor for English classes this semester, particularly for Critical Reading and Writing, and she has also spent much energy on Spanish classes and activities. Mary Ellen Ibarra-Robinson says that when something needs doing in regard to Spanish activities, it is always Amanda who volunteers and who can be counted on to follow through. She is truly an outstanding student.

Dana Rinne
Dana is a true scholar. Rob Stothart says that the notes Dana takes in class could serve as the study guide for everyone else. It is Dana's writing that particularly sets him apart. He had a paper on the poetry of Li-Young Lee published in last year's issue of Writing in the Academic World, the college's online academic magazine, and, this year, he will have four of his own poems (more than any other single individual) published in Visualize/Verbalize, the college's literary magazine. In addition, Dana often reads his poems at the division's First Friday poetry readings, and he is a member of Another Genre, the division's literary club.

Jeff Bryan
As a freshman, under the "gentle" encouragment of Kathy Bieke, Jeff became an English major, and he took to it like Shakespeare took to the theatre, like Melville took to whales, and like Thoreau took to the woods. His own writing has progressed to the point that Renee Dechert says that his capstone project could be the "first chapter of his dissertation." He has also turned out to be a terrific teacher, tutoring in the Writing Center several hours a week. He is the tutor that students ask for more than any other. Through a program that Carol Zawacki offers, he is now also a nationally certified tutor. As if that weren't enough, Jeff also tutors or has tutored in math, biology, history, Spanish, and public speaking. Additionally, he's a member of the Student Senate, and he's a husband and the father of two girls. We don't know how he does it, but we will miss him a lot.