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. This year there was a tie for the first place Phelps Prize.

Deborah Leigh Fairchild, ALB '02 cum laude, a social sciences concentrator, graduated with a 3.94 GPA. Fairchild began her undergraduate academic career 34 years ago at the University of Colorado and Barnard College. She is the director of finance in the Office of the Dean for Student Life at MIT and plans to continue her education at the Extension School and earn the ALM.

Treyton L. Thomas, ALB '02 cum laude, a computer science concentrator, also graduated at the top of the class with a 3.94 GPA. Thomas is the founder of Pembridge Group LP, a successful private investment firm, and an AMP graduate of the Harvard Business School. He took a sabbatical to experience an academic challenge in the liberal arts to match his business accomplishments. Thomas has been accepted to MIT's Sloan School of Management.

Robert Joseph Matthews, ALB '02 cum laude, graduated with the second highest GPA: 3.93. A history of art and architecture concentrator, he has dedicated his professional life to caring for others as a home hospice clinician and advocate for persons with disabilities. Matthews has been accepted to the Harvard Graduate School of Education's Master of Arts and Education Program.

There was also a tie for the third place Phelps Prize. Lisa A. Barca, ALB '02 cum laude, graduated with a GPA of 3.89. Barca, an Italian studies concentrator, is a teacher of English language and Italian language and literature. She completed two courses in Italian literature and language through Harvard's GSAS as a Special Student, as well as a reading and research project in sixteenth-century women's Italian literature. Barca was accepted to Harvard's and the University of Chicago's PhD program in Italian literature. She accepted the Chicago offer and began studies in the fall.

Audrey Mary Huff, ALB '02 cum laude, a library assistant at Harvard's Widener Library, also graduated with a 3.89 GPA. An English and American literature and language concentrator, Huff completed six literature courses through GSAS as a Special Student. She plans on applying to graduate programs in English and then library science to pursue a career in acquisitions.

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."

The first Crite Prize was awarded to Thomas Pier Mancuso, ALM '02, concentrator in classical civilizations. Mancuso's thesis, directed by David Gordon Mitten, James Loeb Professor of Classical Art and Archaeology, is titled "The Use of Negative Space in Attic Vase Painting: 1050 bc to 300 bc," and explores the complex subject of how to define and evaluate the aesthetic effects of negative space in more than 40 examples of Athenian vases. Mitten wrote, "He sets this theme within a broad historical and theoretical context, making it relevant to all art historians. He could well transform the thesis into a valuable book, because nothing dealing with negative space in Greek painting has been published." Mancuso holds the BA degree in English from St. Louis University and two diplomas in studio arts from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. He is employed as an ESL instructor at Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.

Two graduates share the second Crite Prize. Nini Fung Yip Wong, ALM '02 concentrator in English and American literature and language, wrote her thesis on "The Role of Rhyme in the Prose of Virginia Woolf," a study of four varieties of rhyme (alliteration, assonance, homoeoteleuton, and ploce) frequently deployed by Woolf both to heighten the sensate aspects of her language and to convey impressions and sensations bearing on her characters and their surroundings. Her thesis director, Douglas Mao, assistant professor of English and American literature and language, wrote: "The author of Jacob's Room, To the Lighthouse, and Between the Acts would undoubtedly be pleased by this sensitive, fiercely intelligent, delicately exact tribute. Nini Wong is to be congratulated for producing a work of great vitality and beauty, and for contributing to the field of Woolf scholarship a study of the very highest quality and significance." Wong, who resides in San Jose, California, holds a BA in music from the University of British Columbia and has been for many years an instructor in piano and music theory.

Elena Diciembre Aguilar Sanchez, ALM '02, concentrator in studio arts, film, and photography, shares the second-place Crite Prize. Her thesis, "Renaissance Perception of Color in Painting from the Perspective of Twentieth-Century Physiological Science," employs contemporary color theory to explore the apparently intuitive understanding of Renaissance painters of the enduring physical, psychological, and aesthetic effects that certain colors produce. Professor John Stilgoe, Robert and Lois Orchard Professor in the History of Landscape Development, directed the thesis and praised it as "a genuine master's thesis, since it demonstrates a mastery of art history--and puts that mastery into a context of . . . the scientific field of cognitive science and anthropology. The author has accomplished something most important [and taken] a great intellectual risk that in the end proves worthwhile." Aguilar holds the BA in communications and the MA in marketing from University Anahuac (Mexico City), and is a multimedia artist who has served as consultant on a variety of art installation projects in the US and Mexico.

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 recipients.

