Graduate Student Appreciation and Recognition Posts

  • Adam Constine
    Master’s student in Plant, Soil, and Microbial Sciences

    “Adam was an instrumental part of teaching CSS226L this past Fall. He brought farm and industry experience to the classroom and created a brand-new hand-on laboratory where students got to work on sprayer calibration at the Agronomy Farm. Thanks to Adam for helping improve this newer course. His efforts were beneficial to the fall students and will also benefit those in future semesters.”

    By Erin Hill

  • Astri Brilyanti
    Master’s student in Sustainable Tourism & Protection Area Management

    “Astri is nearing the end of her Master's degree, and had headed home to Indonesia to do data collection for her thesis. She was still an active member of our research team--working remotely across time zones--while collecting data, and when travel restrictions around COVID-19 forced her to come back to the US, she did. She rested when she needed rest, worked when work HAD to be done, and pivoted to adjust her data collection and her graduation rate once she realized she'd need more time. This flexibility will serve her well, and she is a highly valued member of our team.”

    By Julie Rojewski

  • Rebekah Gordon
    Doctoral Student Curriculum, instruction, and Teacher Ed.

    “Thanks for being a great leader and mentor!”

    By Lucia Cardenas

  • Zack Kruse
    Doctoral student in English

    “Zack is one of the hardest working graduate students I know. His dedication to the department and to the profession is a model for others to follow. He gives his time, energy and creativity to make a difference.”

    By Julian C. Chambliss

  • Puneet Kumar
    Doctoral Student in Civil and Environmental Engineering

    “Puneet is a lead TA for CE 221 that has about 340 students in 3 sections during the spring semester. Managing the large volume of students for various activities without face-to-face meetings is challenging. While he had minor health problems during these testing times, he has shown a leadership and courage to help students in a very systematic and organized way. I really appreciate his efforts to provide the best possible education to our undergraduate students.”

    By Syed W. Haider

  • Kaleb Ortner
    Master’s student in Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences

    “Kaleb was a great TA for CSS226L Weed Science Laboratory. He developed new written materials to help the students learn weed identification, which is no easy task. He was a team player from the very beginning! Kaleb also took on extra responsibilities helping with grading projects in CSS126 Weed Management (online). I am grateful that I will have the opportunity to work with Kaleb again this coming fall in the online course.”

  • Pragya Saxena
    Doctoral student in Pharmacology and Toxology

    “Thank you for continuing to drive your own education through tough times. Your willingness to try new things and learn new skills -- even in the face of self-isolation and a closed lab -- shows how your self-confidence can bring you to new and amazing things. Keep it up!”

    by Nathan Tykocki

  • Eliana Castro
    Doctoral student in Curriculum, Instruction, and Teacher Education

    “In addition to being an incredible, brilliant scholar and a devoted, compassionate teacher educator, Eliana Castro is a generous, contributing citizen in our Department. She provides invaluable service in myriad ways: mentoring other doctoral students, serving on a search committee for a new social studies colleague, helping to recruit incoming doctoral students, among many other ways. She is also a warm, kind person of whom we are all so proud. Thank you, Eliana!”

    by Anne-Lise Halvorsen

  • Kesicia Dickinson
    Doctoral student in Political Science

    "Kesicia is so smart, kind, and respectful. She is inclusive and strong and serves as a mentor to our newest students of color. She is constantly empowering other students who feel out of place in the academy and creating space for them to shine. When some students -- especially her more junior peers of color – feel isolated and feel imposter syndrome, she goes out of her way to remind them that they have earned their space in the discipline and reminds them that they have so much to contribute. Our department is trying so hard to build a minority politics initiative, and without Kesicia and her persistence, encouragement, and participation, we would be a much worse group and department. She kills people with kindness, is genuine, constructive, and empowering. I am so proud to have her as a student in the discipline. I have yet to meet someone as inclusive and encouraging as Kesicia."

    by Nazita Lajevardi

  • Logan Appenfeller
    Master’s Student in Entomology

    "Logan was able to complete his master's program with two little kids at home, it has been a huge personal and economic sacrifice for him and his family to be a busy grad student and to support on a grad stipend a family of 4 people. He also had to move his family far away from their relatives who are in Kansas, thus they had little help with the kids. He inspired me in overcoming hardships to reach a goal in life. Logan wanted to continue onto a PhD but the financial hardship became insurmountable, thus he decided to graduate with a Master's degree. He is one of the brightest individuals I have ever met, and I can only hope that he will have the opportunity to come back to grad school and get a PhD. My lab will always be open to him. Logan's first published manuscript from his graduate research was so well written that it was featured on the homepage of PLoS ONE and he was recently offered a job with USDA-NIFA in Kansas City. While Logan is a non-traditional grad student, he is a truly outstanding individual."

    by Zsofia Szendrei

  • CITE Doctoral Students
    Teacher Education

    "I have so many graduate students that I would love to recognize and I cannot pick specific ones out of the bunch so I am sending my recognition to all of them The CITE students in our department have so many reasons to be recognized. To name a few are high functioning, caring, mentoring, supportive, humble, loving, productive, etc. This year's graduating class specifically get a hats off because in their 1st year in graduate school, they lost one of their peers and it was a devastating experience to say the least not only for them but for our entire department. The positive thing that came from this horrible experience is the coming together of our department to hold each other up and to keep each other going and moving forward in their journey. They became closer to one another, to successive new cohorts coming in, to faculty, to staff and basically everyone modeling what a totally rounded human being is supposed to be. You can be a decent human being and also be some of the smartest people on the planet and for that I am so proud and appreciative of our entire CITE members. I thank them for the lessons and am proud to be part of their lives. I love them all so very much!!!"

    by Terry Edwards

  • Morteza Sarparast
    Doctoral student in Chemistry

    "Morteza switched labs, and my lab is very different from what he was doing. In a matter of months, he has become an expert in C. elegans neurons. His tenacity and perseverance are amazing! He is also very supportive in the lab, helping with lab chores and mentoring students. Thank you Morteza, keep up the good work!"

    by Jamie Alan

  • Katherine Wood
    Doctoral Student in Forestry

    "A significant portion of our department's grad student body do not have cars and so are dependent on public transportation to get around, many of these are international students far from their families. As the COVID-19 situation became more and more alarming, Katherine generously reached out to all of them to offer to do their grocery shopping for them so they could avoid exposing themselves to infection on public transportation. I thought this was incredibly thoughtful and generous and exemplifies the kind of solidarity we need in our community to get through this. I was really impressed and moved by Katherine doing this."

    by David Rothstein

  • Adrianna Crossing
    Doctoral student in Counseling and Educational Psychology

    "We would like to give a shout out to our fabulous Graduate Assistant, Adrianna Crossing. Adrianna serves as a research assistant for the evaluation of Truth, Racial Healing and Transformation of Metro Lansing. Adrianna’s presence on our team elevates the quality of our work and our spirits in equal measure. Not only does Adrianna bring to our collective work a passion for racial justice, a deep knowledge of the relevant scholarship, and, through her role as a student facilitator of the MSU Dialogues, an understanding of the everyday practices that promote racial justice, she also brings to every one of our team’s interactions warmth, vulnerability and humor. We are delighted to have the opportunity to work with her and will miss her greatly when she graduates."

    by Miles McNall

  • Greg Rogel
    Doctoral student in Philosophy

    "Greg - thank you for always being a kind and understanding ear to share concerns and troubles with. I appreciate your honesty, your professionalism, and your sense of humor. We are lucky to have you with us in the College of Arts & Letters - I hope you realize how important your perspective is. Thank you.

    by Amy Lampe

  • Jessie Magalski
    Master’s student in Communicative Sciences & Disorders (CSD)

    "Thank you for your guidance throughout the graduate school application process. I appreciate how you shared your application journey with us in NSSLHA and were there to answer my questions a year later when it was my turn to apply. You are a wonderful role model and will make a great SLP!"

    by Emily Lance

  • Hannah Ahluwalia
    Master’s student in Accounting

    "Hannah created an Empowerment Closet as an undergraduate student and has continued to run the Closet as a graduate student. The Empowerment Closet loans business professional clothing to male and female MSU students to support their career success. Hannah raised the funds from corporate partners and individuals with the support of Women in Business Students' Association, purchased the clothes and works with students to make sure we have what they need. Hannah was also one of four MSU students who planned the Big Ten Women in Business Connections Leadership Conference in Detroit. The conference hosted nine Big Ten Universities and 57 students. The conference showcased Detroit as a great place to start your professional career."

    by Ann Crain

  • Patrick Stillson
    Master’s student in Entomology

    "Patrick is part of the LGBTQ+ community at MSU. He and his husband got married soon after he started his MS program in my lab. He brought a different perspective and much needed diversity to our department which I really enjoyed. I first got to know Patrick as an undergraduate student working in my lab on a summer research project. Lucky for me, he decided to stay on for an MS. He did a wonderful job and is now ready to graduate with two peer-reviewed publications, one submitted and another close to being ready for submission. After I felt like he learnt everything I could teach him during the MS, I recommended he look for a PHD project in a lab that could provide him with professional challenges. As a result, he recently accepted a PhD position in a molecular lab in Texas, where he and his husband will be moving soon."

    by Zsofia Szendrei

  • Brean Prefontaine
    Doctoral student in Physics and Astronomy

    Brean Prefontaine is an outreach coordinator for the Women and Minorities in the Physical Sciences (WaMPS) graduate student group, and she has gone above and beyond with public science outreach. Brean took the initiative to greatly expand WaMPS's outreach program from participating in 2-3 outreach events per semester to now more than a dozen outreach events each semester. These new events include MSU Science Fest, after-school programs at libraries, and classroom visits. She also volunteered as SL@MS co-chair last summer, organizing and running the WaMPS summer camp for middle school students. She spent a lot of time developing new fun and educational activities for all these new outreach events, with modifications for many age groups that range all the way from preschool to high school, and she acquired all of the supplies and materials that are needed for them. This is an incredible amount of work for a single person to tackle! Because of Brean, a lot more graduate students have been able to get involved in outreach, and she is very patient with teaching them how to engage the kids. Thanks to Brean, WaMPS's outreach program has been a huge success and has grown immensely over the past 2 years! She definitely deserves to be thanked and the WaMPS Board wants to recognize for her amazing outreach work in the physics department!

