Prizes and Awards
A wide range of prizes and awards recognizes outstanding achievement by students. Award recipients must comply with rigorous merit criteria and demonstrate strong potential for future success. Additional information is available in the online student handbook, which details the variety and scope of each prize and award
Art
Ralston Thompson and Wittenberg Guild Awards
These monetary awards are given by the art faculty in recognition of
outstanding work within the Art Department.
Athletics
The Carl Schraibman Higher Education Scholarship Award
An anonymous gift in 1999 created this award to recognize Dr. Carl
Schraibman and the value he placed on the educational experience and the
importance of advancing oneself through post-graduate education. The
recipient must be a student-athlete who has been accepted into a graduate
program and exemplifies the ideals of Wittenberg.
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Faculty Award for Outstanding Achievement
in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
This award is given in recognition of seniors with exceptional achievement and
strong potential in biochemistry and molecular biology.
Biology
Biology Faculty Award
This award is given to the sophomore, junior and senior biology majors
who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the study of biology.
Emmet Bodenberg Award
Given to the outstanding environmental biology junior or senior biology
major.
Health Careers Award
Given to the outstanding senior major intending to continue study in the
health-related fields.
Waldo Nelson Research Award
Given to the biology student submitting the best proposal for summer
research.
Marga Smith Award
Given to the upperclass biology major in recognition of excellence in
scholarship and devoted service to the department.
Tri-Beta Award
This award is given annually to one or two students voted by the Tri-Beta
Honorary as the outstanding biology major(s) in the senior class.
Chemistry
Outstanding Performance in General Chemistry
Two awards are presented annually for outstanding performance in general
chemistry. Each award recipient receives the current edition of the
Handbook of Chemistry and Physics.
Outstanding Performance in Organic Chemistry
The award is given for outstanding performance in organic chemistry. The
honored student receives the current edition of the Merck Index.
Virginia Ellis Franta Award
This award is given as a stipend to support chemistry majors performing summer research at Wittenberg under the direction of a chemistry faculty member.
Paul K. Glasoe Endowment Award for Chemical Research
This award, in honor of Professor Emeritus Paul K. Glasoe, is a stipend to
support a chemistry major performing summer research at Wittenberg
under the direction of a chemistry faculty member.
James T. Gregory Award
The award is given to the junior or senior chemistry student most likely to
succeed in chemical research.
Mufaro Hove Research Award
This award, in honor of Mufaro Hove '63, is given as a stipend to support students performing summer research under the direction of a chemistry faculty member.
American Chemical Society-Dayton Section Award
This award recognizing an outstanding junior chemistry student provides a
$300 stipend.
Nelson E. Sartoris Award for the Outstanding
Senior Chemistry Major
The award will recognize the outstanding senior, as determined by the
department of chemistry faculty, with a cash prize.
Communication
Laurels in Communication
Given to a major who demonstrates academic excellence, personal integrity, a
commitment to community, and the motivation and potential to use advanced knowledge
of communication toward socially responsible ends.
East Asian Studies
Shigeharu Matsumoto Award
This award, given to the outstanding senior in East Asian Studies,
recognizes superior academic performance and outstanding community
service. The award honors Shigeharu Matsumoto for his leadership in the
development of peaceful relations among the United States, Japan and
China.
Language Study Award
The award is given to the outstanding upperclass students of the Chinese and
Japanese languages.
Eugene R. Swanger Endowed Scholarship
This scholarship is awarded in the sophomore year to a religion or East Asian studies major who demonstrates high academic ability and promise as an East Asian studies scholar. The award, which is for the junior year, may be used for off-campus study related to Asian studies. The award honors the outstanding teaching and service of Eugene R. Swanger, Professor of Religion and East Asian Studies.
Economics
Economics Prize for Outstanding Achievement
Given to recognize economics majors who have maintained high standards in course
work and research.
Education
Barbara Steel Kane Memorial Award
Through this award, the Education Department acknowledges a senior
student’s demonstration of excellence in the teacher education program and
of service to the teaching profession. The award was established in memory
of Barbara Steel Kane, a 1978 Wittenberg graduate who majored in
elementary education and psychology and who died in an airplane crash in
September, 1978.
Virginia H. Lucas Silver Apple Award
This award celebrates the personal and professional contributions of
Professor Emerita Virginia. H. Lucas, an alumna of Wittenberg and a
member of the education faculty from 1973 to 1992. This award is
presented to a junior education student who exemplifies both personal and
professional commitment to student-centered learning.
English
The Excellence in Literary Studies Award.
The Excellence in Literary Studies Award was inagurated in 2000 to
recognize the senior English major whose literary scholarship best
exemplifies subtle thinking, elegant writing and scholarly promise.
