Extension's Best

Academic and Teaching Prizes Presented for Outstanding Character and Dedication to Learning

One of the highlights of the Degree Awarding Ceremony each June is the announcement by Dean Michael Shinagel of the recipients of the three major academic prizes--the Phelps, Crite, and Small Prizes--as well as the Dean's Prize for Outstanding Master of Liberal Arts (ALM) Thesis, the Aurelio Prize, and the Wood Prize.

The Reginald H. Phelps Prize Fund was established by the late Edgar Grossman, ABE '66, founder and first president of the Harvard Extension Alumni Association, and the first Extension representative to the Associated Harvard Alumni. The prizes honor Dr. Reginald H. Phelps, AB '30, AM '33, PhD '47, director of University Extension at Harvard from 1949 to 1975, and are awarded annually on the basis of "academic achievement and character" to outstanding students receiving bachelor's degrees in extension studies.

The first Phelps Prize was awarded to Jan Jippe Wichers, ALB cum laude, who graduated at the top of his class with a 3.97 grade point average. After completing two years of full-time study at Dartmouth College, he left to begin a career in the computer science field. While successful in this field, Wichers decided to return to academia in 1994 to complete his undergraduate education for his own sense of accomplishment and lifelong learning. For the past seven years, he has worked full time, skated competitively as an inline racer, and completed a field of study in computer science as well as courses in religion, music, French, and writing.

Helen Mary Elizabeth Gillis, ALB cum laude, was the second Phelps prizewinner with a grade point average of 3.94. In 1985 Gillis began her academic career at a local community college where she earned honors grades. A colleague, mentor, and Extension School alum steered her to the Extension School in 1996, where her long-time love of literature blossomed into a field of study and career goal. Gillis plans to parlay her love of literature into a full-time English as a Second Language teaching position.

The recipient of the third Phelps prize was Erika Jane Wolf, ALB cum laude, with a 3.90 grade point average. Since earning her high school diploma in 1994, she has worked as a professional ballet dancer. While she loved dancing, she began to feel that dancing alone was not enough to make her happy. Born into a family of academics--her father was a former Harvard professor--she decided to pursue coursework at the Extension School in 1997, discovered a love of psychology, and developed a specific research interest on the relationship between proactivity and Lou Gehrig's disease progression. She will apply to PhD programs in clinical psychology next year.

The Harvard Extension School and the Harvard Extension Alumni Association established the Annamae and Allan R. Crite Prize in honor of the Crite family, whose long association with the Extension School began shortly after its founding, when Annamae Crite started taking courses. Mrs. Crite regularly attended courses for more than 50 years, and encouraged her son to pursue studies at the Extension School. Her son, Allan R. Crite, ABE '68, is widely recognized as the dean of African-American artists in the Greater Boston area. These prizes are awarded to Extension School undergraduate or graduate degree recipients who demonstrate "singular dedication to learning and the arts."

Daniel Hobin, concentrator in Studio Arts and Film, received the first Crite Prize. His thesis, "Conflict and Convergence: A Study of the Synthesis of Opposites in Jackson Pollock's Art," was directed by Harry A. Cooper, Associate Curator of Modern Art in the Harvard University Art Museums and Lecturer in the Department of History of Art and Architecture. Dr. Cooper praised the thesis as "a thoughtful and original contribution to the Jackson Pollock literature. It extends the Jungian school of interpretation beyond iconography to basic matters of pictorial organization, and it successfully locates the meanings thus discovered both in universal psychological themes and in the immediate social and intellectual milieu of post-war America."

Hiroko Nagai, concentrator in the History of Art and Architecture, received the second Crite Prize. Co-directed by John Rosenfield, Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Professor of Oriental Art, Emeritus, Curator of Oriental Art at the Fogg Art Museum, and Elizabeth deSabato Swinton, Director of Collections and Exhibitions and Curator of Asian Art at the Worcester Art Museum, Nagai's thesis is titled "The Creation of Picture Puzzles: The Maturity of the Art of Suzuki Harunobu and the Influence of his Patrons." Both directors described the thesis as remarkably thorough in its exploration of Japanese and English source materials and in its depiction of the development of this eighteenth-century artist. Swinton wrote, "Her discussion of Japanese aesthetic terms such as 'mitate' and 'yatsushi,' as well as her careful analysis of the sources and meanings of [Harunobu's] prints are excellent.... Chapter IV, reworked, could be submitted for publication."

Kevin W. Salemme, concentrator in Studio Arts, Film, and Photography, received the third Crite Prize. Salemme is Director of Media Services at Merrimack College and teaches part time in Fine Arts and Photography. His thesis, "Five Dyadic Structures Inherent in American Photographic Formalism," was directed by Deborah Bright, Professor of Photography and Art History at the Rhode Island School of Design, and Visiting Lecturer in Photography in the Department of Visual and Environmental Studies at Harvard. According to Bright, Salemme's work is "a signficant study and one which has brought new rigor and clarity to the study of American photographic aesthetics....In an age when we are relying increasingly on visual information through the mass media and Internet, learning how to interpret and understand critically what photographs show us is more important than ever."

