Grad students receive Dean's Citation Awards

Graduate students were honored with Dean’s Citation Awards during the Graduate Student Celebration December 5 in Loosemore Auditorium on the Pew Grand Rapids Campus. The students were recognized for outstanding academic performance. Each recipient was given a certificate of recognition and a graduate honors cord.

Graduate students can be nominated by faculty and staff, advisors, a graduate program director, a department chair or a school director. The nominees are reviewed by the dean of Graduate Studies, in consultation with others involved in graduate education; final selection is made by the dean.

Academic Excellence in the Major

Seidman College of Business
• Rebecca A. Glover, Accounting
• Daniel J. Johnson, Business Administration
• John E. Vande Guchte, Taxation

College of Community & Public Service
• Nathan Baar, Health Administration
• Susan R. Kragt, Public Administration

College of Education
• Lauren A. Garrigan, Literacy Studies
• Aaron D. Hobson, School Counseling

Padnos College of Engineering & Computing
• Nathan J. Taylor, Computer Information Systems

College of Health Professions
• Andra E. Talaska, Physician Assistant Studies  

College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
• James I. Smit, Biology
• Jeanne M. Holladay, Cell and Molecular Biology
• Nicholas G. Katsarelas, Communications
• Maureen D. Divirgilio, English    

Kirkhof College of Nursing
• Marie Vanderkooi, Nursing-Doctorate
• Diane K. Ullery, Nursing-Masters   


Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation

Kirkhof College of Nursing
• Marie Vanderkooi, Nursing-Doctorate


Outstanding Master’s Thesis  

College of Education
• Pamela S. Scott, General Education
• Eric J. Moore, Special Education

Padnos College of Engineering & Computing
• James M. Gurisko, Engineering

College of Health Professions
• Leah M. Lyons, Physician Assistant Studies

College of Liberal Arts and Sciences
• Nicholas C. Albrecht, Biology


Outstanding Master’s Final Project

College of Education
• Son Tung Le-Nguyen, Educational Leadership
• Michael J. Nelson, Instruction and Curriculum
• Vera V. Grishkina, Literacy Studies

College of Health Professions
• Brett D. Applebach, Paige A. Boldt, Erica M. Fedewa, and Tyler A. VanNoord, Physician Assistant Studies

College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
• Kyle A. Hudecz, Communications

Kirkhof College of Nursing
• Julie L. Polanic, Nursing-Masters


Excellence in Service to the Community or Profession

College of Community & Public Service
• Paula J. Woodhouse, Health Administration
• Claire M. Fisher, Public Administration

College of Health Professions
• Paige A. Boldt, Physician Assistant Studies

Kirkhof College of Nursing
• Sylvia J. Simons, Nursing-Doctorate
• Erin F. Micale, Nursing-Masters


Excellence in Leadership and Service to GVSU

College of Community & Public Service
• Amy J. Sells, Health Administration

College of Health Professions
• Courtney R. McCotter, Physician Assistant Studies
 

Promoting Diversity and Inclusion at GVSU

College of Community & Public Service
• Claudia Vargas Meza, Public Administration


Mags Distinguished Thesis Nominees
Outstanding Thesis

The Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS) calls for nominations for the annual Distinguished Thesis Award. Each school is allowed to nominate one student thesis for the award competition in each discipline category. This year’s categories are Physical Sciences/Engineering and Social Sciences. The theses representing GVSU are selected by a committee of faculty members from multiple disciplines and approved by the Dean of Graduate Studies.

College of Community & Public Service  
• Elle Gray Teshima, Master of Science in Criminal Justice (graduated April 2014)  

Padnos College of Engineering & Computing  
• Byron DeVries, Master of Science in Computer Information Systems (graduated August 2013)  


Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award
Presented by the Graduate Student Association

College of Health Professions
• Denise Ludwig, associate professor of Communication Sciences and Disorders
• Martina Reinhold, assistant professor of Physician Assistant Studies