Graduate Student Council announces winners of 2015 travel awards

Claremont Graduate University’s Graduate Student Council (GSC) has given awards to 15 students for materials used in furthering their research, or for costs related to traveling for professional development and research. The GSC annually sets aside funds for its travel awards to help students with the cost of furthering their research and professional development.

“The travel awards provide a platform for the GSC to give back to the students, and help promote student success,” said Brittany Harvey, treasurer of the GSC. “It is our pleasure to help facilitate that.”

Awards ranged from materials, such as a microphone to record interviews, to reimbursement for travelling for research, or to present research at conferences around the globe.

The winners were:

• Kerri Dean, PhD in history, for travelling to the Library of Congress and the National Museum of History in Washington, DC to conduct research on Christmas decorations.
• April Anderson, PhD in English, for materials and manuscripts for a digital humanities project that charts a genetic analysis of Elizabeth Bishop’s poetry.
• Jessica Orozco, MS in botany, for a research trip to conduct a floristic study of the South Fork Tule River.
• Jordan Riddle, MA in public health, for participation in the Environmental Systems Research Institute’s User Conference in San Diego.
• Jessica Valenzuela, PhD in education, for materials that aided in transcribing interviews.
• Soua Xiong, PhD in education, for presenting a paper at American Educational Research Association’s annual meeting in Chicago, IL.
• Renee Duniven, PhD in education, for presenting a literature review at the Council for Exceptional Children’s annual conference.
• Thomas Chan, PhD in positive developmental psychology, for presenting research on workplace meaning psychosocial development at the International Positive Psychology Association in Orlando, FL.
• Vicki Spector, PhD in positive developmental psychology, for presenting a paper on anti-bullying at the Association of Behavior Analysis International in Kyoto, Japan, and won the presidential award.
• Sucharita Belavadi, PhD in social psychology, for presenting a paper on intergroup communications at the International Communication Association conference in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
• Catelyn Bailey Gumaer, PhD in positive developmental psychology, won a travel award for presenting a paper on autism at Association of Behavior Analysis International in Kyoto, Japan.
• Jason Gurtovoy, PhD in economics, for attending the Midwest Economic Association in Minneapolis, MN, where he presented research on emerging economies.
• Roger Chin, PhD in political science and information systems, for presenting a paper at the Midwestern Criminal Justice Association in Chicago, IL.
• Vanessa Kettering, PhD in psychology, received a travel and material award for material and software to analyze interviews and a research trip to the Mayo Clinic in Wisconsin Dells, WI.
• Lisa Piergallini, PhD political science, for presenting a paper at the International Conference of Europeans in Paris, France.

The GSC celebrated the awards in December during a reception hosted by CGU President Robert Schult. Attendees, including Executive Vice President and Provost Jacob Adams and Dean of Students Chris Bass, gathered at the President’s House to raise their glasses in honor of this year’s winners.