Returning Students Honors & Awards Ceremony

Hello out there!

School has been back in session for about a month now here at Dean, and we're all starting to get into the flow of things.  One of my favorite parts of Fall Semester comes at the very end of September, once students are well established but not yet in to midterms.  That event is Family Day!  The last Saturday of September, Dean opens it's doors to family and friends.  There are campus tours, special performances, events and activities, sporting events, and dancing.  One of the centerpieces of Family Day is the Returning Students Honors and Awards Ceremony.

Every year, there are a handful of students at Dean who distinguish themselves academically and through campus wide involvement.  The awards ceremony is split into three parts, with some students taking part in only one section, many taking part in two, and every now and again there is a student who is honored in all three sections.

The first part of the Ceremony (after speeches by Dr. Rooney, President of the College among others) is the Returning Students Awards.  This is where students, sophomore and above, are called on to the stage to receive awards and scholarships they have received.  The requirements of each award is slightly different: every recipient had to be nominated by faculty, meet strident requirements, and then submit an application for their award.  Each award comes with a scholarship, from an Endowment either set up in the name of or by the person the award is named for.

One by one, a description of the award was read, and then a student was called forward to receive it.  As they walked towards the stage in the MPR, their family and over a hundred other people gathered to see them, a small paragraph was read.  The paragraph was a compilation of things said about the recipient by faculty and students, a list of their accomplishments, the way they met the requirements for the award, and their goals after graduation.

Some of the awards included the Joan Phelps Paladino Award, given to a student who proves exceptionally talented as a dancer, and maintains a good work ethic in all academic courses (Awarded to Sophmore Samantha Laabs).

the Harry L. Kreshpane Award for Excellence in History (Awarded to Patrick Valdini, member of the Student Government and the Free Thinkers Club)

the Fumitaka Oishi, Class of 1988 Award.  This is given to an international student who shows the same passion for learning, academic potential, and successful collegiate interactions as Fumiktaka Oishi did during his time at Dean.

the John H. Lapoint Jr. Classes of 1956A and 1958J, Memorial Award.  This award is from a family of Dean Alumni, wherein the father (John H. Lapoint) and his sons all attended Dean.  The award is given to a student with exceptional academic success and been a positive presence in campus life outside the classroom.

After these various awards are handed out, to students ranging from Sophomores to Seniors, a new speaker comes to the lectern.  This speaker is the head of the Honors Program here at Dean, and her name is Prof. Nailah Randall-Bellinger.  She explains what the Honors Program is, and what it means to be an Honors Scholar.  Those requirements include making the Dean's List every semester and accumulating a set number of points, earned by taking the Honors Classes, attending events on campus, partaking in clubs on Campus, performing and rehearsing for major productions, and community service.
New students who had earned Honors Scholar status were called on to the stage, received their certification as Honors Scholars, and shook hands with Prof. Bellinger and Dr. Rooney.

Then came the final leg of the ceremony.  This is where students were inducted into the International Honor Society of Community and Jr. Colleges.  The honor society is known as Phi Theta Kappa, and students must have a GPA of 3.5 or higher every single semester to be a member.  They must abide by the regulations of PTK, and always conduct themselves as honorable members.  Students who were inducted were called forward individually, and came onto the stage.  There they received a white rose (for purity, which is the kind of thought, reason, and behavior PTK members strive for), a pin from the Dean Chapter of PTK (Upsilon Zeta) and their certificate.

We then all rose together and recited the oath of PTK, swearing ourselves in as new members.

For me, it was an especially important ceremony, as my mother, my brother, my boyfriend, my aunt, and my ballet teacher from home all drove to be in attendance as I was this year's only triple-honoree (meaning I was the only person involved in all three sections.)  As a amazing as having my hardwork recognized was, and as touching as my family's presence was, there is nothing quite like the closeness of the Dean experience.  The President of the College knew my name: when I received my award, the faculty members handing them out hugged me, and told me how proud they were.  Many of the faculty gathered knew me personally, and went out of their way to meet my family and tell them about the classes I had taken under them.  It was a wonderful experience, and I can't wait for someone else to have it next year!

'till next time!