Dr. Charles Davis, Penn State Wilkes-Barre Chancellor, and the Penn State Wilkes-Barre Student Government Association are pleased to announce the 2014-2015 student recipients of The John R. Murphy Award for Excellence in Leadership & Service, The Martin U. Dougherty Emerging Leader Award, The Eric A. & Josephine S. Walker Award, and the Penn State Wilkes-Barre Who's Who in American Colleges & Universities.
The 2014-2015 John R. Murphy Award for Excellence in Leadership & Service was awarded to graduating senior Heather Nicholson from Lehman, PA. Rick Barry, a former Penn State Wilkes-Barre student and Walker Award recipient, made this endowed award possible to honor former Director of Student Affairs, John R. Murphy, who served Penn State Wilkes-Barre from 1967 to 2004. The award was established to recognize a graduating senior whose outstanding qualities of leadership, service, scholarship, citizenship, and character have been directed into programs and service on campus and/or the community that have positively influenced fellow students and have contributed to the prestige and well being of the Wilkes-Barre campus and the reputation of the University as a whole. Heather has served as both the President and Vice President of the Lamda Sigma society and has been the Pennsylvania Society of Land Surveyors Chair for the Surveying Society. She was also honored as the 2015 Penn State Wilkes-Barre Adult Learner of the Year. Heather graduated last weekend with a Bachelor of Science degree in Surveying Engineering and is planning on pursuing her Master's Degree at the University of New Brunswick.
The 2014-2015 Martin U. Dougherty Emerging Leader Award was awarded to Dallas native, Chelsea English. The Dougherty family established this award in remembrance of their husband/father, Martin, who served on the Penn State Wilkes-Barre Campus Advisory Board. Martin's firm, The Architectural & Engineering Group, Inc., designed the Carriage Room in the campus' Student Commons, which won the 2003 "Pride of Place" Award from the Greater Wilkes-Barre Chamber of Commerce. This award recognizes a student of junior status who has at least a 3.0 cum GPA; has demonstrated excellence in scholarship, leadership, citizenship, service and character. Chelsea is a Corporate Communication major who serves as the campus' Student Government president; International Relations Chair and Constitutional Review Committee Chair. Chelsea also serves as a Student Aide and a Career Ambassador.
The 2014-2015 Eric A. & Josephine Walker Award was awarded to Do Ee Yang, an international student from Seoul, South Korea. The purpose of this award is to recognize the Commonwealth Campus student whose outstanding qualities of character, scholarship, leadership and citizenship have been directed into programs and services that have positively influenced fellow students and have contributed to the prestige and well being of their campus and, hence, to the reputation of the University as a whole. The award is made annually, at or near the end of the spring term, to a full-time undergraduate student who is completing two full years of freshman-sophomore study at a Commonwealth Campus. Do Ee has served on the Committee of International Student Affairs, the International Relations Committee, the Global Citizens' Society, and Nit-Li Arts. Do Ee is a Premedicine major who will be transferring to University Park in the Fall.
Each year members of the campus are asked to nominate students for the Who's Who in American Colleges and Universities Award. The criteria for this award is based on scholarship, participation and leadership in academic and co-curricular activities, citizenship and service to Penn State Wilkes-Barre and the surrounding community and potential for future achievement. The 2014-2015 Penn State Wilkes-Barre recipients are: Zachary Aciukewicz [Trucksville], Kaitlyn Benczkowski [Bear Creek Township], Chelsea English [Dallas], Hannah Eroh [Bloomsburg], Nicholas McCarroll [Dallas], Ryan McDermott [Stroudsburg], Heather Nicholson [Lehman], and Ryan Oliver [Nanticoke].