    by Jessie Micallef

  • Colton Wasitler
    Doctoral student in Music Performance

    "Colton has worked for The Writing Center @ MSU for many years with increasing levels of responsibility and commitment over time. He is the coordinator of our home base in Bessey Hall as well as our online satellite. Because of his work training consultants to conduct online sessions, we were well prepared to move our whole center online in this time of crisis. In addition, he worked tirelessly those first few days to get us going online and to make sure every consultant had the guidelines and resources they would need to function in this new environment. I truly appreciate his leadership, his mentorship of other consultants, and his good will and humor during all of it."

    by Trixie Smith

  • Di Zhang
    Doctoral Student in Pharmacology and Toxicology

    "After an exemplary graduate career at MSU, Di Zhang defended her dissertation in the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology on March 27, 2020. Di was interested in every project in the lab, and she has been incredibly productive. She has already published five first author publications and has written two more. Tellingly, Di wrote three papers on three different projects in one year and has already followed up with a second manuscript on two of these projects. Di did not spend all of her time in the lab as she was a Venture Fellow at Spartan Innovations, completed a summer internship at Charles River Laboratories, helped with undergraduate and online courses, and was a leader in the Graduate Student Organization. Di won multiple awards and fellowships throughout her career, including an IPSTP T32 training fellowship, travel awards from ASPET and FASEB, an Aitch Fellowship, Penner Award, Best Paper and Best Speed Data Presentation awards from the Department of Pharmacology, and the F99 NCI Pre-doc to Post-doc Transition Award on the first submission for her proposal entitled “Targeting the Nrf2 pathway in cancer.” This award changed her career plans, and to her credit, Di will use this prestigious award for a postdoctoral fellowship at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. I am looking forward to hearing about the important contributions she will make in this new position. Di is a talented and dedicated scientist with an admirable work ethic and has been an excellent citizen in the department and university. She truly is a role model for other graduate students, and I am grateful that I was able to serve as her mentor."

    by Karen Liby

  • FAST Fellows 2019-20
    Kimberly Alberts, Gaurav Chauda, Meg Cross, Gelicia Forde, Goodman-Williams Rachael, Ryley Mancine, Connie Rojas, Ted Van Alst, Scott Warner
    Various Disciplines

    What a joy to work with each and everyone of you! We love seeing the progress you have made in your Teaching Scholarship, your growth as researchers, and the wonderful and supportive community you have built! We are so proud of all your successes, and we cannot wait to see who you are all becoming and what paths you are taking. We look forward to seeing you present your final projects. Hopefully we will all have to chance to connect in person soon again.

    by Rique Campa, Kellie Walters and Stefanie Baier

  • Madison Chandler
    Doctoral student in Kinesiology

    "I would like to thank Madison for the help and guidance that she provided to me when I was completing my personal statement for graduate school. I reached out to her for help and she was more than happy to help me. She provided me with critiques, advise and adjustments in my statement. She even sent me her own personal statement for me to reference! I’m very grateful for Madison because with her help, I received offers from five graduate programs. I will never forget the kindness that she showed me, and I will never leave her contributions out of my story."

    by Kadeeja Murrell

  • Teresa Williams
    Master’s student in Writing Rhetoric and American Culture

    "Teresa is preparing to graduate this semester. They applied to 5 Ph.D. programs this year and got into all 4 with great offers...but they elected to stay at MSU. We are so glad they are staying! We congratulate them on being a Rasmussen Fellow as well. Thanks for choosing MSU!"

    by Bill Hart-Davidson

  • Dee Jordan
    Doctoral student in Geography, Environment & Spatial Sciences

    "Dee Jordan has a demonstrated record service and dedication to improving diversity, equity and inclusion within the Department of Geography Environment and Spatial Science, the discipline of Geography, and the MSU community. She is the founder and current co-leader of the Advancing Geography Through Diversity Program (AGTDP), an innovative program focused on addressing the underrepresentation of African American, Hispanic American and Native American scholars in the graduate program in the Department of Geography and transforming the demographic landscape of the discipline of geography. For her capacity building efforts towards departmental and disciplinary diversity and inclusion, Dee was recognized by the discipline of Geography as the 2020 Association of American Geographers Enhancing Diversity Award recipient, becoming the first graduate student to receive this honor. As a result of her noteworthy contributions towards campus culture and climate advocacy, Dee was named the 2019 recipient of a Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Endowed Scholarship, a Council of Graduate Students (COGS) Disciplinary Leadership Award, and the E. James Potchen Award for Outstanding Graduate Student of the Year in Geography. In 2018, for her dedication to intentional leadership, cross-community caring and creating inclusive spaces Dee was recognized by MSU as the Excellence in Diversity Award Individual Emerging Progress recipient and the Black Faculty Staff and Administrators Association's Graduate Student Emerging Leader. Dee is the graduate student representative for the College of Social Science Dean's Advisory Board for Diversity and Inclusion serving multiple concurrent terms. She is an active member of the Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) learning community, which supports the retention and graduation of underrepresented minorities in graduate programs. Dee has served as a Graduate Student Facilitator for the Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP), which seeks to expose underrepresented minority undergraduates to research and graduate education. Several of Dee's SROP mentees have applied and been accepted to MSU for graduate school in various programs. She has been actively involved in student government at Michigan State, serving two terms on the Council of Graduate Students from 2015-2017, becoming the first African American woman elected to the Executive Board and the first African American to serve as President. In 2016, during the Department of Student Life’s All University Awards ceremony, Dee was selected as Michigan State University’s Graduate Student Leader of the Year. Since her arrival in 2014, Dee has been a change agent for her department and discipline and has an exemplary record of service campus-wide towards increasing minority participation, supporting marginalized groups serving as a mentor to graduate and undergraduate students. For her leadership, service, scholarship, character and advocacy, Dee was selected as an inaugural inductee to Michigan State University’s Chapter of the Edward A. Bouchet Graduate Honor Society. I thank you for your many contributions Dee."

    by Joe Darden

  • Duong Nguyen
    Doctoral Student in Computer Science and Engineering

    "Duong has consistently been an excellent citizen of the CSE department. He has served as COGS representative, led CSE's graduate student group CSEGA, and helped with many department events such as recruiting visits and open houses. However, what I want to recognize Duong for in this note is how he really helped out last summer when CSE was renovating two of our larger research lab spaces. This was a big task requiring moving all the existing desks and personal items out of the lab and either into the hallway or into another temporary lab so that the renovations could take place. The task was complicated by the fact that many students in the lab were away for summer internships, so there were fewer people to help. Duong stepped up and did a lot of extra work helping out many of his fellow students. His efforts are greatly appreciated by all within CSE."

    by Eric Torng

  • Kellie Walters
    Doctoral student in Horticulture

    "Kellie Walters is a PhD Candidate in the Department of Horticulture who, during the 2017-2018 school year, completed the FAST (Future Academic Scholars in Teaching) Fellowship Program to improve her knowledge and contribute to scholarly teaching and learning. During 2019-2020, Kellie took on an administrative role with the FAST Fellowship Program, mentoring the Fellows in their teaching-as-research projects and professional development. In recognition of her disciplinary research, Kellie has received the Bukovac Outstanding Graduate Student award in the Department of Horticulture and will be joining the faculty at the University of Tennessee this fall as Assistant Professor of Controlled Environment Production in the Department of Plant Sciences. Congratulations Kellie and thanks for all that you do at MSU."

    by Rique Campa

  • Jennifer Zavalnitskaya
    Master’s student in Entomology

    "Jennifer joined my lab in summer 2019 as an MS student, she has been a pleasure to have in my lab ever since. She was born to immigrant parents from Eastern Europe and since I'm also from that part of the world, I always felt a sense of camaraderie even though she was born and raised in MI. (We both have difficult last names!!) Jen is super enthusiastic about agriculture and aims to be an extension agent when she graduates, therefore I quickly put her in touch with Ben Werling, West MI vegetable educator, whom she has been collaborating with and learning the ropes from. It’s rare to find a graduate student who has such a well-developed idea of what she intends to do in the future and has the passion to carry her through the obstacles, but Jen is the real deal! I'm really happy to have Jen in my lab also because she is co-hosting our entomology podcast that shares the lives of scientists. This allowed me to learn so much more about her: for example, she is an avid vegetable gardener and has lots of house plants that are growing amazingly well in her apartment!"

    by Zsofia Szendrei

  • Abbie Cathcart
    Theatre

    "Thank you, Abbie, for sharing your peaceful yoga practice with us in the Department of Theatre. Your practice brought a window of peace into our busy schedules. Thank you for helping us to see our own lights."

    by Amy Lampe

  • Alexandra A. Lee
    Doctoral student in Educational Psychology & Educational Technology Counseling, Educational Psychology, & Special Education (CEPSE)

    "Alexandra’s research focuses on the social-psychological processes underpinning achievement motivation specifically implicit theories of intelligence, competence beliefs, and achievement goals. She has taught in the K-12 setting and in a variety of cultural contexts, prior to coming to MSU (in Thailand, Singapore, rural Mississippi, and Denver, CO). As is currently the instructor of record for TE 150 (Reflections on Learning). Alexandra shared her teaching expertise and enthusiasm at a recent Lunch and Learn session with Graduate Teaching Assistants at MSU. Those in attendance really enjoyed learning from her and her expertise. We hope to have Alexandra share more of her great work in the teaching space for all those interested in teaching."

    by the Graduate School Teaching Assistant Program

  • Caitlin Cornell
    Doctoral Student in Second Language Studies

    "Caitlin Cornell has been working tirelessly to improve access to education and other resources for the community at large. She has shared resources and taught people how to keep their courses accessible even during this transition to online. She has led several learning communities that have a great focus on inclusivity and equity, while also being interdisciplinary (e.g., the Applied Scholars group housed in the SLS program and a accessibility learning group that developed out of a course she taught). A Lansing native, she has also been committed to her community delivering meals and other resources to struggling families."

    by Senta Goertler

  • Curtis Green-Eneix
    Doctoral student in the English Language Studies Program

    "A former McNair Scholar, Curtis has always maintained a positive attitude, even though he's had to negotiate and has overcome much adversity in his personal life. Being the first in his family to make it college, I have been (re)infected by his sheer enthusiasm to learn and embrace the academic and social opportunities that MSU has to offer. He embodies the spirit and drive of an emerging scholar who views education as a privilege, not a right. As my research assistant (RA), he works tirelessly to ensure that my work requests are met. At the same time, he goes above and beyond the call of duty. Being on sabbatical this past year, I've been traveling internationally to share my research with overseas colleagues. In spite of the time differences (I traveled to Australia, China, Hong Kong, Pakistan, Turkey, the UK), Curtis always supplied the requisite information for me to deliver invited academic talks at various universities abroad. More often than not, these talks had to be customized for local contexts, and he always took it upon himself to find details that speak to the local contexts of my audience. Curtis has proven himself to be a responsible and thinking RA who often improves on responsibilities assigned to him. I'm truly thankful for his commitment and his desire to produce first-class work. Needless to say, I have been fortunate to have been the beneficiary of such a commendable work ethic."