The John W. Ostrom Awards for Expository Writing.
The four John W. Ostrom Awards, worth $200 each, are given annually for
improvement and excellence in expository writing to first-year, sophomore,
junior and senior students. John W. Ostrom, a late professor emeritus, was
internationally known for his edition of the letters of Edgar Allan Poe and
his widely adopted Better Paragraphs and Short Themes.
The Lester C. Crowl Creativity Award
The English Department Creativity Award was renamed the Lester C.
Crowl Creativity Award in honor of the director of development at
Wittenberg from 1965-1972. The $200 award is given to the junior or
senior English major who submits the best portfolio of creative work.
The Allen J. Koppenhaver Prize
Established in 1993, The Allen J. Koppenhaver Prize, funded by friends
and colleagues to memorialize the late professor of English, is awarded
annually to the senior English major who best represents the qualities
epitomized by Dr. Koppenhaver: a keen intellect and a multifaceted
creativity that produced superior teaching and scholarship.
Creative Writing Awards
The English Department awards the $100 Sherwood Anderson Award in
fiction, a $100 award in poetry, a $100 award in drama and a $100 award in
creative nonfiction.
Geography
Martin E. Johnson Award
Through a fund established to honor the late Dr. Martin E. Johnson,
associate professor of geography, an annual award is made to the junior
geography major with the highest grade point average.
Geology
Floyd R. Nave Award
This endowed award, given to an outstanding geology major pursuing
geologic research, recognizes and honors the diverse contributions of this
department’s founder.
Thomas A. Gerrard Award
This endowment honors a former department chair, professor and
consummate teacher, by supporting field experience for geology majors.
History
ATO-Paul F. Bloomhardt Award
Through a fund established to honor Dr. Paul F. Bloomhardt, professor of
history and biography from 1925 until his retirement in 1956, an award is
made each year to an outstanding junior majoring in history.
Margaret S. Ermarth Award
Through the fund established to honor Dr. Margaret S. Ermarth, professor
of history from 1953 until her retirement in 1974, an annual award is made
to an outstanding senior majoring in history.
Martha and Robert G. Hartje Award
This award is given to a senior who has taken at least six courses in history,
who recognizes history as a part of a basic philosophy of life, and who has
demonstrated skill in the writing of narrative history.
Languages
Kurt J. Fickert Award
This award is presented to an outstanding junior or senior majoring in
foreign languages and literatures who possesses those qualities exemplified
by Professor Fickert during his more than 30 years of service to the
university: an understanding of and commitment to the humanistic values
fostered by an education in the liberal arts, a lively interest in intellectual
endeavor and achievement, and plans for a career that will enrich the lives
of others.
Management
Financial Executives Institute Award
This award is given to the graduating management student with a
concentration in finance for academic achievement and career promise. The
Columbus Chapter of the Financial Executives Institute provides an
engraved medallion and a permanent plaque.
Tau Pi Phi Award
The Tau Pi Phi Award is given to the graduating management major who
combines the highest academic achievement and significant contributions
to the university. The department provides a permanent plaque.
Wall Street Journal Award
This award recognizes the graduating management major with the greatest
potential for career success. Dow Jones and Company provides a one-year
subscription to The Wall Street Journal, a medallion and a permanent plaque.
WittInvest Investment Award
This award is sponsored by WittInvest and recognizes students of high academic achievement who further the American free enterprise system via their knowledge of markets and investments.
The Dr. Woodrow Wilson Prize for Excellence
in Management
The widow and children of Dr. Woodrow Wilson, professor emeritus of business
administration, created this honor in 1994 to give annual financial awards to
student(s) who major and excel in management. The selected student(s) receive
a cash prize.
Mathematics and Computer Science
Norman E. Dodson Award
This award was established by Richard A. Little to honor Norman E.
Dodson, associate professor emeritus of mathematics, a member of the
Wittenberg University mathematics faculty from 1957 to 1975. The award
is given annually for excellence in preparing to teach mathematics or
computer science. Seniors are eligible.
Paul Hessler Award
This award was established in memory of Associate Professor Paul Hessler,
a member of the Wittenberg mathematics faculty from 1969 to 1978. The
award is given annually for outstanding achievement in mathematics or
computer science. Juniors and seniors are eligible.
Richard A. Little Fund
This award was established by Richard A. Little, a 1960 graduate of Wittenberg,
to honor his parents, Charles and Elsie Little. The income from this fund is
used to reward worthy achievement in mathematics and computer science, and is
given to students majoring in mathematics or computer science.