Born in the late nineteenth century in Lithuania, Thomas Small--in whose name the Thomas Small Prize is presented annually--moved to the United States in 1900. By 1918, he had graduated from Boston University with a bachelor's degree. After graduation, he entered the working world and continued working in business until his retirement in 1965. In that same year, he began taking Extension School courses. The culmination of his studies was his graduation in 1983, at age 89, with a master's degree, making him the oldest earned graduate degree recipient ever to graduate from Harvard University. His family and friends honored him by establishing this prize in his name. It is awarded annually on the basis of "academic achievement and character" to outstanding ALM in extension studies degree recipients.

Eric Bornstein, concentrator in English and American Literature and Language, who graduated with a perfect 4.0 grade point average, received the first Thomas Small Prize. His thesis, "Reading the Language of the Mask: The Signs and Symbols of Selected Kyogen and Commedia dell'Arte Masks," was directed by Dr. Monni Adams, Associate of African Ethnology in the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology. Dr. Adams commended the thesis "for its adventurous topic, energetic documentary research, intriguing visual analysis, and insightful results." Bornstein is an instructor of art, yoga, and martial arts, as well as director of Behind-the-Masks Theater, whose designs have been used by First Night Boston, the Museum of Fine Arts, and the Children's Museum.

The second Thomas Small Prize winner was Evangelos Dimitrios Karvounis, concentrator in Government, who also had a perfect 4.0 grade point average. Karvounis' thesis, "Cyprus: Is Consociational Federalism a Viable Settlement?" examines the ethnic, political, and economic dimensions of the Cyprus conflict and formulates an innovative strategy for its resolution. Karvounis founded Medoil, an oil-trading and tanker-transportation company that had as its main focus the delivery of oil to less-developed countries. As president of the company, he traveled extensively in Africa, the Far East, and Latin America before selling the company in 1994 and becoming the lead columnist for the National Herald, a New York-based language newspaper with a daily circulation of 30,000 copies.

The Dean's Prize for Outstanding ALM Thesis recognizes the work that embodies the highest level of imaginative scholarship. A prize is awarded in each of the four disciplines of the Extension School's Master's Degree Program.

The Dean's Prize for the outstanding ALM thesis in the behavioral sciences went to Gregory Bernard O'Donohue, concentrator in Psychology. His thesis, "Out-of-Control Sexual Behavior: An Analysis of Various Authors' Attempts to Operationalize a Construct," synthesizes the range of diagnoses and descriptions applied to individuals whose sexual activity has been identified as problematic. O'Donohue proposes a model for conceptualizing this condition integrating behavioral, affective, and cognitive factors. Professor Scott Lukas, O'Donohue's director, wrote, "What is particularly important about this work is that the conceptual framework on which it is based can be applied to a number of other areas....The boldness with which Mr. O'Donohue challenges beliefs and practices that have been propagated for decades is fully justified by the strength of his analyses and conclusions."

The Dean's Prize for the outstanding ALM thesis in the natural sciences was awarded to Kelly M. Heffernan for her work on "Macrolichen Abundance, Distribution, and Species Diversity: A Study on the Effects of the Forest's Edge Versus the Area of the Granite Boulder." This innovative research explores the edge effects using rock substrates to study both into the forest and into the open environment. Dr. Donald Pfister directed the work and praised it, saying, "Her work really is one of the best I have seen--I would put it right up at the top among the theses I have advised...."

The Dean's Prize for the outstanding ALM thesis in the social sciences went to Nick Patler, concentrator in Government. Patler's thesis, "The Protest of Federal Racial Segregation in the Wilson Administration, 1913-1914," investigates the struggle of blacks and white sympathizers against the introduction of racial segregation into federal offices during the first two years of the Wilson Administration. Making extensive use of primary and unpublished sources, Patler demonstrates that the protest campaign brought together into a coordinated movement, for the first time, various groups and individuals who previously had not agreed on methods for advancement of African-American rights. Patler's thesis is now the definitive work on this significant historical event. On the recommendation of his thesis director, Professor Stephan Thernstrom, Patler plans to pursue a doctorate in history.

The Dean's Prize for the outstanding ALM thesis in the humanities went to Mark Richard Sanford, concentrator in English and American Literature and Language. Directed by Michael Shinagel, Senior Lecturer on English, Sanford's thesis is titled "Negotiating Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe: Authorship, Concinnity, and the Appropriation of Narrative in Luis Buñuel's 1952 Adaptation." A masterful study of the parallel forces that influenced Defoe to write the novel and Buñuel to be drawn to it as a subject for film, the thesis, noted Shinagel, "is a luminous depiction of Buñuel's fidelity to Defoe's vision, while simultaneously highlighting Buñuel's distinctive and personal artistic uses of the cinematic form in his adaptation. It was a revelation to read this thesis."

Perhaps the most unusual prize awarded annually at the degree ceremony is the Santo J. Aurelio Prize, named for Santo Joseph Aurelio, ALB '83, ALM '85. Mr. Aurelio received his first two degrees at the Harvard Extension School after age 50 and went on to earn a doctorate and enter a new profession, college teaching, after a career of more than 35 years as an official court reporter for the Massachusetts Superior Court. The prize recognizes academic achievement and character for undergraduate degree recipients older than 50 years of age.