    by Peter De Costa

  • Kambriana Gates
    Master’s student in Urban and Regional Planning

    "Kambriana Gates is a dedicated student who has been instrumental in developing the Climate & Response process in the Prevention, Outreach and Education department as our graduate research assistant. Kam's positive attitude, flexibility with transitioning to remote work and dedication to making the world a better place are remarkably inspiring. I thank her for all that she does!"

    by Lydia Weiss

  • Eric Estrada
    Master’s student in Packaging

    "Eric has produced a risk-based, user-centered tool to develop the labeling of medical devices. The labels are presented in a standard format which prioritizes information needed to make life or death decisions. (Surprisingly, labeling for medical devices is not yet standardized in the US). He has not only developed this tool, but is in the process of empirically evaluating the performance of the new system verses existing, commercial labeling for the same product using tools from the field of visual perception. He is doing all of this while also working full time at a medical device company and taking care of his family. I am grateful that Eric has remained committed to this project amidst all that he has to do. His work is not only incredibly unique; it is also meaningful, and I am grateful that I have had the opportunity to work with him."

    by Laura Bix

  • HALE Graduate Students
    Education Administration

    "Students with whom I work most closely are all adult learners with very complex lives during these difficult times. They are eldercare providers, researchers whose studies have been totally interrupted as they neared completion of dissertations, those hoping for employment next year on and off campus now on hold due to hiring chills and freezes, those who have to find ways to focus on class while becoming homeschool teachers, and those who have put up my constantly shifting schedule of an academic administrator. Yet, they continue to show up to meet with me on zoom and email, inspire through their insights and leadership in these challenging times, find ways to bolster each other in virtual writing groups, and make it clear that postsecondary education will be in good hands. They remind me why I wanted to be a faculty member and are my motivation every day. Thank you isn't enough to each of them."

    by Marilyn Amey

  • Tania de Sostoa-McCue
    Doctoral Student Writing, Rhetoric and American Culture

    "Tania has been an amazing editorial assistant even through several personal and family medical difficulties *and* while making good progress towards her degree. She's made my work as journal editor not just do-able but pleasant and enjoyable. My work truly wouldn't be possible without her, and I am grateful for her presence in my work life!"

    by Malea Powell

  • Ida Djenontin
    Doctoral Student in Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences

    "In addition to maintaining high performance on her own work, Ida has been a great support to both me and students in her role as TA for two of my classes this Spring! She has done a yeoman job with grading, but more importantly, has taken many other steps to get to know the undergrad students and to help with management. These have been crucial in helping us all successfully navigate the transition to 'remote' instruction. I deeply appreciate her work ethic and positive demeanor."

    by Gary Schnakenberg

  • Jared Milburn
    Student in Writing Rhetoric and American Culture

    "Jared brings his whole creative and intellectual self to the tasks in front of him. This means you get a filmmaker, songwriter, emcee, beat maker, music engineer, and more. He shows that we should never leave parts of who we are outside of the classroom. Brining all of who we are creates a rich reservoir of assets and insights available not only to ourselves but to the people around us."

    by Emery Petchauer

  • Clare Grall, Shelby Wilcox, Nolan Jahn
    Graduate students in Communication

    "The grad students are to me the main reason that keeps the university alive. They are the future of science. Just as humanity would die out without kids, the university would do so without grad students- and within one generation science would cease to exist. Thus, training the next generation of scientists is just like raising a family. And - in joy and pain - we stand together as a team. This sense of community, mutual responsibility, and a common goal is to me what makes it so meaningful to work together with grad students. I can honestly say that I probably learned more from them than I've provided as input."

  • Cadaelia Turnage
    Master’s Student in Accounting

    "Cadealia is the graduate advisor for the National Association of Black Accountants. She has served as a mentor and role model to MSU students from all backgrounds who want to become Certified Public Accountants. She supports a 10-person executive board that plans professional, social and community service events for MSU students. She helps create supportive environments for students of color to achieve academic and professional success. She has full time job offer from KPMG, one of the world's largest public accounting firms. In addition, she helped me plan and execute the 2020 Black History Month Multicultural Heroes Hall of Fame Case Competition. She transitioned the application online, helped recruit teams and provided feedback to teams during dress rehearsal. She spent 10 hours on a Sunday watching teams rehearse, providing feedback and deciding which teams should move to the final round of the competition. During the final round, she hosted the judges, served as a timekeeper and tabulated the judge's scores. She was critical to the event's success."

    by Ann Crain

  • Katie Greulich
    Doctoral student in English

    "I want to shout out Katie Greulich, who has just finished writing a brilliant dissertation titled "Fieldwork: Ecological Pedagogy in Modern Fiction and Film," and is set to defend it next week. It's been a joy to co-direct this project with my colleague Dr. Judith Stoddart, and to see Katie bring it to completion in such a smart, surprising, and truly interdisciplinary way. Katie's work demonstrates so many of the hallmarks of exceptional scholarship. It is very carefully researched, relevant, ambitious in its range, and conceptually adventuresome. To me, Katie is a model of a thinker who has the courage and determination to follow her interests. In this project, that means showing us--in a groundbreaking way--how "the interesting" itself was a mode of thinking and feeling through which modernist artists and intellectuals learned modes of ecological awareness and pedagogy. Katie is also a delightful and generous person, who embraces all challenges with poise, grace, and unflagging cheer. It is a pleasure and an honor to work with her."

    by Justus Nieland

  • Alyssa Harben
    Doctoral student in Packaging

    "Alyssa is a shining example of a Graduate student. She is a thoughtful and reflective instructor, a productive and creative researcher as well as a fabulous mentor who carefully tends the path for those who travel it behind her. I have immensely enjoyed watching her grow in all aspects of the University mission as she has transformed from an emerging undergraduate into someone that is more like a colleague. She will be sorely missed when she graduates later this year, but I know that the discipline will be the benefactor of her presence."

    by Laura Bix

  • Claire Schertzing
    Master’s in Human Medicine and Public Health

    "Claire is an excellent role model for the students she works with in our program. She works extremely hard to ensure the first-generation, low-income students she mentors receive all possible information about post-secondary access. During this present time while we are working remotely, Claire is part of staff meetings offering her help and expertise in anything we may need her for. Most importantly, she wrote and $40,000 STEM grant for the Talent Search program and was awarded in fall 2019. While her career goals are in Public Health, we would LOVE for her to stay and continue to positively impact our programs. On behalf of KCP and ETS, THANK YOU Claire!!"

  • Allyson Rumler and Sarah Drumm Chu
    Master’s students in Plant Soil and Microbial Sciences

    "Allyson and Sarah dove into their master’s research headfirst and have been dedicated hardworking students since day one. Allyson and Sarah have spearheaded their research project and it has been rewarding to have conversations with them about how to design a research project to test her hypothesis and achieve their goals. Sarah and Allyson have inquisitive minds and are always striving to not only understand the Weed Science principles underlying their projects, but those of other projects at MSU also. In addition, Sarah and Allyson strengthen my extension and research vision daily through discussion about Weed Science principles. Their inquisitiveness fosters active daily learning, which is essential to my life in academia and the broader community."

    by Erin Burns

  • Joelyn de Lima
    Doctoral student in Plant Biology

    "I want to thank Joelyn for everything she has brought to me and to all the members of our lab over the last 5 years. Joelyn will soon be defending her dissertation, and I am so saddened that she may not get all the hugs and full-throttle celebrations she so desperately deserves. Joelyn has been a leader, master organizer, and unofficial cat-herder for our group from the moment she arrived. She is the kind of person who can make you smile even while she's scolding you for not using the right kind of label or improperly loading the paper tray. I am so proud of her and all she has accomplished. I will miss her so much - she will never know."

    by Tammy Long

  • Brandon Arnold
    Master’s student in Student Affairs

    "I am so thankful to have met Brandon Arnold. As my Assistant Community Director over these short few months, he has helped me grow as an RA and a better person. I am forever thankful for Brandon for always checking in on his staff and going the extra mile. Our mandatory one-on-ones never felt as a drag, but days I looked most forward to. These talks lasted over an hour and were how we truly connected over our love for the show ‘How to Get Away with Murder’ and over Psychology. Honestly, he is the best listener ever and has helped me through extremely tough times. Brandon is the true definition of joy and the type of person you feel so comfortable to tell anything. I will forever cherish the moments I had with him and the guidance he provided. I hope to always keep in touch and hear all of his successes and great contributions he makes to the world. Thank you, B, for everything."

    by Alexia Davis

  • Mohammed Ruthan
    Doctoral student in Linguistics and Languages

    "Mohammed has been a wonderful mentor for me during my time at MSU, especially in my final year of my program. Mohammed works tirelessly as a researcher and is always willing to help other graduate students while working on his own projects. He is a kind, caring, and patient individual who has brought so much light to the department during his time here, and I am forever grateful to call him a role model and friend. Congratulations on passing your Ph.D. defense and best wishes for your future teaching position!"

    by Kaylin Smith

  • Ryan Adolph
    Doctoral student in Theatre

    "Ryan Adolph is an amazing actor. I am so sorry our time together this semester was cut short working on a project, but I look forward each time to seeing him on stage. He also knows more movies than I do."

