Celebrating this year's Graduate School award winners!
With the generous support of donors and the CU Boulder community, the Graduate School offers awards, grants and fellowships that support the outstanding research, creative work and teaching of our graduate students. Congratulations to our award winners and many thanks to the faculty and staff who support them in their research, creative work and teaching, as well as to the donors whose generosity make these awards possible.
Graduate Part-Time Instructors Teaching Excellence Awards
Recognizes excellent graduate student teachers.
- Alexander Marino Cárdenas, Department of Spanish & Portuguese
- Evan Coles-Harris, Department of Linguistics
- Juan Jimenez Diaz, Department of French & Italian
- Tracy Fehr, Department of Sociology
- Christopher Jorde, Department of Political Science
- Derek LeFebre, School of Education
- Will Lindsay, School of Education
- Scott Robinson, Leeds School of Business
- Jashodhara Sen, Department of Theatre & Dance
- Erica Van Steenis, School of Education
- Kim Truong Vu, Department of Sociology
Dissertation Completion Fellowships
- Stephanie Couey, Department of English (Reynolds Dissertation Completion Fellowship)
- Juan Tiznado Aitken, Department of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering
- Kaitlyn Davis, Department of Anthropology
- Emily Hite, Department of Anthropology
- Kimberly Killen, Department of Political Science
- Alexandra Lloyd, Department of Philosophy
- Travis Mcdevitt-Galles, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Kathryn Randall, Department of History
- Rupak Shrestha, Department of Geography
- Andrea Tilstra, Department of Sociology
- Sheela Turbek, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
MFA Completion Fellowship
Provides one academic semester of financial support.
Elspeth Schulze
Department of Art & Art History
Elspeth Schulze is from south-central Louisiana, where water has as much hold as land. She holds a BA in Literature from Loyola University New Orleans and an AAS in Fashion Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. She has worked over the years as an artist assistant, pattern maker, production manager, and most recently, as Gallery Director at Adrian College in Michigan. Recent exhibition venues include Oklahoma Contemporary in Oklahoma City, The Clay Studio in Philadelphia, RedLine in Denver, and Calico in Brooklyn, New York
Summer Fellowships
Provides a $6,000 fellowship over the summer term.
- Alejandra Abad, Department of Art & Art History
- Nuha Albadi, Department of Computer Science
- Sabina Altus, Department of Applied Mathematics
- Jocelyn Armes, School of Music
- Amy Burkhardt, School of Education
- Andrew Campbell, Department of Mathematics
- Georgios Charisoulis, Department of Geography
- David Chu, Department of Classics
- Mikaela DeRousseau, Department of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering
- Jared Desjardins, Department of Linguistics
- Erik Funk, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Lucas Gagnon, Department of Mathematics
- Shirley Huang, Department of Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences
- Jacob Hutfles, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Nicholas Light, Leeds School of Business
- Brian Marein, Department of Economics
- Melissa Mazzo, Department of Integrative Physiology
- David Miller, Department of Electrical, Computer & Energy Engineering
- Erica Nieblas, Department of Philosophy
- Joel Ornstein, Department of Mathematics
- Jeremiah Osborne-Gowey, Department of Environmental Studies
- Hannah Paul, Department of Political Science
- Alberto Roper Pol, Department of Aerospace Engineering Science
- Christina Ryder, Department of Anthropology
- Dan Simon, Department of Sociology
- Sherri Sheu, Department of History
- Irena Stevens, Department of Technology, Cybersecurity & Policy
- Andrew Stocker, Department of Mathematics
- Amanda Rose Villarreal, Department of Theatre & Dance
- Mike Zawaski, Department of Geological Sciences
Summer Fellowship
Cassandra Gonzalez
Department of Ethnic Studies
My research examines the phenomenon of domestic human trafficking utilizing and intersectional criminological framework. Within this research, I focus on the experiences of Black individuals as both victims and perpetrators of trafficking and how their intersecting identities of race, class, gender, and sexuality may interact with their experiences of exploitation and navigating the criminal legal system. My research methods include interviewing Black women survivors of trafficking, field observations of anti-trafficking events, and a historical analysis of the evolution of slavery, sexuality, and race. I love dogs, getting coffee with friends, and reading anything I can get my hands on. I hope be employed as a tenure-track professor at a historically Black college/university (HBCU) or at a criminology/criminal justice department where I can mentor undergrads and graduate students.
Three Minute Thesis
In the Three Minute Thesis (3MT), competitors describe their research in three minutes.
They use only one static slide, in front of a panel of judges and a live audience. This event is held annually at the beginning of the Spring semester and is free and open to the public.
Adam Lamson
Department of Physics
Jason Zhang
Department of Computer Science
Jocelyn Armes
School of Music
Donor Awards
These awards are made possible by the Graduate School's generous donors.
The Figueroa Family Fellowship provides financial support to a science or engineering student committed to positively impacting the cu boulder community and beyond. The Carol B. Lynch Memorial Fellowship provides a $2,500 fellowship to a student in the sciences whose research interests are interdisciplinary. The Sheryl R. Young Memorial Fellowship provides a $4,000 fellowship to a student in the sciences.
