Students, Alumni, Faculty and Staff Receive College of Communication and Information Awards

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LEXINGTON, Ky. (May 6, 2016) — The University of Kentucky College of Communication and Information held its 16th annual Excellence Awards Dinner on Friday, April 22, at the Hilary J. Boone Center.

The college recognized the following staff, faculty, alumni and friends:

Friend of the College Award: Recognizes a person that has demonstrated support to the college or one of its units by volunteering, providing internships or by their involvement in programs supported by the college. This year the college honored:

Jamie Leddin, board co-chair for UK's Innovation Network for Entrepreneurial Thinking (iNET)

Outstanding Alumnus Award: Recognizes an alumnus of the College of Communication and Information for their many contributions to the college and to our community. This year the college honored:

J.D. Shelburne, country music singer from Taylorsville, Kentucky (Telecommunications, 2007)

 

Faculty Teaching Excellence Award: Recognizes faculty who not only demonstrate mastery of the subject matter, but also awareness of current developments, and a vision of what is to come. Recipients demonstrate the ability to effectively communicate that knowledge to students in ways that foster understanding, intellectual growth and a broadening of perspectives. This year the college honored:

 

Namjoo Choi, assistant professor in the School of Information Science

Graduate Teaching Excellence Award: Recognizes students who not only excel in their own studies, but they also demonstrate knowledge and expertise of their field through teaching undergraduate students. This year the college honored:

 

Anna-Carrie “Annie” Beck, second year doctoral student specializing in family, interpersonal and instructional communication

Faculty Research Award: Recognizes faculty achievement in research that is important to both the college and the faculty member’s area of expertise. This year the college honored two recipients:

 

Patric Spence, associate professor in the School of Information Science

Jeannette Sutton, assistant professor in the Department of Communication and the director of the Risk and Disaster Communication Center

Outstanding Staff Award: Recognizes outstanding work and contributions by a staff member. This year the college honored two recipients:

 

Heather Burke, student affairs officer in the School of Information Science

Megan Sizemore, chief of staff, Dean’s Office

Faculty Community Service Award: Recognizes achievements by our faculty in service to our community. This year the college honored:

 

Kakie Urch, associate professor of multimedia in the School of Journalism and Telecommunications

Outstanding Advisor Award: Recognizes the critical role played by advisors in fostering academic achievement, clearing pathways to graduation and providing meaningful engagement on campus and in the community. This year the college honored:

 

Scoobie Ryan, associate director of the School of Journalism and Telecommunications

The College of Communication and Information also honored the following outstanding graduate students at the Excellence Awards:

Molly Burchett, Bruce H. Westley Memorial Scholarship, Carozza Graduate Fund

Sarah Sheff, Palmgreen Fellowship

Chrissy Gentile, Martha and Howard Sypher Memorial Graduate Scholarship

Tara Watterson, R. Lewis Donohew Graduate Fellowship

Minhao Dai, Health Communication Research Fellow

Ana De la Serna, Health Communication Research Fellow

Amanda Slone, Instructional Communication Research Fellow

Kevin Wombacher, Health Communication Research Fellow, Risk/Crisis Research Fellow

Anna-Carrie “Annie” Beck, Instructional Communication Research Fellow

Jacob Matig, Interpersonal Communication Research Fellow

Xialing Lin, Health/Risk Communication Research Fellow

Ashley Householder, SLIS Alumni Scholarship

Lauren Farmer, SLIS Alumni Scholarship

Aaron Williams, Hallie Day Blackburn Scholarship

Lucy Whalen, SLIS Endowed Fellowship Fund

 

 

UK is the University for Kentucky. At UK, we are educating more students, treating more patients with complex illnesses and conducting more research and service than at any time in our 150-year history. To read more about the UK story and how you can support continued investment in your university and the Commonwealth, visit uky.edu/uk4ky. #uky4ky #seeblue

MEDIA CONTACT: Whitney Harder, 859-323-2396, whitney.harder@uky.edu