  • Kyle Redican
    Doctoral student in Geography

    "Kyle demonstrates intellectual curiosity, has developed a strong skill set,, and is conducting timely and relevant research. He also has been a great collaborator on a very challenging project!"

    by Janice Beecher

  • Hamid Mohammadi
    Doctoral student in Civil Engineering Department

    "Hamid always goes above and beyond to help his peers with their research, coding and even their coursework. He is truly a great member of the HPM group, CEE department, and EGR College."

    by Roozbeh Dargazany

  • Melody Marzjarani
    Masters student in Master of Public Health Program

    "Melody has been a course assistant for me for several semesters in my online courses in the Master of Public Health Program. As a course assistant she is exceptional in every way - she is proactive and reaches out to ask if I need assistance before I ask for help; her work is thorough and complete; she thinks critically and the feedback she provides to students is thoughtful and instructive. In addition to working as a course assistant, Melody is taking MPH classes and has maintained a 4.0 GPA, she is applying to medical school, and she is currently volunteering on behalf of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) to provide person under investigation (PUI) numbers for providers in the state of Michigan for patients who presented with potential symptoms of COVID-19. Thank you Melody for all that you do!"

    by Constance Currier

  • Alex White
    Doctoral student in Forestry

    "Alex White has been doing such a great job organizing social happy hour zooms for the graduate students to continue to interact, discuss issues everyone's having, and just to see each other! She scheduled the zoom meeting and sends out a reminder each week. I joined the first week and it was so nice to see everyone and know the students are supporting each other."

    by Katie James

  • Samantha Shebib
    Doctoral student in COM

    "Sammy is an amazing researcher, teacher, and mentor! She deserves special recognition for her mentoring of both master’s students as well as undergraduate students. As a result of her mentorship, I have seen master's students become better writers, speakers, and socialized to the discipline. In the words of one master’s student: “Above all else, Samantha consistently pushes us to become better researchers by providing us with more challenging tasks and supporting us during stressful times.” Sammy truly cares about her undergraduate students as well and wants to see them succeed in their scholarly and employment pursuits. In particular, they note that Samantha has taken the time to mentor them outside of the classroom. As an example, one undergraduate student writes: “Samantha helps all her students beyond the classroom, which highlights her role as not only a teacher, but also a mentor…I have never had a teacher so invested in her students' successes.” We thank Sammy for her generosity in mentoring students!"

    by Mandy Holmstrom

  • Justin Wigard
    Doctoral student in English

    "What comes to mind when I think of Justin? Dedicated, smart, and compassionate. He is committed to sharing his passion with students, friends, and colleagues. In the classroom he empowers students to be creative, in seminars and workshops he support the intellectual growth. He thinks and acts as a teacher-scholars that is ready to help make sense of the complexities of the 21st century."

    by Julian C. Chambliss

  • Malique Jones
    Doctoral student in Pharmacology and Toxicology

    "Thank you for persevering through adversity to SHINE in my lab. You are driving your work in a way usually only seen in senior grad students. I am proud to be your mentor!"

    by Nathan Tykocki

  • Lori Bruner
    Doctoral student in Curriculum, instruction and Teacher Education

    "For always having my back! For being patient and flexible when I was diagnosed with arthritis. For teaching me how to be organized and new technology tricks. For being a great leader and mentor to other graduate and undergraduate students! Thank you for being there and helping me with teaching tasks when I needed it the most!"

    by Lucia Cardenas

  • Autumn Painter
    Doctoral student in Anthropology

    "Autumn Painter, who serves as our Campus Archaeologist and is a Ph.D. student in the Department of Anthropology, has been a true gift to our program. She has developed and implemented so many of our exciting outreach programs, including Michigan Archaeology Day, Grandparents University, Apparitions & Archaeology, historic food events with the MSU Food Truck and Campus Dining, and overseeing our undergraduate students, graduate student Campus Archaeology Program Fellows, and our undergraduate interns. She will be retiring as Campus Archaeologist at the end of this summer. I cannot thank her enough for her hard work and commitment to our program."

    by Stacey L. Camp

  • Aaron Staples
    Doctoral student in Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics

    "Aaron has embraced the land-grant mission of the University. In less than a year, he has visited multiple farms, given extension lectures, and submitted/published multiple studies that have important implications for growers across the state. All while thriving in his coursework. I’m so happy to be working with him, and couldn’t be any more proud of his progress."

    by Trey Malone

  • Tyler Derr
    Doctoral student in Computer Science and Engineering

    "One critical role that many PhD students unfortunately do not experience during their studies is that of mentoring other students and the feeling of managing a research lab. However, Tyler has actively sought out numerous students to mentor from various groups/organizations on campus including the Graduate Women in Science Mentoring Program; MSU Professorial Assistantship Program; Summer Research Opportunities Program (SROP) that is focused on increasing the number of underrepresented minorities in STEM; independent study from the Department of Computer Science and Engineering; and more junior PhD students from our Data Science and Engineering (DSE) lab. Tyler is very well-versed in awareness for improving inclusion and diversity; four of the ten students he has mentored identify as being an underrepresented minority. One shining example of Tyler’s success in mentoring is with Jamell Dacon, a PhD student who Tyler and I helped obtain a prestigious fellowship to join the DSE lab. Tyler has mentored him both academically and personally as the transition to MSU was difficult for him and even more so considering he is currently the only African American Ph.D. student in our entire department. Currently they have a journal paper under review and Tyler has helped guide Jamell to write a survey paper in the direction he will continue to pursue as his dissertation topic. Tyler’s efforts with other students have also led to co-authored papers, students obtaining their desired jobs in industry, or writing them a letter of recommendation for their admittance into a graduate program. For example, Tyler mentored Cassidy Johnson, who at the time was a freshman student visiting MSU through SROP, where he worked with her closely over a summer and through his guidance this led to her participating in an undergraduate research symposium at MSU and co-authoring a paper this year in a top conference (CIKM2019). Similarly, he is currently mentoring Aaron Brookhouse through the MSU Professorial Assistantship program, where over the last year they have already co-authored a paper together and currently working on another two projects together. In addition, he mentored a master's student Chenxing Wang who is currently a PhD student at another university (they had also co-authored a paper together under Tyler's guidance); mentioning Lianghao Ji who he then wrote a letter of recommendation for his admittance into a master's program; and also helped guide Daniel K. Ofori-Dankwa to ultimately obtain his desired position as a software engineer at Microsoft."

    by Jiliang Tang

  • Sierra Kaszubinski
    Masters student in Integrative Biology

    "Sierra has been a tremendous leader in my lab over the last couple of years. She voluntarily became a leader by bringing the lab together over projects, social events and taking the initiative of organizing lab functions. She has done this while also completing a MS thesis that was comparable to a PhD dissertation, training undergraduates and assisting with 'side projects'. With a 'can do, make do' approach to life and work, Sierra has been an absolute example of what determination, drive and fortitude brings to science and the academic culture - positive changes driven by focus and integrity. Thank you for being you, Sierra!"

    by Eric Benbow

  • Joe Receveur
    Doctoral student in Entomology

    "Joe is an amazing student with amazing abilities that he balances with a sense of community and congeniality. While working on a formidable PhD dissertation, Joe is the the go-to person in the lab by other graduate students, undergraduates and me for help and assistacne on a multitude of projects. His work ethic and integrity in the lab are nothing short of admirable. While accomplishing state-of-the-art genomic sequencing research in entomology that is bridging multiple disciplines, Joe finds time to run the lab, assist visiting scholars and somehow write manuscripts and develop presentations; all while being a TA for the last two years. Joe, you are a force of productivity and I appreciate everything that you bring to the lab and the department."

    by Eric Benbow

  • Courtney Larson
    Doctoral student in Entomology

    "Courtney is an outstanding PhD student in my lab and has been a key asset to a collaborative project that requires balancing science at the interfaces of insects-microbes-forests. Over the past several years, Courtney was able to do this research with a NSF graduate award, and was able to publish her first paper while providing extensive service to the University, College and Department by participating on several committees. She has also accomplished all of this while taking on advising leadership roles within the broader Lansing community. Thank you for your tireless efforts, Courtney!"

    by Eric Benbow

  • Margaret Smith
    Masters student in EAD, MA Student Affairs Administration

    "Margaret is a strong peer leader and intellectual partner. They give great support to multiple projects and they continue to engage in increasingly diverse and complicated ways, from initial implementation support to scholarly writing about the same project."

    by Bill Heinrich

  • Justin Wigard
    Doctoral student in ENG

    "Justin consistently shows up for events and supports his fellow graduate students. He also consistently appeared at recruitment events this year, taking time to volunteer and share his experience with them. Since classes have moved online, he has also organized a weekly online video game co-play event for faculty and graduate students to play video games for an hour and connect in a fun and social way."

  • Bria Harper
    Doctoral student in English

    "Miss Bria, Never had you for a class but I see what you do. I'm always so proud and impressed from afar. Keep doing what you do. Best wishes and good health to you, your family and your circle. Jeff Wray"

    by Jeffrey C. Wray

  • Steve Anderson
    Doctoral student in Political Science

    "Steve has been a teaching assistant for one of our department's largest courses--Introduction to Comparative Politics--for several semesters. Given the number of students and the nature of the assignments, this is not an easy job, and Steve always performs beyond expectations. He provides quick, careful, and helpful feedback to students on their work, and he is careful and reliable. Our students are lucky to have him as a teacher, and I'm lucky to have him as an assistant!"

    by Jeffrey Conroy-Krutz

  • Chrissy Scheller
    Doctoral student in Political Science

    "Chrissy has made enormous contributions to our department. She devotes considerable time to planning activities that benefit her peers, including professionalization sessions and opportunities to get feedback on research. And she promotes her fellow students' work and successes in a way that creates an environment of mutual support and collaboration, rather than isolation and zero-sum competition."

    by Jeffrey Conroy-Krutz

  • Amber Bassett
    Doctoral student in Plant, Soil, and Microbial Science

    "Amber arrives to work every day with a kind and focused demeanor. I greatly admire how far she goes to produce excellent work in her respective field. She takes initiative when it comes to leading and training our undergraduate students and serves as a positive inspiration to them and to everyone. In addition, Amber serves on many committees in our department and tries her best to contribute equally to all of them. Her dedication, clarity of mind, and humbleness have helped many people in times of uncertainty, including myself. I think that she will leave a lasting impact at MSU."

    by Hannah Jeffery

  • Amelia Stieren
    Masters student in Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African Languages

    "Amelia Stieren is currently the graduate student representative in the German Program, and I am also serving as her MA advisor. In her role as grad rep, she is an important conduit of communication: she attends faculty meetings, bringing grad student concerns to our attention and relaying back to her fellow students our responses and other important information. She has also been very active in building up the contact among grad students across several grad programs (German, French, and Spanish). For this good work, we in the German Program are very thankful to Amelia! On a personal level, Amelia has had quite a positive impact on me. In our first advising meeting last fall, she expressed her goal to work with more intention this academic year. I shared this perspective with the other students in our graduate colloquium, encouraging them to keep this in mind as they work throughout the year, and I continue to strive to work with this kind of focus myself. From casual conversations about teaching to serious discussions of her thesis to difficult discussions of personal loss, I always come away from our interactions feeling inspired, having reflected together on what it means to be an educator, a scholar, and a “Mensch”. For this, I am very thankful!"

    by Lynn Wolff

  • Kenlea Pebbles
    Doctoral student in Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures

    "Kenlea not only focuses her work on interdisciplinary approaches to help us understand the importance of environmental health, she does so in ways that can affect our lives as teachers and learners. Her presentation in my environmental writing course inspired us all to think more deeply and more compassionately about how the language and frames we use might affect environmental studies and, as one students put it, 'how language and assumptions can limit how we care about and for the earth.'"

