Each year, members of the Lisska Center for Intellectual Engagement advise and consult with students and recent alumni who apply for prestigious national and international fellowships and awards. Winners of these honors are recognized at the college’s annual Academic Awards Convocation, which acknowledges the achievements of outstanding students and faculty.
This year’s ceremony celebrated the following students and alums who have sought nationally and internationally competitive fellowships and other awards for a wide range of summer, undergraduate, and postgraduate opportunities.
Amgen Scholarship for undergraduate summer research
- Abigail Engler ’25, biochemistry, to study at Duke University
Barry Goldwater Scholarship for excellence in STEM research
- Monica Bradford ’24, biochemistry
“By completing a range of courses in the natural sciences, I will be able to pursue treatment for genetic diseases through many different avenues. My degree will provide me with knowledge of biological, chemical, and physical systems so that I may select a Ph.D program that will enable me to conduct the most promising research.” - Monica Bradford ’24
Boren Scholarship for intensive study of a critical language
- Dulcie Heyes ’23, international studies, alternate
CBYX Fellowship for young professionals in Germany
- Sarah Kovacic ’23, history and German
Critical Language Scholarships for immersive summer study
- Robert Garber ’23, English, Japanese
- Owen Green ’26, politics and public affairs, Indonesian
- Dulcie Heyes ’23, international studies, Arabic alternate
DAAD-RISE scholarships for summer STEM research internships in Germany
- Margaret Spriggs ’25, environmental science
- Rachel Furge ’24, physics
“Earth science is inherently a very global and international field. Good earth scientists must be able to work well with others from different backgrounds, experiences, and cultures. Performing research in Germany will help me strengthen these necessary collaboration and communication skills for an international context. Pursuing research abroad will assist me in developing a more global perspective of both my field and of the scientific community.” - Margaret Spriggs ’25
Projects for Peace to create a community-centered peace-making project
- Ali Imran ’24, anthropology and sociology, Pakistan
“This project [Indigenizing Pedagogy: A Freedom Concept for Harsukh School] will serve as the ethnographic basis and data-collection for my year-long joint senior research in the Department of Anthropology and Sociology and the Women’s and Gender Studies Program at Denison University.” - Muhammad Ali Imran ’24
Fulbright Community Based grant to facilitate community service
- Sarah Kovacic ’23, history and German, in Austria
“Over my four years of education at Denison, I have had the opportunity to engage in academic discussions of issues across the world and to interact with students, staff, and faculty from backgrounds completely different from my own. It is from the interconnected nature of the Denison experience, from academics to student employment and extracurriculars, that I have developed the skills necessary to live, work, and study outside of the United States.” - Sarah Kovacic ’23
Fulbright Teaching Assistantships to teach English while living abroad
- Zoya Gheisar ’23, history and data analytics, Colombia
- Audra Kimbell ’23, Spanish and history, Mexico
- Lenny Tejeda ’23, global health, alternate for Colombia
- Fernanda Aiala ’23, biology, Colombia
“Denison has changed the way I think, and informed how I approach obstacles. I anticipate my experience in Colombia to be challenging, but my experience at Denison has prepared me to navigate and even celebrate those challenges.” - Zoya Gheisar ‘23
Gilman Scholarships to study abroad
- Dailin Morfa ’24, global commerce, studying in Ghana
- Jenavier Tejada ’24, biology, studying in Argentina
Japan Exchange and Teaching Program
- Maggie Andries ’23, psychology
National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships
- Sarah Spielman ’21, physics at Bryn Mawr College
- Clairine Larsen ’21, biology at University of Wisconsin
- Kaitlyn Fouke ’19, biology at Duke, honorable mention
Payne International Development Graduate Fellowship
- Ania Wellere ’23, global health, alternate
“A goal I aspire to achieve is to restore disenfranchised communities. After earning my master of public health, I hope to become a foreign service officer set out to address negative social determinants of health that impact underserved populations.” - Ania Wellere ’23
US Teaching Assistantship
- William Kelsey ’23, English, Austria