Figueroa Family Fellowship
- 1st Place: Kathryn Grabenstein, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
- 2nd Place: Matthew Bentley, Department of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering
- Honorable Mention: Asais Camila Uzcategui, Materials Science & Engineering Program
Carol B. Lynch Memorial Fellowship
- Fiona Bell, ATLAS Institute
Sheryl R. Young Memorial Fellowship
- Kiera van der Sande, Department of Applied Mathematics
Cynthia H. Schultz Graduate Student Small Grant
These awards are made possible by the generous donation of the Schultz family, and in Loving Memory of John & Cynthia Schultz.
Ernest A. Bigelow Award
- Tarren Andrews, Department of English
Hope Schultz Jozsa Award
- Kathleen McGuire, Department of Anthropology
Jenny Kate Collins Award
- Megan Healy, School of Music
Paula C. Moore Award
- Sierra Jech, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Verona Walker Award
- Kathryn Grabenstein, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Beverly Sears Graduate Student Grants
The Beverly Sears Graduate Student Grants are competitive awards sponsored by the Graduate School that support the research, scholarship and creative work of graduate students from all departments at CU Boulder.
Funding for the Beverly Sears Graduate Student Grants program comes mainly from private donations. Some awards are made possible by the generous donation of an individual or family, often in honor of a family member. The highest-ranked proposals are considered for a Named Graduate Student Grant.
Beverly Sears Named Graduate Student Grants
Dean's Award
- Derek LeFebre, School of Education
CURFA Carl Kisslinger Research Award
- Laura Maurer, Department of Chemistry
Ray Hauser Award
- Alexander Standen, Department of Environmental Studies
Eloise Timmons Award
- Cassandra Gonzalez, Department of Ethnic Studies
Friends of the Graduate School Award
Anne Fetrow, Department of Geology
Beverly Sears Graduate Student Grants
- Alejandra Abad, Department of Art & Art History
- Nathan Anderson, Department of Integrative Physiology
- Ciara Asamoto, Department of Geology
- Ashlyn Barnett, Department of Theatre & Dance
- Srinjita Bhaduri, Department of Computer Science
- Laurel Brigham, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Gabriela Buitron Vera, Department of Spanish & Portuguese
- Marielle Butters, Department of Linguistics
- Kelly Carscadden, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Zachary Cooper, Department of Anthropology
- Sara Cottle, Department of Journalism
- Jack Dalton, Department of Anthropology
- Sarah Davis-Mauney, Department of Theatre & Dance
- Sasha de Koninck, Department of Intermedia, Art, Writing, and Performance
- Simone Domingue, Department of Sociology
- Nick Dragone, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Bailey Duhe, Department of Anthropology
- Jessie Egan, Department of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering
- Ian Elliot, Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences
- Tracy Fehr, Department of Sociology
- Carrie Fleming, Department of Sociology
- Anne Fritzon, Department of Psychology & Neuroscience
- Kelsey Fuller, School of Music
- Erik Funk, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Chloe Garfinkle, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Laurel Gibson, Department of Psychology & Neuroscience
- Angela Hansen, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Brandon Hayes, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Kate Hinshaw, Department of Art & Art History
- Emily Hite, Department of Anthropology
- Shirley Huang, Department of Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences
- Emily Irvin, Department of Art & Art History
- Deidre Jaeger, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Claire Karban, Deparment of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Sean Keyser, Department of Mechanical Engineering
- Ruiqi Li, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Josette Lorig, Department of English
- Molly McDermott, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Tina Melie, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biolgy
- Andrew Morgenthaler, Department of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology
- Toma Peiu, Department of Emergent Technologies and Media Arts Practices
- Jacob Pettine, Department of Physics
- Chelsea Pretz, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Vishal Ray, Department of Aerospace Engineering Sciences
- Will Reed, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
- Devon Reynolds, Department of Environmental Studies
- Kailey Shara, ATLAS Institute
- Sherri Sheu, Department of History
- Ji Shouse, Department of Asian Languages & Civilizations
- Joel Singley, Department of Environmental Studies
- Ryan Smith, Department of History
- Hillary Steinberg, Department of Sociology
- Amanda Villarreal, Department Theatre & Dance
- Robery Weiner, Department of Anthropology
- K. Woodzick, Department of Theatre & Dance
- Megan Zabinski, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology
Professional Development Digital Credential Badges
The Graduate School at CU Boulder is offering digital credential badges that may be earned by current graduate students and postdocs participating in our professional development opportunities. These digital badges are online microcredentials that allow students to showcase skills, competencies or achievements they have gained through learning experiences.
Maria Calahorra-Jimenez
PhD candidate in the Department of Civil, Environmental & Architectural Engineering, Communication Badge
Georgiana Salant
PhD candidate in Biochemistry, Communication and Leadership Badges
Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award
Recognizes outstanding mentorship of graduate students and contributions to graduate education.
- David Ciarlo, Department of History
- Cheryl Higashida, Department of English
- Antje Richter, Department of Asian Languages & Civilizations
- Kaifa Roland, Department of Anthropology
Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award Honorable Mentions
- Casey Fiesler, Department of Information Science
- Tania Martuscelli, Department of Spanish & Portuguese
- Eric Pederson, Department of Psychology & Neuroscience
- Brian Toon, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
- Sabrina Volpone, Leeds School of Business
- Deborah Whitehead, Department of Religious Studies