    by Nancy DeJoy

  • Catherine Barland
    Masters student in RCS

    "Catherine has been a great student in the French program. As a TA, she has a very strong commitment to teaching excellence. As a student, she is a pleasure to have in class, always making positive and intelligent comments in class. As my RA, she has saved me a lot of time by transcribing recordings meticulously. She is dedicated to her students as well as her academic work. Merci Catherine!"

    by Anne Violin-Wigent

  • Sarah Brundrett
    Masters student in RCS

    "Sarah is full of energy and positivity. She brings both of these things to every class she teaches and takes and can always be found with a smile on her face. During her MA program, she's been working very hard on all of her classes, showing her commitment to learning. But her heart and focus are on teaching. That's why she is writing a teaching portfolio in which she is developing writing activities that the French program will be using next year. Merci Sarah!"

    by Anne Violin-Wigent

  • Isaac Veysey
    Doctoral student in Romance & Classical Studies

    "I've had the pleasure of working with Isaac Veysey-White for several years in various capacities and he has proven himself to be consistently hard-working, dependable and thoughtful in a variety of contexts, from his academic work to being an essential member of the MSU Latinx Film Festival (LxFF). Humble by nature, Isaac was responsible for making sure many of the events ran smoothly during LxFF 2020. That work was was mostly behind-the-scenes, but I saw it and greatly appreciated it!"

    by Scott Boehm

  • Katie Rottman
    Masters student in RCS

    "Katie loves teaching the French language. During her MA program, she's been working very hard on all of her classes, showing her commitment to learning. But her heart and focus are on teaching. For her MA project, she's chosen to develop a entire chapter for the online textbook we're going to use in the future. Students are going to learn French for many years to come thanks to her work. Merci Katie!"

    by Anne Violin-Wigent

  • Barrett Montgomery
    Doctoral student in CHM Epidemiology & Biostatistics

    "General Zoom trouble-shooting during Zoom March-April changeover. Plus Winner of Larry Seidman Research Excellence Award in March 2020 (Best neuropsychiatric and drug dependence epidemiology poster presentation amongst 100 submitted from around the country)."

    by Jim Anthony

  • Jeewon Oh
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "Jeewon has been a rock star working on the analyses for a manuscript revision--running and re-running complicated models and doing a lot of problem solving. So happy to have her on the team!"

    by William Chopik

  • Mariah Purol
    Masters student in Psychology

    "Mariah is finishing up her first year of grad school and did an amazing job on her master's thesis proposal. She's been an excellent addition to the lab and we're happy to have her in the Psychology Department!"

    by William Chopik

  • Rachel Light
    Masters student in Accounting

    "Rachel is the Accounting 201 Course coordinator. She manages undergraduate learning assistants and recitation sections. She supports Dr. Kathy Petroni to make sure the class is a great learning environment for students. Rachel was also one of four MSU students who planned the Big Ten Women in Business Connections Leadership Conference in Detroit. The conference hosted nine Big Ten Universities and 57 students. The conference showcased Detroit as a great place to start your professional career. Rachel was the Finance Director and was responsible for raising the funds for the conference and managing the budget. "

    by Ann Crain

  • Rachel Light
    Masters student in Accounting

    "Rachel is the Accounting 201 Course coordinator. She manages undergraduate learning assistants and recitation sections. She supports Dr. Kathy Petroni to make sure the class is a great learning environment for students. Rachel was also one of four MSU students who planned the Big Ten Women in Business Connections Leadership Conference in Detroit. The conference hosted nine Big Ten Universities and 57 students. The conference showcased Detroit as a great place to start your professional career. Rachel was the Finance Director and was responsible for raising the funds for the conference and managing the budget. "

    by Ann Crain

  • Matt Kessler
    Doctoral student in Second Language Studies

    "Matt Kessler is an editorial assistant for me and my colleague, Peter De Costa. He is one of the smartest, most diligent, and most organized students that I have met. During the quarantine, he helped us organize an editorial board meeting (that was supposed to have taken place in Denver). He had to prepare reports, notify the 20+ participants, get information from the publisher, and deal with follow-up meetings, reports, and emails. One reason that he should be recognized is that he did this while preparing for two on campus interviews making the second one right before the quarantine and while working on his dissertation - thus finishing his Ph.D. in three years. He never complained about the circumstances these past few weeks and continues to be a positive and humorous participant in our Zoom meetings. And congratulations to Matt, who applied for only three jobs and got two on-campus interviews and two offers. The University of Southern Florida will be lucky to have him. "

    by Charlene Polio

  • Samantha Bowden
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "I like to thank Samantha Bowden, graduate student in the Veenema lab, for being a wonderful team member and showing great dedication and eagerness to dive into a challenging research project using new technologies and maintaining a smile throughout. "

    by Alexa Veenema

  • Micalya Spiros
    Doctoral student in Anthropology

    "Micayla is the College of Social Science's inaugural recipient of the Graduate Student Research Award. She is a doctoral student studying forensic anthropology who has developed a data collection technique that standardizes definitions, illustrations and scoring procedures to examine postcranial macromorphoscopic (MMS) traits and better estimate ancestry. Additionally, she created an open source web-based application, ComboMoMD Analytical, that can be used for forensic casework, including cold case analyses and assessments in mass disaster situations. "

    by Anna Maria Santiago

  • Elizabeth Ablan
    Masters student in Center for Language Teaching Advancement

    "Elizabeth joined our team in Fall 2019. Her primary duty was to assist with the Community Language School's (CLS) programming. She was very quick to understand what her responsibilities entailed and dived right into them. She's a very detailed-oriented person and makes sure that she does every task thoroughly and to the best of her ability. Her passion for language teaching and infectious collaborative spirit is very evident in her interactions with our teachers and volunteers. She often goes out of her way and beyond her duties to inculcate a sense of community in our unit by helping our student workers or anyone else in our unit that might need help. For instance, she initiated a discussion on how to keep our office fridge clean and organized. She took it upon herself to type up a chart explaining what needs to be stored on every shelf in the fridge. When we were planning a book sale of used books, she meticulously sorted all the book donations by language and organized them in our storage space. She has assisted multiple times with re-organizing our office space. She also streamlined the process for our professional development series and was very adept at understanding what protocols to follow with our invited speakers each week. Personally for me, she has been an enormous beam of support in running the Language School and managing all the administrative tasks so efficiently. Elizabeth's contribution to my team is tremendous! I appreciate her positivity, her work ethic and her attitude as a graduate student all while maintaining a full course load. A big 'thank you' for everything that you do! "

    by Sandhya Shanker

  • Tamoha Siddiqui
    Masters student in MA TESOL

    "Within the first few days of classes being moved online, Tamoha created a virtual WhatsApp group chat that gathered many first and second year students in the MA TESOL and SLS PhD programs. Knowing ahead of time the challenges of isolation that this time could bring, Tamoha was proactive and sought to gather everyone together for a place of mutual support and encouragement. Thank you for spreading the love, Tamoha! "

  • Nafiseh Haghtalab
    Doctoral student in The Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences

    "Nafiseh is appointed as the instructor of the online version of GEO204: World Regional Geography for Spring Semester 2020. These are unparalleled times for our world, students and the University alike and Nafiseh has done all that she can to help students continue to be successful in the course amidst a new, and often more complicated, set of circumstances. I sincerely appreciate Nafiseh for her dedication to teaching the online course and supporting her students; having Nafiseh as an instructor has made my job as the course’s administrator and coordinator that much easier and more enjoyable. Thank you Nafiseh for all that you do for onGEO and your students!"

    by Juliegh Bookout

  • Marcos Serafim
    Masters student in AAHD

    "Marcos Serafim is a Brazilian multidisciplinary artist working with new media and video in his third year as an MFA candidate. He has exhibited work at the 5th and 6th Ghetto Biennale in Haiti; the Oscar Niemeyer Museum in Brazil; the Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC), the Queens Museum, and Flux Factory in New York. His work has been screened in film festivals in multiple countries, including the Cine Esquema Novo Film Festival in Brazil (Audience Choice Second Best Short), Israel`s Horn Festival for Experimental Films (Jury's Second Prize),Northampton Film Festival in Massachusetts (Jury's Honorable Mention for Short Experimental), and Faito Doc Festival in Italy (Young Jury's Honorable Mention for Short Documentary). His projects have been regularly funded by grants and scholarships in Brazil, Sweden and the United States; including the Collaborative Arts And Design Research Grant from Michigan State University and the Santa Catarina State Award for Film Production in Brazil. His outstanding research helped to strengthened his undergraduate teaching. With his background in film/video Marcos developed and taught an upper-level course, Experiments in Digital Video. This was a completely new course offering and is now being taught by him for the second time. As his Major Professor it has been my privilege to mentor such a talented artist and scholar. I thank him. "

    by Laura

  • Molly Carlisle
    Masters student in Communication

    "Molly has really stepped up to the plate this year on my research team. She is always willing to go the extra mile to track down an answer or learn something new. Molly inspires me to stay curious and think outside the box. She is known on my team for saying unexpected things and making us laugh. "

    by Elizabeth Dorrance Hall

  • Taylor Mills
    Doctoral student in Philosophy

    "Taylor has taken on a proactive leadership role in advancing the work of our Mellon Foundation funded Public Philosophy Journal (PPJ). She has served as a peer review coordinator for our innovative Collaborative Community Review process, advanced our ability to build community through social media, and was instrumental in refining and developing our proposal for our latest round of funding from Mellon. In fact, her creative leadership led us to shift the name of our core review process from "Formative Peer Review" to the more accurate "Collaborative Community Review." Her deep understanding of and commitment to the values of generosity, equity, inclusion, and openness the PPJ seeks to practice has been critical to our success. I am so grateful to have her on the editorial team and to learn from the thoughtful, conscientious approach she brings to everything she does. "

    by Christopher P. Long

  • Bethany Laursen
    Doctoral student in Philosophy and Community Sustainability

    "Bethany has demonstrated true academic leadership by shaping the vision and mission of both the Journal of General Education (JGE) and the Public Philosophy Journal (PPJ). She has an excellent ability to make discerning editorial decisions that advance the core values of the journals, elevate the quality of the work produced, and deepen relationships among the collaborators with whom she works. As managing editor of the JGE, she oversaw a transformative improvement of the quality of the journal and its processes. She elevated the quality of the scholarship produced by establishing a review process to ensure the quality and integrity of the statistics used in the journal and by creating and implementing a Reviewer of the Year Award designed to recognize reviewers who exemplify the core values of the JGE. Bethany brings a deep sensitivity to the challenges scholars from traditionally underrepresented groups face in the academy more broadly, and in publishing more specifically. In her work with the PPJ, she has helped refine the formative review process to make it more responsive and attuned to the needs of traditionally marginalized scholars. I am grateful for her conscientious leadership and for the deep integrity she brings to her work. "

    by Christopher P. Long

  • Cameron Michael Chase
    Doctoral student in THR

    "CMC is the greatest. He has grown into an artist. He has taken the experience of graduate school and synthesized and embodied it like no other. "