In recognition of their outstanding academic performances, Leslie Goodwill-Cohen, ALM '02, and Scott Richard Lundgren, ALM '01, received the Thomas Small Prize. In addition to her classroom performance, Goodwill-Cohen independently studied Space Syntax analysis, a detailed statistical approach to understanding architectural remains, and used this method to further understanding of the function of Prudden units in the Pueblo community for her ALM thesis, which was described by thesis director William L. Fash, Bowditch Professor of Central American and Mexican Archaeology and Ethnology, as "sophisticated analysis." Goodwill-Cohen recently retired from her career as a special education consultant in Massachusetts, and is moving to Santa Fe, New Mexico, with plans to continue her studies of the Colorado Pueblos in Mesa Verde and other related archaeological sites.

Lundgren achieved a stellar academic record as a natural sciences concentrator and wrote an honors thesis titled "Correlation of Porewater Factors with Phragmites Australis Vigor in a New England Salt Marsh." Lundgren completed his Bachelor of Science in biology and environmental science, summa cum laude, from Tufts University in 1992.

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

The Dean's Thesis Prize for the outstanding ALM thesis in the behavioral sciences went to psychology concentrator Ellen Patricia Merrill, ALM '02, who investigated the "Cognitive Effects and Predictability of the Satiating Capacity of Food" under the direction of L. Dodge Fernald, senior lecturer on psychology. She conducted two related experiments to show that expectations influence perceptions of hunger and satiety; the first experiment assessed beliefs about reduced fat and reduced calorie food and the second examined actual eating behavior in a laboratory setting while systematically manipulating the actual fat and calorie content of the food along with the nutritional information about the food. Merrill works as a researcher at the US Army labs in Natick, Massachusetts, where she is involved in developing field rations and nutritional supplements for the US military.

The Dean's Thesis Prize for the outstanding ALM thesis in the social sciences (first place) went to Joanne M. Markow, ALM '02, graduate in anthropology and archaeology. Markow's thesis, "Harmonic Systems of Production in Classic Maya Cylinder Vase Painting," hypothesizes that rules of proportion common to other cultures govern the compositional layout of the classic Maya cylinder vases. The thesis director, William L. Fash, Bowditch Professor of Central American and Mexican Archaeology and Ethnology, wrote that her thesis is an "absolutely superb work of scholarship. The approach . . . had never before been applied to New World art." Markow got the idea for the thesis several years ago from viewing an exhibition of Maya vases at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, and patterns on stelae at the Peabody Museum at Harvard University. She is currently director of internet development at Houghton Mifflin.

Daniel Friedlander, ALM '02, and Linda Hime Newberry, ALM '02, both graduates in history, tied for second place. Friedlander's thesis, "The Propylaea of Paris: Revolutionary Architecture Before the French Revolution," investigates the paradoxes inherent in the French monarchy's building of a customs wall around Paris in the 1780s to increase revenue. Although the architect, Claude-Nicolas Ledoux, created a revolutionary neo-classical design for the wall and tollbooths that, among other things, may have influenced the paintings of Jacques Louis David, the structures became associated with the ancien regime and were plundered by the revolutionaries. Thesis director, Patrice Higonnet, Robert Walton Goelet Professor of French History, wrote: "It was an excellent piece of work, well conceived and very well written, a true labor of love." Friedlander plans to pursue a PhD in history with the goal of teaching history after he retires from his medical practice.

Newberry's thesis, "The Fruits of Her Hands: Baltimore Album Quilts as Manifestation of Early Nineteenth-Century American Patriotism," examines the development of the Baltimore Album style of quilting relative to the developing sense of American nationalism in the early nineteenth century, and its demise as a result of the conflicts that would erupt into the Civil War. The thesis director, John Stilgoe, Robert and Lois Orchard Professor in the History of Landscape Development, wrote: "This superb thesis proves itself to be solid documentation of the hypothesis that intense analysis of material-culture objects illuminates known historical themes and reveals others. . . . This well-researched, well-argued thesis . . . goes far toward clarifying the interlocked roles of men and women in the pre-Civil War republic." Newberry gives lectures on quilts and the history of quilting, and she works as an executive assistant at the Harvard Extension School.

The Dean's Prize for the outstanding thesis in the humanities went to Elise Madeleine Ciregna, ALM '02, concentrator in history of art and architecture, whose thesis, "Museum in the Garden: Mount Auburn Cemetery and the Development of American Sculpture, 1825-1875," was also directed by Professor John Stilgoe. The study traces the rise of sculpture in America through the works commissioned for Mt. Auburn Cemetery, which gradually won for this medium a lasting place in our culture. Professor Stilgoe praised her work as "one of the finest theses I have read . . . and a genuinely original contribution to the still-emerging field of art history welded to material-culture and visual-culture studies." A 1983 graduate of Boston University (from which she holds a BS in communications) and an administrative coordinator in the Harvard School of Public Health, Ciregna has been accepted to the PhD program in the history department at the University of Delaware.

