8 CMD Students Receive Peggy R. Williams Award for Academic and Community Leadership
Ithaca College announced the 60 winners of the 2007-08 Peggy R. Williams Award for Academic and Community Leadership which recognizes outstanding performance in both academic and non-academic endeavors. Eight of the award recipients are communication management and design (CMD) students.
"Our faculty is very proud of the accomplishments of these eight CMD students who will be honored on March 18! We are not surprised that so many CMD students are being honored, since our students often are highly involved with community service and leadership," states Steven Seidman, Strategic Communication Department chair.
This year's CMD senior recipients are Josh Keniston and Vanessa Odenbach. CMD juniors receiving the award are Sarah Brylinski, Michelle Duffy, Ara Eckel, Renee LaDue, Sarah Hathaway, and Michele Maciejewski.
Keniston '08 has served as a student trustee on the Ithaca College Board of Trustees for the past two years, and is a student leadership consultant at the Center for Student Leadership & Involvement. He also participates in Habitat for Humanity projects. He reacted to the award by stating, "It is an honor to be recognized with such an amazing group of people, including seven CMD peers. I would argue that few of the recipients do what they do for recognition, but it is always nice to spend some time reflecting on how we impact our community."
Odenbach ’08 is vice president of programs for Sigma Iota Epsilon national management honor society, where she implements events. This semester she is working on Outfitology, a program for women members about how to dress professionally. "I feel so proud and honored to be named a recipient of this award," she says. "It is a wonderful to share this with my friends and classmates, people who I have learned and worked with closely over the past four years."
"I am proud to represent Ithaca College positively through social justice and political involvement," says Brylinski '09. In 2006 she organized the Global Night Commute for the city of Ithaca, a protest of solidarity in which hundreds of local residents came out to Dewitt Park and slept outside in the cold April air in solidarity with displaced children in Northern Uganda.
Duffy '09 has been a member of the IC women's tennis team for three years and is a designer for the Park Design House, a collaborative project between the Park School of Communications and the Office of Marketing Communications which allows students to gain real-life client and design experience.
Currently participating in the Walkabout Down Under program in Australia, Eckel '09 comments, "This award indicates that I am not only making a difference in my own education, but in service to others. That means a lot to me. This award is gratifying, though the ability to help others is the most rewarding." Eckel has a corporate communication concentration and has worked as a resident assistant.
Hathaway '09 served as a trip coordinator for alternative spring break to rebuild homes devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Now enjoying a semester with the Los Angeles Program, she continues her commitment to service by interning with the Make-A-Wish Foundation. "I am honored to be receiving an award that is given in the name of President Peggy Williams," states Hathaway. "She has always been committed to making community service a larger part of the Ithaca College experience, and she leads by setting a positive example."
LaDue '09, who double majors in CMD and history, has particularly enjoyed participating in two alternative spring breaks, building houses with Habitat for Humanity in Georgia and Alabama. "Personally, these experiences have allowed me to get to know people from very different backgrounds and have helped me develop a greater sense of empathy," says LaDue.
According to Maciejewski '09, "My goal is to be a worthwhile presence in the college and community. The Williams award makes me feel that I am contributing my time to people who have sacrificed a lot for me as well." Currently she works with a community media production group called Megaphone where she is co-coordinating a Poetry Slam for the Alternatives Library.
The annual Awards reception which pays tribute to the students' achievements is on March 18, from 4:30 to 6:00 p.m. in Emerson Suites B and C of the Campus Center.
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