  • Joshua Herrin
    Doctoral student in Linguistics and German, Slavic, Asian and African Languages

    "Josh has just stepped down from a one-year term as president of the Linguistics program's graduate student organization. But Josh has been serving the program for years in additional roles, including student-faculty liasion, student rep on the department advisory committee, COGS rep, organizing events, and generally advocating for student mental, financial and academic well-being. He's an all-around wonderful person and we're lucky to have him. "

    by Suzanne Wagner

  • Kaylin Smith
    Doctoral student in Linguistics and German, Slavic, Asian and African Languages

    "Kaylin will graduate this summer and we'll be sorry to lose her. She has served -- among other roles -- as president of the Linguistics program's graduate student organization, as organizer of our bi-annual grad student research conference GLEAMS, and this year as a Graduate School Writing Fellow. Kaylin has also been a tremendous academic mentor to students in the EEG/Psycholinguistics Lab, teaching them how to use neurolinguistic equipment, and as a social mentor to new and continuing students in the progam. "

    by Suzanne Evans Wagner

  • Sheila Orr Orr
    Doctoral student in Teacher Education

    "In her first year, Sheila has contributed extensively not only to the improvement of secondary mathematics methods courses in Teacher Education but also to the success of my NSF UTEMPT project. In only a few short months "on the job," Sheila conducted independent analyses of new data for the project and took the lead in presenting this data at a national conference in Pheonix in February. She also went beyond in her role to shadow TE 407, the first mathematics methods course for prospective secondary mathematics teachers (PSTs), by taking the lead in several sessions to help PSTs try out new mathematics teaching practices. I continue to be impressed not only by her passion and drive for learning to teach future teachers, but also by her engagement with improving MSU's coursework, in concert with innovations supported by the UTEMPT project, to better support PSTs' learning. "

    by Kristen Bieda

  • Jonathan Gregg
    Doctoral student in Program in Mathematics Education

    "Jon is a graduate assistant on my NSF UTEMPT project, and I wish to thank Jon not only for his tireless commitment to the success of the project but also for his insatiable curiosity about what we are learning from the successes and challenges of the project. Jon brings thoughtful, productive questions to our project conversations and is infectiously optimistic even in the face of considerable struggle. I also appreciate his willingness to share his thinking and the questions he is wrestling with even when his thinking is still "in process." He exemplifies how to humble oneself in service of the work and growth of ideas, and offers a space for others to grow and shine alongside him. "

    by Kristen Bieda

  • Rileigh Luczak
    Doctoral student in Program in Mathematics Education

    "In her work as a graduate assistant for my NSF UTEMPT project, Rileigh consistently approaches every task by prioritizing the success of the project first. She has taken on tasks from data management to developing a code book for data analysis, but in each of these types of tasks Rileigh can be depended on to think about implications of each decision and search for the optimal solution. Most importantly, I have been impressed and grateful for her concern for the wellbeing of her fellow team members on the project. While it may seem like a small suggestion to make the project office space more interesting and inviting for the team, Rileigh has made important contributions through her intuitive sense for what she and her other team members need to work optimally. The project could not function without her meticulous attention to detail, and has been more successful because of her tendency to think "5 steps" ahead when making key decisions. I am both impressed and grateful for how her contributions have shaped both the human and research dimensions of the project. "

    by Kristen Bieda

  • Juan Mascorro-Guerrero
    Masters (MS, MA, MFA, MPH, MSW) student in Student Affairs Administration

    "I appreciate Juan because he is our graduate advisor for culturas de las razas unidas outside of helping us with our roles on e board he always offers to help us with applications for scholarships, finding internships, or just provides us a space to talk. Juan is an assistant community director in Wilson Hall , he has a busy schedule but never fails to provide support and help those around him. Juan is the true definition of Latino/Latinx Excellence. "

    by Alondra M Alvarez

  • Bruno Ford
    Doctoral student in English

    "Working with Bruno Ford has been such a wonderful and rewarding experience. Bruno was my student as an undergraduate, and seeing a student fall in love with Medieval Literature as I have, and to pursue it as one's life passion has been an incredibly validating journey to watch as a professor. Bruno and I are currently working on a volume of the early Robin Hood ballads as a teaching tool, and I thank Bruno for his incredible insight, knowledge, and awareness as we work together in framing these texts within a larger LGBTQ+ lens. "

    by Tamar M. Boyadjian

  • Ana-Maria Raicu
    Doctoral student in Biochemistry

    "Without fail, Ana-Maria greets me when I come into the lab with her smiling face. She's so approachable and is always willing to help and answer questions--whether its about experiments, lab equipment, or general advice. Without her organization skills, our lab would be in total disarray. Not to mention, she works exceptionally hard and is a wonderful scientist. She's truly the glue that keeps us all together and I'm so glad that I've gotten to work with her. "

  • Taren Going
    Doctoral student in Program in Mathematics Education

    "Taren worked with me as a TA for my TE 407 course. As a 5 credit course, the work is demanding - there are 5 hours of lab per week and 3 hours of seminar. Taren showed tireless dedication to students' success in the course. Her primary responsibilities were to support students' work in their labs, but she often attended seminar to help her understand the core ideas of TE 407 and support students' learning from the lab. She also regularly sought feedback on her performance as a TA because of her genuine concern for students' learning. I could trust Taren to seek help when she needed it. Taren inspires others to work hard and be their best, and I am so grateful she gave so much of her talents and energy to this course. "

    by Kristen Bieda

  • Megan Mikhail
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "Megan, I'm so happy you are in our lab! I so enjoy when you present and teach in our lab meetings, you make the science so easy to understand and also so engaging. You are clearly passionate about your work and it is so awesome to see. I always appreciate your insights as well, you offer such constructive and thoughtful input into research discussions. You're a joy to work with! "

    by Lindsay Ackerman

  • Anicca Cox
    Doctoral student in WRAC

    "Anicca is supporting her family, playing a huge role in campus leadership - including as a co-leader of the GEU bargaining team for the most recent contract - and making outstanding progress on her dissertation research...all at the same time! I've been fortunate to work with Anicca and see the way her example of balancing work, leadership, and family is an inspiration to others. I am grateful for her leadership and excited to see what lies ahead! "

    by Bill Hart-Davidson

  • Madeline Shellgren
    Doctoral student in WRAC

    "Maddie has made (and continues to make) invaluable contributions to MSU's campus. She volunteers her time to efforts and initiatives that are important to her, despite working full time and pursuing her doctorate. She cares deeply for her colleagues and the spartan community which she has shown as program coordinator, coach, and educator. "

  • Austin Wellette-Hunsucker
    Masters (MS, MA, MFA, MPH, MSW) student in Kinesiology

    "Austin regularly goes above and beyond his duties as a graduate teaching assistant. Not only does he provide tremendous support to the instructor, but he is always willing to go the extra mile for the students. I appreciate his time and effort with the students and the course, and am thankful for his assistance this semester. "

  • Andrew Dennhardt
    Doctoral student in Center for Statistical Training and Consulting

    "Andrew is a phenomenal research assistant for the Center for Statistical Training and Consulting (CSTAT). He provides excellent statistical collaboration and consultation services to our clients. Multiple clients have sent me unsolicited emails to tell me how valuable his help was to them in completing their research. They have praised his knowledge, communication skills, responsiveness, commitment, and professionalism. My own observations validate their comments. Andrew has excellent oral and written communication and collaboration skills. He listens carefully to people and thinks about what they say and how to respond. He respects the knowledge, expertise, perspective, and contributions that others bring to the table. Andrew sees the value in having stakeholders with diverse backgrounds coming together to jointly plan how to solve problems. I regularly give him clients who need help with rather complex research design and statistical analysis problems. He proposes feasible methods for rigorously addressing those problems, then helps the clients learn how to implement his suggestions and address other issues that come up along the way (e.g., identifying important constraints or aspects to situations that the client had not yet recognized were relevant). When Andrew hits the boundaries of his own knowledge, he starts searching for new resources and trying to expand those boundaries. "

    by Steven J. Pierce

  • Qianjie Wang
    Doctoral student in Chemistry

    "As the coordinator of the International Teaching Assistant (ITA) Program and instructor of some of the the ITA support courses offered, I had the wonderful opportunity to work with Ms. Qianjie Wang from the Chemistry Department last spring. Qianjie chose to take AAE 453, Support for In-Service ITA Teaching, an optional course designed to support international students in their first few semesters of teaching at MSU. The course is a seminar style course where international teaching assistants can discuss and reflect on the issues that come up in the courses they are teaching and share their experiences and learn from other students. I was always so impressed with Qianjie’s genuine interest in understanding the backgrounds and challenges of the undergraduate students she taught, and her commitment to becoming the best teaching assistant possible. It wasn’t until I had the opportunity to observe her teaching, however, that I fully appreciated what an asset she is to her department. Teaching a lab section in the Chemistry Department presents some unique challenges as there are several sections taking place at one time in the same general space, each with a different teaching assistant and different group of students. Teaching assistants need to be able to give clear instructions, encourage and guide students as they conduct their experiments, answer questions and lead students to discover answers for themselves, all while ensuring basic student safety. Qianjie excelled at all of this. Her rapport with her students was clear, as was her sincere interest in helping them to learn. Moreover, her own interest in learning and growing as a teacher was evident in the way that she implemented feedback and suggestions from AAE 453 discussions into her teaching. It was truly an honor to work with such a motivated and committed teaching assistant. Thank you, Qianjie! "

    by Alissa Cohen

  • Karl Seiwert
    Masters student in Food Science and Human Nutrition

    "Karl was never afraid to get his hands dirty. He always was willing to try new things and expand his horizons. He even evaluated over a hundred cheese samples with me in one day! I'm thankful for the friendship we developed, and I know he will go on to do great things. Remember us when you are at the top Karl! "

    by Gary Smith

  • Jeremy Gingrich
    Doctoral student in Pharmacology & Toxicology

    "Five years ago, I started my laboratory at MSU as a new Assistant Professor in the Department of Animal Science. With all the challenges that setting up a successful laboratory entails, getting a bright new team together is absolutely key. I would like to Thank Jeremy (and so many others…) for helping me getting my lab up and running! Little we knew that 2 years later Jeremy will become my first PhD student. As he finishes his thesis and writes up his last papers working remotely, I could not be prouder of what Jeremy has accomplished during his PhD. He has set a really high bar… I am confident that he will continue to make us all proud after graduation. "

    by Almudena Veiga-Lopez

  • Jessica Lee
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "I like to thank Jessica Lee, graduate student in the Veenema lab, for her always positive attitude, dedication and perseverance towards her own research project as well as the whole lab. Her potential of contributing to impactful neuroscience research was recognized by NSF who recently awarded her with an NSF graduate research fellowship. Congrats to Jessica! Such a well-deserved accomplishment. "

    by Alexa Veenema

  • Chandler Parker
    Masters student in ACM&MS

    "Chandler is a joy to have around, she is funny and smart and very dependable. Every time I am in a room with her, I am so grateful she chose us for her Master's degree. "

