Published April 25, 2025
Greetings Staff and Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences,
I had the honor of attending the annual UW Graduate Awards Ceremony this week, and I’m pleased to share that A&S students and faculty did well and were recognized for their exceptional work. Congratulations to the following awardees:
Outstanding Master’s Thesis
David Riedel, English
John P. Ellbogen Outstanding Graduate Assistant Teaching Award
Robert Kaya, Psychology
Makayla Kocher, English
Fox Nelson, Anthropology
Mid-Career Graduate Faculty Mentor
Dr. Nancy Small, English
We’ve also had several A&S students win a variety of other awards recently. Congratulations to sociology major Carissa Fostervold, who was recently awarded the prestigious and highly competitive NSF Graduate Research Fellowship to support her doctoral studies; International Studies graduate student Mariam Asaba, who recently received the "2025 Best Paper Award" for graduate students in the Latin America Specialty Group of the American Association of Geographers; and International Studies graduate student Erin Brorsen-Duncan, who won a Conference of Latin American Geography Field Study award at the MA/MS level, for her upcoming field research in Mexico in summer 2025.
We also wrapped up voting for A&S and University committees—thank you to everyone who participated in the process. The results include the following appointments:
A&S Curriculum Committee
Tammy Heise, Philosophy
Kasey Stanton, Psychology
A&S Central Committee
Kelly Kinney, English
Allison Caine, Anthropology
Cecelia Aragon, Theatre & Dance
A&S Tenure & Promotion Committee
Todd Surovell, Anthropology
Melissa Morris, History
Scholarship Committee (by appointment)
Matthew Schlomer, Music
UW Graduate Council
Briana Doering, Anthropology
UW Library Council
Dan Auerbach, Criminal Justice/Sociology
UW Faculty Senate University Studies Committee
Peter Walker, History
UW Tenure & Promotion Committee
Jennifer Tabler, Sociology
As new members rotate on and others rotate off, I want to extend a thank you to everyone who has served. Your time and commitment to these roles is deeply appreciated.
By now, hopefully everyone has seen the message from the Provost and President announcing that Scott Turpen will return as Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences this summer. It has truly been an honor to serve in this role during his absence. I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to support our students, faculty, and staff in this capacity and look forward to returning to my previous position as Associate Dean and continuing to contribute to the success of our college. In the meantime, you’re stuck with me a while longer!
Finally, we’ve got a full calendar of events happening across the college the next couple of weeks, including several talks, concerts, and the opening of Noises Off. If you’re able, I encourage you to attend and support our students and colleagues.
Enjoy the nice weather this weekend.
Sincerely,
Adrienne Freng
