The Department of Psychology held its annual Class Day event on Monday, June 1, 2020, to celebrate graduating seniors, honors recipients, and award winners.
Festivities were held virtually where graduates, families, and friends congratulated this profound accomplishment. We invite you to relive this wonderful moment with us!
Honors Recipients
During the celebrations, the Department recognized the following Class of 2020 Honors recipients.
Highest Honors
Ellie Breitfeld, Debby Cheng, Hannah Fein, Nicole Horner, Haley Rogers, and David San Miguel-Tasch
High Honors
Chisom Chigozie-Nwosu, Kuteara Jamison, Farrah Lee-Elabd, Michael Lotito, Aidan O'Donnell, Devon Peterkin, and Alexis Stokes
Honors
Amy Castellano, Mariesa Cay, Ymhani Cloird, Krista Hoffman, Taylor Jean-Jacques, Serena Lu, Lilly Mannion, Richard Peng, and Natasha Skov
Phi Beta Kappa Society
The following Honors recipients were also elected into the Phi Beta Kappa Society (the oldest national honorary scholastic society, founded in 1776): Ellie Breitfeld, Debby Cheng, and Aidan O'Donnell.
Awards and Prizes
The Miller-Schroeder Memorial Prize
The Miller-Schroeder Memorial Prize is given in memory of the two psychology majors killed at Kent State University in the spring of 1970. It is awarded to the graduating senior whose thesis best exemplifies the application of the psychological methods to the study of a problem of social significance. Class of 2020 member Chisom Chigozie-Nwosu’s thesis, advised by Professor Johannes Haushofer and entitled "Forget Me Not: Promoting the Utilization of Antenatal Care Services by Providing Reminder Text Messages and Transportation Fare," was selected as the 2020 winner of this prize.
The Edward E. Jones Memorial Prize
This prize is awarded to the graduating student whose senior thesis is judged to be the most outstanding work in social psychology, broadly construed. In keeping with Professor Jones' own interests, special consideration is given to theses that report innovative empirical research, although theses of a purely theoretical character are also considered. Class of 2020 member Grace Grady's thesis, advised by Professor Adele Goldberg and entitled "Names, Accents, and Racial Linguistic Profiling: Linguistic and Racial Prejudice as Mechanisms of Discrimination Against Speakers of African American Vernacular English," was selected as the 2020 recipient of this prize.
The George A. Miller Prize in Cognitive Science
This prize is given annually to the best interdisciplinary senior thesis in cognitive science. Neuroscience concentrator Serena Mon's thesis, advised by Professor Adele Goldberg and entitled "Measuring Pupillometry during the Comprehension of Conventional Metaphors," was selected as the 2020 winner of this prize.
Senior Thesis Prize in Clinical Psychology
The Department of Psychology’s Senior Thesis Prize in Clinical Psychology is awarded to the graduating senior or seniors whose thesis is judged to be the most outstanding thesis in clinical psychology, broadly construed. Generally, it is awarded to the student(s) whose thesis best exemplifies the application of empirical methods to the study of psychopathology or the prevention or treatment of psychopathology. Class of 2020 member Devon Peterkin's thesis, advised by Professor Joel Cooper and entitled "The Application of Cognitive Dissonance Via Effort Expenditure and Justification," was selected as the 2020 recipient of this prize.
The Howard Crosby Warren Prize in Psychology
Funded by an endowment established by the bequest of Catherine C. Warren, the Howard Crosby Warren Prizes are awarded annually to the senior concentrators in Psychology that are selected by the Department as the most worthy recipients on the basis of scholarly attainment and good character. The following Class of 2020 concentrators have been selected to receive this award for 2020: Ellie Breitfeld, Debby Cheng, Hannah Fein, Nicole Horner, Aidan O'Donnell, Haley Rogers, and David San Miguel-Tasch.
The Department of Psychology would like to thank award and prize recipients and all Class of 2020 members for a fantastic year and a job well-done, particularly in these extraordinary times. Congratulations and best wishes for all the future brings!