This year's recipient, Donna Jean Adams, ALB cum laude, had enjoyed a rewarding career as a nurse since 1956, but in 1990, at the age of 54, she decided that, while her professional nursing education was critical to her career, she wanted to learn more about philosophy, literature, and art. Eleven years later at the age of 65, she graduated with a 3.68 grade point average and a concentration in the humanities. Adams retired from nursing at the end of June and pursues a career as a motivational speaker.

The Judith Wood Memorial Prize--awarded from an income fund established by the family and friends of the late Judith Wood--honors students who take courses at the Extension School while facing the additional challenges of a disability. Judith Wood was born with cystic fibrosis, later developed diabetes, and eventually lost her sight. In spite of her difficulties, she continued to take Extension School courses for as long as she was able to do so. Her courage and fortitude inspired many other students.

This year's recipient, Linda Marucci, earned her Associate of Arts Degree from the Extension School in 1987. She recently resumed her studies and is pursuing a Bachelor of Liberal Arts degree with a concentration in social sciences. Marucci faces the daily challenges of albinism and vision loss with strength and optimism. She is raising two children and works as a psychiatric triage counselor in a local mental health facility.

This year the Extension School's Commencement Speaker Prize went to Anthony Lorizio, ALB '01. Tony began his academic career at Northeastern University in 1967. After a 25-year hiatus, he returned to academia in the spring of 1996. Not expecting the liberal arts curriculum to change his life, he planned to work full time and pursue his undergraduate education on the side. However, his enthusiasm for his studies grew, as his academic interests became more defined and focused. After experiencing the value of mentors, teachers, and leaders in his own life, he was an important mentor, teacher, and leader to his fellow students. Lorizio was accepted to the master's degree program in international relations at The John Hopkins University, and he was recently elected as vice president of the Harvard Extension Alumni Association. (You can read his speech).

Teaching Awards Presented
to Extension Faculty

The Petra T. Shattuck Excellence in Teaching Award was established by the Harvard Extension School in memory of Dr. Petra T. Shattuck, a distinguished and dedicated teacher, who died of a cerebral hemorrhage in the spring of 1988. These prizes are awarded annually to honor outstanding teaching in the Extension program, and this year's recipients were William L. Fash, David M. Schur, and Nadine Weidman.

The Bowditch Professor of Central American and Mexican Archaeology and Ethnology, William L. Fash, PhD, began teaching Mesoamerican Civilizations at the Extension School in 1995. His students praise him for his enthusiasm and passion. One student commented, "You can see that he loves what he teaches, so he makes you love the class too."

Students call David M. Schur, PhD, teaching assistant in philosophy, a "phenomenal instructor" and describe his writing-intensive courses as "perfect examples of the power of lifelong education." Dr. Schur has been teaching Philosophy and Literature and Existentialism at the Extension School for six years.

Nadine Weidman, PhD, teaching assistant in the history of science, began teaching the graduate research methods proseminar in 1997. This year she also taught Evolution and Society. Students rank her as "one of the best instructors" in their academic careers, and advise: "The more instructors the Extension School has like Dr. Weidman, the better it will be."

Established in 1990 by the family of Carmen S. Bonanno, who studied a foreign language at Harvard Extension School many years ago, the Carmen S. Bonanno Excellence in Foreign Language Teaching Award recognizes excellence in foreign language instruction.

As a professor, researcher, dictionary writer, and novelist, Dr. Ubaldo DiBenedetto is a person of many talents and is this year's recipient of the Bonanno Award. He began teaching at the Harvard Extension School in 1980, and since then his courses on Italian language, culture, and literature have attracted a loyal following. One of his students in this semester's course on the Italian Renaissance commented: "Dr. DiBenedetto's composite knowledge of syntax, world culture, philosophy, literature, and art are phenomenal."

Thomas R. Jehn is the recipient of the James E. Conway Excellence in Teaching Writing Award, which was established in 1991. Mr. Jehn is a head preceptor in the Expository Writing Program at Harvard College. He has taught expository writing at the Extension School since 1997; last fall, he became director of the Extension School's Writing Center. His students consistently praise him for his patience and enthusiasm, his commitment and dedication. As one student put it in a recent course evaluation: "Tom Jehn is a phenomenal instructor."

The Dean's Distinguished Service Award is bestowed occasionally by Dean Michael Shinagel on a distinguished teacher with a long record of service to the Harvard Extension School.

This year's honoree is Dr. L. Dodge Fernald, assistant dean of the Master's of Liberal Arts (ALM) Program and senior lecturer on psychology in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS).

In addition to directing the ALM Program since its inception in 1980, Dr. Fernald has been teaching in the Division of Continuing Education (DCE) for 25 years, during which time more than 5,000 students enrolled in his psychology courses in the Summer and Extension Schools. In 1986 he received the Petra T. Shattuck Award for Excellence in Teaching.

At the end of this academic year, Dr. Fernald retired from his decanal role at the Extension School, but continues to teach as a senior lecturer both in FAS and at DCE.