  • Dessie Clark
    Doctoral student in Community Sustainbility

    "I would like to check all of the above:
    1.Recognizing effort or perseverance
    2. Rewarding academic performance
    3. Assistance toward excellence in education
    4. Participation in the mentorship of others
    And one that I would like to add: being a wonderful human being!"

    by Rebecca Jordan

  • Lindsey Wlosinski
    Doctoral student in CMIB

    "Ms. Lindsey Wlosinski supports BLD435L a laboratory in the Biomedical Laboratory Diagnostics curriculum. During normal times, Lindsey prepares the samples needed for the laboratory and helps in delivery of the course. She spends the time engaging the students, quizzing them, answering their questions and observing their technique. With the discontinuation of F2F opportunities, she has continued her engagement with the students using zoom and email. She sets specific times to deal with questions but also encourages emails from the course participants so that they get the same one-on-one engagement and encouragement with the isolation. Lindsey still works with the students to arrive at the correct response, helping them to reach their potential and build their confidence in the subject. Hats off to Lindsey Wlosinski, she is truly embodies the spirit of "Spartans Will"......she is doing it well. "

    by John A. Gerlach

  • Cory Wilson
    Doctoral student in Packaging

    "Cory is an incredibly independent thinker that sets his own goals and steps to accomplish the same. He brings a spirit (and knowledge) that is entrepreneurial to our lab. He has secured (and funded) ownership in his own intellectual property, and pursued opportunities for growth with the goal of starting his own company. He has: developed a deep understanding relevant laws and regulations, built a network of commercial partners and potential funders, and competed for funds allocated for start ups (through both grants and contests). This knowledge is not only to the benefit of his own goals, but also to those on our team who are interested in business ownership after their pursuit of the PhD. I am grateful to have learned more about start ups from him. "

    by Laura Bix

  • Patrick McDavid
    Doctoral student in Packaging

    "Patrick is a full time instructor, PhD student, and family man. He manages teaching multiple classes, being a father multiple children, while at the same time working toward a PhD, with a resilience and good cheer that is unparalleled. "

    by Laura Bix

  • Amanda Kreuze
    Doctoral student in Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences

    "Amanda is appointed as the instructor of the online version of ISS310: People & the Environment for the Spring Semester 2020. As the course administrator and coordinator, I could not do my job without a highly motivated and knowledgeable person like Amanda in that role. She truly cares for her students and does her best to make sure that they are not only successful, but also that their online experience in People & the Environment is positive. The situation that students (and instructors) now find themselves in is unfathomable in many regards, but Amanda continues to do all that she can to provide a safe and positive online environment for students to learn. Thank you Amanda for all that you do for onGEO and your students! "

    by Juliegh Bookout

  • Aaron Wasserman
    Doctoral student in CMB

    "Movement of a large lecture format course (200+ students) to a on-line format is not easy. Aaron made that transition so much smoother by being willing to take on extra work. Aaron took on the tasks of learning all the ins and outs of D2L so that we could switch from in-class clicker questions to D2L quizzes (all properly formatted!). In addition our first D2L exam went smoothly mostly due to his efforts. He gives weekly virtual review sessions to the students and is incredibly responsive to their questions and needs. He deserves a big shout out for his efforts! "

    by Donna Koslowsky

  • Elizabeth Spitzer
    Masters student in Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences

    "Elizabeth is only in her first year here at MSU, but has already made a huge impact in terms of her research as well as her contribution to our department. Liz hit the ground running on her thesis research, which examines present and historic rates and processes of bluff retreat here in Michigan. This work is critically important to our state given the record high lake levels we are currently experiencing. In addition to her thesis Liz is developing a predictive model of beach erosion that can be used here in the Great Lakes to forecast storm impacts on a beach. Her research is highly relevant to our society and Liz is committed through her outreach efforts to making sure he information she generates gets into the hands of those that need it. In addition to her high-quality research, she is a leader in various departmental and campus organizations, which is an impressive feat given that she is only in her 2nd semester here at MSU. I look forward to seeing Liz's bright and productive research career unfold and thank her for being a model Spartan graduate student! "

    by Ethan Theuerkauf

  • Olivia Furman
    Doctoral student in Teacher Education

    "I (Naseeb) entered into community with Olivia through WOCI, which she co-leads. Last Fall, Olivia worked with an MSU alumnus, Shakara Tyler, to promote a nature centered self-care program, where folx were able to engage in forest walks, soil meditation, and herbal foraging. As a first-year Ph.D. student, I have tremendously valued Olivia’s commitment to addressing the isolation graduate students often experience through holistic wellness practices. Most notably, Olivia has modeled for me how to leverage research to support the wellness of communities our inquiry is based upon. For example, I had the opportunity to engage in an educational research methods course with Olivia this past fall. Despite the overwhelming valuation of quantitative methods in educational inquiry, Olivia drew upon bell hooks, Audre Lorde, the Combahee River Collective and other Black womxn feminisms, as well as her professional experiences with K-12 teaching, to weave together arts-based research methods with Black feminist epistemologies to explore how Black girls experience schooling. She was met with subtle, and sometimes direct, resistance from the course peers who failed to see the transformative and community-based nature of her methodological position. Despite this, she actively pursued her arts-based research agenda, refusing to spend time justifying her methodological decisions and instead carried out her efforts with integrity and creativity. As a non-Black WOC, I have valued Olivia’s leadership example in leveraging the critical practices of wellness found in Black and Brown communities (e.g. quilts, knitting, and ceramics) to reform teaching and learning practices at MSU. "

    by Naseeb Bhangal

  • Claire Wilcher
    Masters student in THR

    "Claire came to MSU as more of a colleague than student and inspires others to do their best work. Claire is an exceptional actor, student, and educator and will be a major force of change in our profession. "

  • Sharon Combs
    Doctoral student in THR

    "Sharon has grown into an artist that seems to surprise even her. The work she does is always interesting, focused, and thoughtful. Her goodwill and humanity is evident in all she does. "

  • Kevin Craig
    Doctoral student in THR

    "Kevin came to grad school ready to embrace thee challenge and has never looked back. He creates work that is inspiring but does so with a seeming confidence and unflappability that I wish to emulate. "

  • Kevin Voogt
    Doctoral student in Program in Mathematics Education

    "Kevin truly sets an example of generous Spartan Will for any that interact with him. As a graduate assistant on my NSF UTEMPT project for the past three years, Kevin has showed an outstanding commitment to the success of the project by generously helping out in ways that go beyond his assistantship requirements. He gives generously of his attention and time to support other GAs on the project. In many small and large ways, the UTEMPT project, and the people who work on it, have benefited from the generosity of time, spirit, and ideas that Kevin offers so effortlessly. "

    by Kristen Bieda

  • Seth Hunt
    Doctoral student in Plant Biology

    "Seth came back to grad school after years developing curricula and learning materials for online courses. Little did he know last fall how valuable that skill set was about to become! He has been an incredible asset to our department and beyond during the shift to online teaching. His advice and insights about problem solutions reflect his ability to leverage both the best technology and the best practices for effective pedagogy. In addition, he has been a willing and gracious volunteer. Thank you, Seth!! "

    by Tammy Long

  • Natasha Fowler
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "Natasha, you are such an awesome part of our lab! We can always count on you for a laugh and some fun conversation. Your joy is contagious! You bring a unique perspective to the lab and offer great contributions to our research. We appreciate you so much! "

    by Lindsay Ackerman

  • Morgan Momberg
    Masters (MS, MA, MFA, MPH, MSW) student in Linguistics and Languages

    "Morgan has done an outstanding job this past year advising the minor students in our department, working on special projects, supporting our events and communicating important information to our undergraduates. She is professional, kind and a great problem solver. Congratulations on her upcoming graduation and I wish her all the best for the future! "

    by Cindy Walter

  • Aaron Luedtke
    Doctoral student in History

    "Aaron is one of those exceptional graduate students who devotes a tremendous amount of energy on being one of the best teachers in our department. Aaron received the Harry Brown Graduate Fellowship for Academic Excellence from our department in 2019 and had previously received the Fred Williams Graduate Award for Teaching in 2018. This year, he was again nominated for the Somers Teaching Award in IAH. Academically and intellectually, Aaron is an outstanding student with numerous fellowships and awards. He received a short-term dissertation fellowship from the D'Arcy McNickle Center at Chicago's Newberry Library and the Everett Helm Visiting Fellowship from the Lily Library at Indiana University. His article on Indigenous communities in the Great Lakes will be published in the forthcoming collection, The Northern Midwest and the US-Canada Borderlands: Essays on a Lost Region, in 2020. "

    by Susan Sleeper-Smith

  • Rajiv Paudel
    Doctoral student in Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences

    "We would like to recognize Rajiv Paudel, graduate student in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences, for his unwavering understanding and compassion through an unprecedented semester. Rajiv is teaching GEO325 (Geographic Information Systems) for the Department this spring and found himself responsible for transitioning 42 students through a swift transition to remote learning. Throughout this transition, Rajiv has been concerned for his students and their situations, in and out of the virtual classroom. Rajiv has been willing to work individually with students to remedy technical challenges with the fully online labs and repeatedly put his students first. The onGEO group is grateful for all that you do, Rajiv! "

    by Beth Weisenborn

  • Natasha Fowler
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "I’d like to give a huge shout out to Natasha for being an amazing mentor this year! She’s been helping me with my UURAF poster, and I have learned so much from her. From the background science to the research process as a whole, Natasha has played a crucial part in my learning. The process of researching, making, and presenting this poster to the lab has been an amazing experience overall and I couldn’t have done it without Natasha. Thank you so much for your help, patience, and enthusiasm Natasha! "

    by Shruthi Ilango

  • Jessica Lee
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "Jessica was recently awarded an NSF GRF (https://www.research.gov/grfp/AwardeeList.do?method=loadAwardeeList), and couldn't be a more deserving candidate. She's dedicated to her research and to providing quality research experiences to her undergrad mentee. "

