45 Students Awarded Thomas W. Smith Academic Fellowships

News from CUNY BACCALAUREATE FOR UNIQUE AND INTERDISCIPLINARY STUDIES

October 30, 2009 -- On a clear autumn night in mid-October under the stars in the Graduate Center's Skylight Room, 45 students became the newest recipients of Thomas W. Smith Academic Fellowships, the major Fellowship program of CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies. Donor Thomas W. Smith and his wife Diane Smith were there to meet the new Fellows, and formal greetings were given by Dr. Chase Robinson, Provost, CUNY Graduate Center, Dr. Kim J. Hartswick, Academic Director of CUNY Baccalaureate, and Mr. Thomas W. Smith himself. A single $1000 graduate fellowship was awarded that night for the fifth consecutive year, to a former Smith Fellow now enrolled in a CUNY Master’s or Ph.D. program; this year’s recipient was Ms. Welker White, a Master’s student in Hunter College’s MFA in Theatre program.

Thomas W. Smith Academic Fellowships are funded through a generous donation by Mr. Thomas W. Smith to CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies to recognize students’ academic excellence within the program. Eligibility requirements include successful completion of at least 48 credits with at least 6 credits earned in CUNY Baccalaureate, as well as recommendation by the faculty mentor. The Fellowship covers tuition until the student graduates. Since the Fellowship’s inception in 1994, 575 students have been named Smith Fellows.

The following 45 CUNY Baccalaureate students were inducted into the Thomas W. Smith Fellowship in October 2009; each is shown here with his/her area of concentration(s).

Sifat Azad - Creative Writing/Literature

Theresa Bartoldus - Speech Language Education

Jose Bayona - Journalism/Political Science

Nathaniel Beal - Political Science/Media Production Arts

Carol Behe - Environmental Science

Raymond Calderon - Zoology

Marcus Campbell - Marketing Technology

Nancy Caracciolo - Art Therapy

Patrick Chau - Radical Feminist Psychology

Ashanti Dixon - Dance Science

Hernan Echavarria Sanchez - Screenwriting/Creative Writing

Veron Edwards - The Religious Psycho-Social Development of American Africans

Noia Efrat - Psychodynamic Theory

Adam Estabrook - Jurisprudence: The Philosophy of Law

Shannon Foreshee - Foundations of Art Therapy

Joseph Gallagher - Political Journalism

Ingrid Garcia-Solera - Environmental Science

Rebecca Glaser - Cross-Cultural and Artistic Healing

Michael Hattem - Intellectual History of the American Revolution

Tonisha Haywood - Criminal Studies for the Public Sector/International Studies

Toba Hellerstein - Economical and Informational Analysis of Events and Trends in the Middle East

Robert Hieger - Integrated Web Applications and Design

Ying Huang - Asian Studies/Italian Studies

Diane Ingino - Documentary Media Research and Production

Lisa Jahn - Medical Anthropology

Seung Hee Joo - Hospitality Management/Art Management

Kayla Lopez - Merchandise Marketing

Rion Lyle - Sustainable Urban Systems/Economics

Zachary Marsh - Psychology and Visual Arts

Anthony Melendez - Musical Theater

Kathleen Menegozzi - Psychology and Neuroscience

Nerissa Minnick - Multimedia Design/Architectural History

Emily Parson - Community Organizing

Calvin Robertson - Language Studies/Film Production

Faun Rockcliffe - Psychology of Learning

Patrick Scullin - International Human Rights/Conflict Resolution

Larissa Simpson - Women's Perspectives in the Film Industry

Michael Smith - Studies in the Culture of Ancient Rome

Cory Steward - International Crime/International Politics

William Toale - American Political Studies

Carolina Valle - Dynamic Web Design

Ella Viola - Zoology

Natasha Walker - Art History /American Studies

Edwin Whitewolf - Cinematic Theory and Aesthetic Communication

Jacqueline Young - Choreography and Creative Theory of Dance/Deviance and Victimization of Women in the U.S.

CUNY Baccalaureate for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies (www.cunyba.cuny.edu) allows self-directed, academically strong, highly motivated students to design their own academic courses of study under the guidance of full-time CUNY faculty mentors. This University-wide degree, established in 1971, operates under the auspices of The CUNY Graduate School and University Center.