Sophomore Textbook Awards
These awards are given annually to sophomores majoring in mathematics
or computer science in recognition of outstanding work during their first
two years at Wittenberg. The award provides a $100 credit toward the
purchase of mathematics or computer science textbooks during the junior
year.
Computer Science 250 Award
This award is given annually to the outstanding first-year student in the
introductory computer science sequence, Computer Science 150 and 250.
Mathematics 202 Award
This award is given annually to the outstanding first-year student in the
introductory calculus sequence, Mathematics 201 and 202.
Music
Elmer Blackmer Award
This award was established in memory of Professor Elmer Blackmer (1962-1974)
and is presented to the music student who has shown outstanding achievement
in music theory and music skills.
Jan Bender Memorial Award
This award was established in memory of Professor Jan Bender (1965-1975) and
is awarded to the senior whose performance both academically and musically has
been excellent and whose contributions to the department of music have been
outstanding.
Philosophy
The Remsberg/Klive Award
Established in honor of Robert G. Remsberg (professor of philosophy
1940-1975) and Visvaldis V. Klive (professor of philosophy 1966-1994),
this recognition is given to the outstanding senior philosophy major and
includes a book award.
Physics
Weaver Prize
The Weaver Prize in Physics provides a $200 award to the junior student who
shows the greatest promise for a career in physics.
Arthur L. Lutz Award
The Arthur L. Lutz Award provides $200 to a junior physics major who shows promise for a career in secondary physics education.
Political Science
Joe H. Bindley Scholarship
The Joe H. Bindley Scholarship, named for an emeritus professor of
political science who is founding chair of the modern-day Political Science
Department, recognizes an outstanding junior or senior political science
major who has at least a 3.3 grade-point average, who demonstrates active
leadership in the campus community, and who intends to pursue a course of
study leading to law school, or who demonstrates an interest in American
politics.
Jeffrey Y. Mao Award
The Jeffrey Y. Mao Award, named for an emeritus professor of political
science, is given in recognition of outstanding scholarship in the discipline
by a political science major who has attained junior status. The award
acknowledges achievement in the liberal arts, service to the political science
department and the university, and promise of significant contribution to
society.
Psychology
Award for Professional Potential
The Award for Professional Potential honors a senior student in psychology
who has demonstrated the potential to make a significant professional
contribution.
Bethlehem Steel Award
The Bethlehem Steel Award recognizes an outstanding senior student in
psychology for academic achievement and unique contributions to the
psychology program.
Virgil E. Rahn Memorial Award
The Virgil E. Rahn Memorial Award honors an outstanding junior student
in psychology for superior work in the discipline and promise as a future
psychologist.
Religion
David Hartman Award
Each year a $150 prize is awarded to the outstanding senior in the religion
department. The award, given in memory of David Hartman, associate
professor of religion, is based on academic performance, ability of the
student to relate the study of religion to the liberal arts, and the student’s
contribution to the religion department and its program.
Russian Area Studies
The Russian Studies Award in Excellence
This award honors the outstanding graduating senior major in Russian
Area Studies who shows promise of continuing involvement in the field
and who possesses superior leadership skills.
Sociology
T. Edwin Boling Sociology Scholarship Award
Named in honor of the late T. Edwin Boling, who was a member of the
department of sociology for 27 years, this award is given to the outstanding
senior sociology major who shows strong promise as a practitioner of the
discipline.
Women’s Studies
The Women’s Studies Writing award, sponsored by the Women’s Studies Program, is presented for outstanding writing in any area of Women’s Studies.
GENERAL PRIZES AND AWARDS
Alma Mater
This is the highest honor bestowed upon a woman at Wittenberg.
Students, faculty or staff members may nominate a junior woman. A special
screening committee selects five nominations for final consideration. A
campus-wide election determines which nominee is selected to represent
Wittenberg. The Alma Mater must possess depth of character and show
consistent leadership, service and concern for the college community.
Alma Lux
This is the highest honor bestowed upon a male at Wittenberg. Students, faculty members, and staff may nominate a junior male. A special screening committee selects five nominations for final consideration. A campus-wide election determines which nominee is selected to represent Wittenberg. The Alma Lux must process depth of character and show consistent leadership, service, and concern for the college community. This award was instituted in 2003.
Broadwell Chinn Endowed Achievement Award
This award was endowed by Dr. George D. and Gertrude Holmes Wilson
’24, in memory of Mr. Broadwell Chinn, the first African-American
student at Wittenberg. The fund annually provides a monetary award to the
African-American junior student with the highest cumulative grade-point
average.
Heimtraut Dietrich Award
This award, established in 1981, is in remembrance of Heimtraut Dietrich,
who served Wittenberg as administrator and teacher through her
commitment to excellence and a caring for others, attributes that found
their source in her steadfast Christian faith. It is presented to the student
who best exemplifies the dedication to serve and assist others through a
commitment of faith.
