Wisdom earns writing accolade

Author: Anthony Adragna

Karlye Wisdom '09 was awarded the Paul W. Ward '25 Memorial Prize on Oct 6. in a competiton that honors students for writing in their first year at the College. Fellow sophomores Samantha Pack and Claire Kelly were named the runners-up. In all, 33 members of the Class of 2009 were nominated for the award.

In a ceremony in the New Library to present the award, Assistant Professor of History Febe Armanios, who nominated Wisdom, sent a message of support to Wisdom to congratulate her. Wisdom then read from her winning entry, "Transcending Biases: Representing the Other and the Self."

Preceeding Wisdom's excerpt, Kelly received her award from Jean Thompson Fulton Professor of French Carol Rifelj, who also taught Kelly's first-year seminar. Kelly then read an excerpt from her entry, "A Search for Identity in City of Glass." Pack received her award from Martha Woodruff, associate professor of philosophy, and read from her essay, "What is Happiness for Kant and for Aristotle?"

Faculty members nominate the work of first-years who show exquisite writing skills in the manner prescribed by Mrs. Ward. "Faculty watch for outstanding writing by first-years in every course they teach, and pass those papers on to an interdisciplinary panel of faculty judges," said Associate Professor of English Kathleen Skubikowski in her address at the ceremony.

Submissions reflect the goals of the College in terms of encouraging good writing practices, Skubikowski said. "It is our commitment, then, to prepare you to shape the future of the fields you choose to enter, our commitment to encourage you to use writing as part of your own life-long learning and to make a difference in your world," Skubikowski said in her speech.

Professor of History of Art and Architecture John Hunisak and Visiting Assitant Professor of English James Berg judged the submissions this year. Judges received personal narratives, critical arguments and research papers among the submissions this year.

Created in 1978 by Dorothy Cate Ward '28, her daughter Marren Ward '62 and her son-in-law Tom Meehan '62 in honor of Paul Ward, the award praises students for excellence in writing produced during their first year at the College.

In her letter to the College that led to the establishment of the award, Mrs. Ward mentioned that her husband emphasized the necessity of basic writing skills during his distinguished journalism career. Mr. Ward was a recipient of the Pulitzer Prize and the French Legion of Honor.

Skubikowski told students to remember their parent's support for their writing.

"They were there on the spot to recognize and encourage your very first words from the time you were toddlers, words perhaps less lucid, graceful and exact than you're producing now, but certainly no less memorable," she said.

Other nominees for the award included:

Emily Asher, Ashley Asmus, Ruby Bolster, Jessica Campbell, Kate Dellas, Angela Evancie, Ellen Flenniken, Elizabeth Herron-Sweet, Caitlyn Olson, Nicholas Spengler, Sara Swatzwelder, John Kinder, Dilanthi Ranaweera, Adam Volwiler, Amanda Kleinman, Antoinette Rangel, Chandler Koglmeier, Mary Lohman, Amelia Magistrali, Tessa McClary, Elizabeth McMorris, Dorothy Mitchell, Michael Nevadomski, Kevin Redmon, Daniel Roberts, Scott Robinson, Lindsay Rotherham, Richard Saunders, Maxwell Sinsheimer and Emily Slatter.