  • John Keven
    Doctoral student in MMG

    "When classes went online John was filling in for me while I was traveling. He stepped up and managed the MANY student emails of concern with grace and compassion. He continues to be a vital component of communications with the students. He is doing all this while trying to get his dissertation wrapped up and working from home with a family. Thank so much, John! "

    by Frances Pouch Downes

  • Monique Yoder
    Doctoral student in Second Language Studies

    "Monique was a Spartan before and we are so happy to have her back. Her expertise, compassion, and enthusiasm make the English Language Center a better place for everyone. Just one of many examples of her compassion included being an integral part of our message of hope and concern for our students everywhere. She specifically wished our students much strength in dealing with the pandemic. Monique has become a solid colleague around the Testing Office and she is highly valued. So much so that we can't wait to welcome her to another year with us. Thanks for being you, Monique! "

    by Dustin De Felice

  • Maria Buttiler
    Masters (MS, MA, MFA, MPH, MSW) student in MA TESOL

    "I’m so pleased to recognize Maria Belen Buttiler for her dedication and outstanding contributions to the International Teaching Assistant (ITA) Program. Maria, who is an international student herself, was awarded the ITA Program Pronunciation Instruction Fellowship for three semesters and has the served the ITA Program by assisting other international students with their pronunciation and presentation skills. She is highly motivated and passionate, and always goes the extra mile to help the students she is working with, whether that means researching additional strategies and tools or preparing helpful learning materials tailored to specific student needs. Maria is also always ready and willing to share her knowledge and work with her peers. As her supervisor, I have found that I have learned a great deal from her as well. Thank you, Maria! "

    by Alissa Cohen

  • Mamoon Shaafaey
    Doctoral student in Civil and enviormental engineering

    "When comes to accuracy and reliability, Mamoon has stood out in my group. He has fully embraced the HPM goal of understanding aging problems in materials and has showed a relentless yet much needed accuracy, that made him a significant member in all of our projects. He enthusiastically invests in his fellow group members and puts many hours into their projects."

    by Roozbeh Dargazany

  • Christina Ponzio
    Doctoral student in Curriculum and instruction

    "For always having my back! For being patient and flexible when I was diagnosed with arthritis. For teaching me how to be organized and new technology tricks. For being a great leader and mentor to other graduate and undergraduate students! "

    by Lucia Cardenas

  • Jaron Lewton
    Masters student in Animal Science

    "Jaron, you are great pleasure to work with! You bring such a positive attitude to work every day, and are always willing to go the extra mile to do whatever it takes to finish the job. You are an exceptional scholar who can study and write like the best of them! You are a problem-solver. Pursue your dreams! Grow in your convictions! I am grateful for the time we've tarried together. What a great privilege and enjoyment it has been, getting to know you. We will be lifelong friends! "

  • Haoyang Wang
    Masters student in Packaging

    "I appreciate Haoyang's tenacity and resilience in the face of adversity. He has had many difficulties this year, but persisted and continued. I am glad that he is part of our research team. "

    by Laura Bix

  • Ja'La Wourman
    Doctoral student in WRAC

    "Ja'La is a Ph.D. student whose amazing spirit and positive energy has been unwavering this year. She has not only made outstanding progress this year - passing all of her comprehensive exams and beginning research on her dissertation. But I'm especially grateful for the help she gives to her fellow grad students. She is a fantastic co-mentor and colleague! "

    by Bill Hart-Davidson

  • Abbie Cathcart
    Doctoral student in THR

    "Abbie has developed into an artist of meaningful work. Her thoughtful approach to every project creates work of astonishing beauty. "

  • Karolina Achirri
    Doctoral student in LLT

    "Karolina has been very supportive this semester as my teacher! She has a lot of knowledge and wants her students to learn and grow throughout the class. She’s graduating this semester and I wanted to wish her good luck in the future! I’ve loved having her as a teacher! "

  • Rui Zhang
    Doctoral student in Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences

    "We would like to recognize Rui Zhang, graduate student in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences, for her leadership in the face of adversity. Rui is teaching GEO221LAB (Introduction to Geographic Information Lab) this spring and was tasked with shepherding her 41 students through an unprecedented transition to remote learning. Rui has remained patient, understanding, and confident throughout. We appreciate her gentle leadership through this time of uncertainty and change. The onGEO group thanks you for your service and caring, Rui! "

    by Beth Weisenborn

  • Ana Rivera
    Doctoral student in Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences

    "We would like to acknowledge Ana Rivera, graduate student in the Department of Geography, Environment, and Spatial Sciences, for her perseverance through a challenging semester. Ana is a first-time Instructor for GEO203 (Introduction to Meteorology) this spring and has found herself not only having to navigate new content and teaching 137 students, but also guide her students through a challenging transition to remote learning. We have been impressed with Ana’s commitment to delivering her course consistently to her students while remaining concerned for their well-being through this unprecedented time. Ana has demonstrated patience and compassion for her students and colleagues this spring. The onGEO group truly appreciates all that you’ve done for your students and how you have served your Department – thank you Ana! "

    by Beth Weisenborn

  • Rachael Goodman-Williams
    Doctoral student in Psychology

    "Congratulations to Rachael Goodman-Williams the inaugural winner of the College of Social Science's Graduate Student Teaching Award! Rachael is a doctoral student in the Department of Psychology and a FAST fellow. She frames her teaching and learning based on making connections -- connections to her students and student connections of course materials to their particular goals. A passionate teacher, Rachael hopes to positively influence her student's lives both inside and outside of the classroom. "

    by Anna Maria Santiago

  • Amr Rabie
    Doctoral student in Department of Linguistics & Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African Languages

    "Amr’s training, his extensive teaching experience in Egypt and Saudi Arabia, his time as an FLTA at MSU, and his nearly four semesters teaching in the ELC have made him into a strong member of our team. He is a very careful and resourceful teacher who develops rapport with students while challenging them to succeed through hard work and rigor in the classroom. Over the years, we have seen how reflective he is regarding his teaching practice, his capabilities for self-evaluation, and his willingness to seek out feedback to improve his lessons. We have enjoyed working with him because he is such a mature, collaborative, and creative teacher. What an asset to the ELC! We look forward to seeing what else he can do next year when he takes on more opportunities within the College of Arts and Letters. "

    by Dustin De Felice

  • Alyssa Bulow
    Masters (MS, MA, MFA, MPH, MSW) student in Department of Linguistics & Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African Languages

    "Alyssa has been with us for two years and we couldn't be more impressed by her teaching record. She is such a strong teacher, a thoughtful and reflective practitioner with the ability to meld application and theory in the classroom while bringing her previous years of teaching to bear. All of these traits contribute to her poise and confidence that we see in her classroom interactions. Alyssa is a strong asset to the ELC and serves as an excellent mentor to the new TAs who began the current academic year with us back in the fall. She has ensured continuity and skilled instruction, and at every turn, we see how she is responsible, dependable, and involved. Thank you for making this last semester a treat for us all. "

    by Dustin De Felice

  • Fabian Hernandez
    Masters student in Accounting

    "I have known and worked with Fabi since 2015. As a first generation college student of migrant parents, he is in the top 5% of students I have worked with over my almost 20 years of advising experience. He is honest, hard working, and a student others look up to as a leader, classmate, and friend. I have had the honor of serving alongside Fabi who has served the past three years on the executive board of the Native American and Hispanic Business Students (NAHBS) an undergraduate student organization I advise. I have also been fortunate enough to have him assist me as a conference assistant for the Native American Business Institute and as Program Assistant for the Summer Business Institute. Fabi could have easily just focused on his studies. But he time and time again looked for ways and opportunities to give back to his fellow Spartans and as well as communities outside of MSU though outreach work with NAHBS Latino College Day and Native American Community Outreach Program. Fabi is an inspiration to me and others. His never give up attitude, his determination, his desire to keep pushing forward no mater the obstacles reminds me why I do the work I do. We have impacts on students, but they also impact us. Fabi is one such student. I am a better advisor, a better person, then I was before our paths crossed. "

    by Kevin P Leonard, PhD

  • Kyle Hess
    Masters (MS, MA, MFA, MPH, MSW) student in Department of Linguistics & Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African Languages

    "In the short time Kyle has been with us, he has shown so much evidence of being a reflective practitioner, and he daily demonstrates a passion for cultural sensitivity in assisting non-native speakers to not only learn English but to also gain cultural competency. His work with our students, with graduate students, and his coursework with the teaching practicum is full of wonderful moments where he was culturally sensitive, highly reflective, and culturally aware of his students’ needs. Kyle has been a very strong addition to the ELC. He is a dedicated team player, able to teach many proficiency levels and skills, and brings maturity, experience, and a desire to teach. He does all of this while maintaining a level of calm and cool that is very welcome around Wells Hall. "

    by Dustin De Felice

  • Lanqing Liu
    Doctoral student in Packaging

    "I appreciate the innovative way that Lanqing approaches problems in the laboratory. He has built (and willingly shares) tools and methods that assist not only with his research, but that of others. He is an avid learner who engages and incorporates ideas from a variety of places. As a result, he has a tendency to develop ideas and methods that completely transform the way things are done (not just in our lab- but everywhere). This approach, and the ideas he generates, are invigorating. I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with him; he has expanded my world. "

    by Laura Bix

  • Ben Zimmitti
    Masters student in Higher, Adult, and Lifelong Education

    "Ben Zimmitti is a second year Masters student in Student Affairs Administration. He began working with me on community relations in the fall of 2019, after a year in Residence Education & Housing Services. As part of his community relations work, Ben supervises MSU's Undergraduate Spartan Ambassadors, students who play a pivotal role in the communities surrounding MSU. Ben exemplifies what it means to put theory into practice. He is well-read, inquisitive, engaged, knowledgeable and empathetic. I am particularly amazed by his ability to preemptively gauge whatever needs doing and and how best to take any project to the next level. His contributions are not simply going the extra mile, rather they are innovative and creative. His steady leadership and industriousness have put our undergraduate ambassadors at ease, as we have all begun to navigate our new model of learning. Consistency, caring and kindness are the hallmarks of his work and our community is all the better for it. Thanks, Ben for impacting our students and the greater region as well. "

    by Suchitra Webster