M. Alice Geiger Award
This award was instituted in 1974 to commemorate the 100th anniversary
of women at Wittenberg. The award recognizes a senior woman for a
specific, outstanding contribution to the performing or literary arts,
athletics, extracurricular leadership, new programming, special academic
pursuit, or special representation. The student’s contribution may have been
made at any time during her college career.
Global Awareness Award
This award, established in 1992, recognizes a graduating senior whose varied activities have contributed significantly to international understanding on campus.
Martin Luther King, Jr., Award
This award, instituted in 1981, recognizes two outstanding African-
American seniors, a man and a woman, who have been positive examples to
members of the African-American community and the University during
their college careers. Consideration is given to those students who have
pursued a challenging course of study, exhibited upstanding character in
and outside the classroom, displayed leadership, good citizenship, and an
orientation toward service to others, and exhibited a positive attitude
toward higher education in general and an interest in furthering the ideal of
African-American achievement at Wittenberg.
John F. Mitchell Award
This award, named for the first valedictorian at Wittenberg, was instituted
in 1979. It recognizes a senior man who represents the liberal arts tradition:
a highly respected, good student who is a positive force in academic,
cultural and social aspects of the campus. He exemplifies an open mind,
understanding, reliability and wide range of interests.
Presidential Scholars
Presidential Scholars are the junior students having the 12 top grade-point
averages of their class through at least the preceding five semesters.
HONOR SOCIETIES
Alpha Lambda Delta
Alpha Lambda Delta is a national honor society that seeks to recognize and
encourage scholarship among first-year women. Selection is based entirely
on achieving a 3.5 grade-point average for fall semester of the first year.
Tapping, or notification of membership, occurs in the spring semester.
Phi Eta Sigma
Phi Eta Sigma is a national honor society that seeks to recognize and
encourage scholarship among first-year men. Selection is based entirely on
achieving a 3.5 grade-point average for fall semester of the first year.
Tapping, or notification of membership, occurs in the spring semester.
Ivy Ring
Ivy Ring is a junior women’s service honorary. Members are chosen in the
spring of their sophomore year on the basis of their contributions to the
Wittenberg campus and to the community through the quality of their
academic work and their participation in extracurricular activities.
Pick and Pen
Pick and Pen is a junior honorary emphasizing leadership, service and
scholarship. Members are tapped during the spring semester of their
sophomore year.
Omicron Delta Kappa
Omicron Delta Kappa is a national leadership honor society recognizing
leadership in scholarship, athletics, university publications, cultural life and
student affairs. Members are tapped during the spring semester of their
junior year.
Order of Omega
Order of Omega is a national leadership honor society recognizing leaders
in fraternities or sororities who exemplify scholarship, leadership and
service. Members are tapped in the spring semester of their senior year.
Mortar Board
Mortar Board is a national senior honorary recognizing scholarship,
leadership and service. Candidates must have a 3.3 grade-point average and
excel in both curricular and extracurricular leadership and service to the
Wittenberg community. Mortar Board is particularly concerned with
advancing the status of women in society.
Phi Beta Kappa
Founded at the College of William and Mary in 1776, Phi Beta Kappa is
the oldest and most prestigious of the national honor societies. Students are
normally elected as seniors or in special cases as juniors. They must be
majoring in one of the liberal arts or sciences, have a high grade-point
average, have taken a variety of courses across the liberal arts spectrum, and
have demonstrated a knowledge of mathematics and a foreign language
appropriate to a liberal arts education.
Chi Alpha Sigma
Chi Alpha Sigma is a national college athlete honor society founded in
1996. Members must be of junior class standing, have a 3.4 or higher
cumulative grade-point average, be of good moral character, and have
earned a letter in a varsity intercollegiate sport.
DEPARTMENTAL HONOR SOCIETIES
SCHOOL OF COMMUNITY EDUCATION
Alpha Sigma Lambda
Wittenberg houses the Eta Sigma chapter of this national honorary society for
adult students. Criteria for selection are: adult/non-traditional status, completion
of at least 24 semester hours at Wittenberg with at least 50 percent being outside
a single discipline, and a cumulative GPA in the top 10 percent of SCE students
at this credit level. Induction is held annually.
Excellence in Liberal Studies Award
Eligibility requires a major in liberal studies and completion of at least 44
Wittenberg semester hours, preferably over the most recent three calendar
years. The Community Education Committee bestows the award on the
student who, in its judgment, most fully embodies high academic
achievement and realization of the principles of the liberal studies program.
The person selected receives a plaque and a gift that celebrates the student’s
connection to the University.