Division of Social Science holds its annual student awards ceremony

The Division of Social Science, in York’s Faculty of Arts, recently hosted its fourth annual awards ceremony honouring outstanding achievement of its undergraduate students.

A variety of senior and retired faculty members were present to address the assembled students, staff, faculty and guests in order to help recall the faculty for whom many of the awards were named. The event, which took place Oct. 18, honoured a wide array of students and reflected the interdisciplinary nature of the division.

Right: Erich Koch (left) was in attendance to confer the award named for him and Arthur Siegel (right) supplied much of the Division of Social Science’s institutional history when he presented the Gordon Lowther and Arthur Friedman Awards

Carl Baar was present to confer the Ellen Baar Award to Shekoufeh-Farrah Zandnia, who also won the Criminology Honours Award. The Ellen Baar Award is awarded to the student entering his or her final year as a major in a division interdisciplinary program who received the highest GPA in his or her third year of studies. The Otto Friedman Award was given to David Elmaleh, who also received the Business & Society Honours Award. Arthur Siegel reminded those assembled of Otto Friedman’s contributions to the academic world as he did when he presented the Gordon Lowther award to Daniele Bozzelli. Many of the awards were program specific and honoured contributions of former York colleagues.

Left: Shekoufeh-Farrah Zandnia receives the Ellen Baar Award from Carl Baar.

In total 28 students from the interdisciplinary programs in the Division of Social Science were celebrated when 30 awards were made.

The Lillian Lerman Book Prize awarded by Eduardo Canel for best first-year essay went to Cristina Rosu. In Urban Studies, the Marion Miller Third Year Award was earned by Kevin Both and the Marion Miller Fourth Year Award was presented to Stefania Mariotti and Philip Orr.

Right: David Elmaleh receives the Otto Friedman Award from Arthur Siegel

The Frances Frisken Prize was awarded to Rebecca Tannahill and Evan Mcdonough while Zi-Sin Lee received the SOSC 3700 Prize. This year the Jane Banfield Book Award went to Aaron Weinroth.

Saude Hamza was the recipient of the Esiri Dafiewhare Annual Scholarship. The Law & Society Prize was presented to Marie Morgan. The Stevenson Scholarship in African Studies was awarded to Janice Anderson. The International Development Studies Award was given to Kathryn Boone. Patti Nyman received the Social and Political Thought Scholarship.

Right: The Latin American & Caribbean Studies Honours was awarded to Gabriel Ramirez-Marquez by Prof. Michelle Johnson

Joel Rampersad was the recipient of the Labour Studies Student Achievement Award and Dustin Galer was granted the Neil Reimer Award. The Latin American and Caribbean Studies Honours was awarded to Gabriel Ramirez-Marquez by Prof. Michelle Johnson.  

In Health & Society, Sherry Stein won the Health and Society Prize. The Health & Society Founders Book Prizes were awarded for original projects to Kristing Tomcheski, Cheryl Pritlove, Christina Leo, Lesley Wilton and Sarah Wu.

In Communication Studies, Erich Koch was present to award Liane Lewis the Erich Koch Award. The Reva Orlicky Award for studies in radio was presented to Stefanie Hardman. Davica Ramdass was the recipient of the Penny Joliffe Award.

Left: Stefanie Hardman receives the Reva Orlicky Award from Prof. Mary-Louise Craven

The awards ceremony was followed by a reception in the Social Science Lounge.

The event was sponsored by Richard Wellan, Chair of the Division of Social Science, the Faculty of Arts and the Teaching & Development Committee. Associate Dean Marilyn Lambert-Drache attended on behalf of the Faculty of Arts.

For a complete description of each of the awards and the colleagues honoured, click here.