On May 13, Union faculty and administrators honored students’ accomplishments through the annual Prize Day. Over 100 awards were given to students in all class years, most going to graduating seniors with awards from their respective departments. Students from Union’s dance department also performed an ensemble to the songs “Please Listen Carefully” and “In my Pocket” by Jahzzar.
Union has two top awards for graduating seniors: the Bailey Prize, and the Josephine Daggett Prize. The Bailey Prize recognizes the senior who has rendered the greatest service to the college in any field. This year, it was awarded to Abigail “Abby” Smith ‘23, a Biology and English Interdepartmental major who has served as a senior admissions interviewer, a first year on Union’s COVID event programming task force, a researcher in the Biology and English departments, President of the Speakers’ Forum, and the President of the Springfest Committee.
“There’s nothing special to me like SpringFest 2023 because my goal here on campus has always been to bring joy to students, and that was one of the events where I saw that the most. I loved looking out at everyone’s smiling faces and all the joy in the crowd.” Smith said. Smith was also awarded the William F. Allen (1895) Essay Prize, the Kerrie Droban (1987) Award for Writing Excellence, and the President’s Commission on the Status of Women Senior Thesis Prize.
The Josephine Daggett Prize is awarded to the senior for the best conduct and character. This year, the prize was awarded to Brandon Mitchell ‘23, a neuroscience student who is also on the Black Student Union’s Executive Board, a member of Bronner House (Union’s multicultural theme house), a member of Union’s football team, and a leader in the Multicultural Affairs Office. Mitchell said he was most proud of getting women on the Black Student Union’s Executive Board: “getting those groups of women really on the e-board was really something I wanted to look into and hope to have, because I saw them as possible leadership. I believed that they would improve campus life, and they’ve done those things.” Mitchell was also awarded the UNITAS Diversity Leadership Award and the Albert Hill Recognition Award.
In addition, the Concordiensis’s Editors in Chief Emeritus won several awards. Michael Rosenbaum ‘23 won the Albert C. Ingham (1847) Prize, the Anthony C. LaVecchia (1998) Memorial Award, and the Charles M. Tidmarch Prize for his work at the Concordiensis and work in the History and Political Science Departments. Jing Chen ‘23 won the George H. Williams Prize for her work in the Computer Science Department. Dante Sasso ‘23 won the John Lewis March Prize for his work
in the Psychology Department.
Smith also offered advice for future student leaders: “Learn when to say yes, and to learn when to say no. Start by learning to say yes. Get as involved as possible, and then learn to say no to the things that aren’t true to your core.”
Union students are typically nominated for prizes by their academic departments, and the English department also allows students to submit their work for consideration of several prizes. Union awards these prizes to students every year the day after Steinmetz Day.
This article was originally published in the print edition of Concordiensis on May 18, 2023, the Stienmetz Special Edition for 2023.