The Dean's thesis prize in the natural sciences went to Michelle Lynn Condlin, ALM '02, for her work titled, "Effect of Antioxidants on Cytokine mRNA Response and Muscle Injury After Eccentric Exercise." Her director, Joseph D. Paulauskis, associate professor of molecular biology, wrote that she "did an outstanding job on the initial design of these studies. . . . The laboratory component . . . was quite extensive and Michelle deserves special recognition."

The Derek Bok Public Service Prize honors the commitment of former President Derek Bok to adult continuing education and to effective advocacy of community service activities. It is awarded annually to degree and certificate recipients at the Harvard University Extension School, who, while pursuing academic studies and professional careers, also give generously of their time and skills to improve the quality of life for others in the larger community.

Michael Francis Maltese, ALB '02 cum laude, made a difference in his own academic community by volunteering his time and computer talents to critical applied research projects with extraordinary scholars. Maltese spent countless hours scouring libraries and the Internet for answers to the many questions posed to Africana.com, a website co-founded by Henry Louis Gates, Jr., W.E.B. Du Bois Professor of the Humanities, that disseminates educational information and news about the black world. In addition, he volunteered with Dr. Habib Ladjevardi, director of the Harvard Iranian Oral History Project, to bring audiotapes and English and Persian transcripts from major Iranian public figures to the Internet, enabling scholars from around the world to access this primary resource. By giving his time and talents to these projects, Maltese made a positive contribution to the local, national, and international research community.

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, Kenneth Lane Stewart, ALB '02 cum laude, has enjoyed an eclectic mix of careers--cab driver, short-order cook, folk singer, juggler, clown, street and international theatre performer--before coming to the Extension School in 1993 at his wife's urging. Nine years later, Stewart, the stay-at-home dad of Liam and Mackenzee, earned his ALB with a concentration in literature and a 3.79 cumulative GPA. Stewart plans to continue his education at the Extension School in the ALM Program in creative writing.

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. Amit Malkani, a candidate for the Master of Liberal Arts degree with a concentration in the history of science, received the prize this year.

This year the Extension School's Commencement Speaker Prize went to Linda Hime Newberry, ALM '02. (You can read her speech on page 28.)

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. "Patient, attentive, encouraging"--this student's assessment of one 2001-02 winner applies to all three Shattuck Prize recipients: Dr. Mary Crawford-Volk, Dr. Benjamin W. Fortson IV, and Dr. Scott E. Lukas.

Mary Crawford-Volk's courses on Spanish art, John Singer Sargent, and the Boston Museum of Fine Arts are described as "delightful, insightful, wonderful subjects taught flawlessly. I only wish the semesters were longer." Starting with her El Greco to Picasso course in 1987, Dr. Crawford-Volk has facilitated the museum visits of hundreds of Extension School students.

Students praise Benjamin W. Fortson IV for his accessibility and engaging presentations. Dr. Fortson, who is described as "always available to answer questions" and always willing to advise Bachelor of Liberal Arts students, began teaching Introduction to Linguistics, Historical Linguistics, and Indo-European Language and Culture in 1996.

Scott E. Lukas also began teaching in 1996, and his Graduate Research Methods and Scholarly Writing in the Social Sciences: Anthropology and Psychology proseminar and Psychopharmacology of Drug and Alcohol Abuse course earn words of praise from students. "His interest in his students, ensuring that we each get the most possible out of the course--academically and for our careers--is outstanding."

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.

This year's Bonanno Prize winner, Dr. Kathryn Ann Chadbourne, proposed teaching Elementary Modern Irish at the Extension School in 1999, and her students have stayed with her through intermediate and advanced courses. "It has been a wonderful, enriching journey with Dr. Chadbourne. Her encouragement and passion for the Irish language is infectious. I'm very grateful that the Extension School 'extended' our time together."

Nora L. Cameron is the recipient of the James E. Conway Excellence in Teaching Writing Award, which was established in 1991. Cameron is associate director of promotions and publications at the Harvard Division of Continuing Education and has taught Desktop Publishing since 1996. Her students consistently praise her for her enthusiasm for and knowledge of her subject, as well as for her patience and organization. As one student wrote: "I am finishing this class with confidence that I have a thorough command of the major aspects of desktop publishing."