2025-2026 Annual Awards

Program for the 2025-2026 Annual Awards Celebration

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Earlier today we gathered at the Alumni Center and online to celebrate the success of students and faculty.

As we have since 2023, we exchanged the sit-down banquet from the pre-COVID days for a less formal reception which allowed for more conversation — and an earlier evening.

We’re grateful to all of the faculty, students, families, and donors celebrating with us, either at the Alumni Center or online.

We’ll have photos of our award presentations in the next week or so (with thanks in advance to David Mayes). For now, we offer below some virtual recognition to complement the applause and cheers of faculty, students, family, and friends offered face-to-face or in the Zoom chat.

(Information about the student awards below is available from our department’s web site.)

Brink Memorial Essay Award: The Clark M. Brink Memorial Essay Award is given for student essays exhibiting “the highest degree of originality of composition and excellence in handling a topic treating or exemplifying the values of humanistic studies.”

• Hannah Wittmayer (first place): “Emotion Map: All My Rage“: “This very original and excellent analysis offers a sensitive interpretation of the emotional landscape in the YA novel All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir. In two paintings and a detailed exegesis, this writer skillfully offers an emotional geography of the human body, displaying the shift and evolution of feeling in the main character over the course of the novel. By color-coding a range of emotions—fear, anger, ambition, grief, love—this paper creates a visual rendering of the evolution of the novel’s main character and draws attention to the way this felt landscape structures our understanding of the novel’s developmental arc. The essay is very well written, and the analysis of the character’s emotions is impressive. This innovative work is accessible and infused with direct evidence from the novel. The paintings/drawings are likewise effectively done. The images inspired by the text are striking. This is a very insightful piece.” (Tom Sarmiento, for the selection committee)
• Gracie Jo Stanton (second place): “Amour-propre: The Root of All Evil in Macbeth, Othello, and The Republic of Plato“: “Bringing together texts and ideas gathered over the last two years, this author offers an interesting synthesis of Rousseau’s ideas of amour-propre with the competing visions of ambition and selfishness in Macbeth, Othello, and Plato’s Republic. The author draws on a variety of competing ideas and manages to synthesize them into a clear and measured discussion of the conflicting dynamics of personal selfishness and the larger needs of society. It was impressive to see how the author was making connections and constructing a profound understanding of what it means to be human. The essay touches on the crux of establishing and maintaining one’s self in relation to larger societal structures.” (Tom Sarmiento, for the selection committee)

Chappell Award: Eleanor Allen, Isabelle Greenmeyer, Angel Myers

Conover Award: Ruth Okon

• “As the graduate award with the longest history in our department, the Conover recognizes superior academic performance, fine teaching, and real distinction as a graduate student. Faculty praised this student as simply ‘outstanding,’ saying that she is ‘intellectual, dedicated, but also an impressively creative thinker.'” (Cameron Leader-Picone, for the selection committee)

Davis Award: Daniel Effah

• “Earle Davis is one of the most famous members in the history of the K-State English Department. He was a longtime Head of the Department, the author of several books, and an excellent scholar of Victorian literature. This scholarship honors his memory and his example. This year’s winner embodies the scholarly energy, the intellectual curiosity, hard work, and ambition that characterized Earle Davis’s work as well as the best academic work being done by our graduate students and our profession.” (Cameron Leader-Picone, for the selection committee)
  

Edwards Scholarship: Daniel Effah, Ruth Okon

English Department Undergraduate Scholarship: Ruth Brooks, Jamie Burke

Glenn Scholarship: Aidia Kite, Maria Tardiff

Grindell Award: [N/A for AY2024-2025]

Hallam Walker Davis Award: Justin Gwaltney

Johanning Scholarship: Caitlyn Crane

• “Each year, we present this scholarship in honor of Jerome Johanning, who was a graduate teaching assistant in our department from 1983-1985. To reflect Jerome’s love of teaching and writing, the scholarship is awarded to an outstanding graduate teaching assistant in English, and we want to thank Gloria and Mariya for their continued support. There’s a bit of a theme from this GTA’s Teval comments and it goes something like this: ENGL 200 is a required course and I didn’t want to take it, but my teacher was pretty great and I have to admit I learned things. For example, one said that our award winner is ‘a fantastic instructor that helped me want to actually get better at writing after dreading taking this class.’ Another noted, ‘Personally, taking ENGL 200 in my last year of school was something I was not looking forward to; however, I feel like I actually learned useful writing tips, and I’m glad she was the one teaching the course.’ Two students named her the best English teacher they ever had. That’s pretty high praise for a first year GTA. I’m delighted to give this year’s Johanning award to Caitlyn Crane.”  (Abby Knoblauch, for the selection committee)

Most Promising GTA Award: Maria Tardiff

• “The Most Promising GTA Scholarship is awarded to an incoming GTA whose application reflects an interest in and aptitude for pedagogical thinking. This year’s scholarship recipient exudes a quiet confidence in the classroom. Congratulations to Maria Tardiff.” (Abby Knoblauch, for the selection committee)

Most Promising Undergraduate Student Award: Jocelyn Brott

• “An outstanding, excellent, diligent, and insightful student—Jocelyn exhibits traits that set her apart from her peers. She has already caught the attention of faculty with her ability to close read and write well and her interest in pursuing research in English as a first-year student.” (Tom Sarmiento, for the selection committee)

Expository Writing Exemplary Teaching Award: Maranda Haile (GTA) and Sierra Knipe (term instructor)

• Maranda Haile: “Our first award winner has learned three different curricula over the last two years. She helped our first year GTAs get more comfortable in the classroom, worked in the Writing Center, and has been extremely resilient, meeting deadlines and maintaining a high level of professionalism and pedagogical excellence in the face of multiple challenges. We are happy to recognize Maranda Haile.” (Abby Knoblauch, for the selection committee)
• Sierra Knipe: “Our second award winner is an instructor who once explained to me that they like learning new things. They must, because in the last year, they not only taught an adjusted version ENGL 100, but also agreed to teach ENGL 200, which they had never taught before, and they taught it online, which they also had never done before. Then this semester, they learned the new ENGL 100 curriculum and agreed to teach that online. They also subbed for multiple GTAs and instructors across multiple curricula. Through it all, they’ve maintained very high student evaluations, with students calling her great, helpful, outstanding, and stellar. Please join me in congratulating—and thanking—Sierra Knipe.” (Abby Knoblauch, for the selection committee)

The Jonathan Holden Distinguished Poetry Prize: Eleanor Allen

Lamb Scholarship: Rylan Jackson

Lukens Scholarship: Susan Martinez

Bonnie A. Nelson Scholarship: Lily Hansen

Popkins Scholarship: Mizanul Bari, Daniel Effah, Sydney Kelso, Ruth Okon, Oluwaseun Sobola

Brewster Rogerson Scholarship: Carli Burchyett, Harrison Jones

Seaton Awards: Aidia Kite

Undergraduate Leadership & Service Award: Allison Meerian

• “An all-around excellent scholar who has been involved in several extracurricular activities, including serving as President for our chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society, this past year, Allison has worked to build community, leaving a positive impression on the Department and K-State.” (Tom Sarmiento, for the selection committee)

Undergraduate Excellence in English Award: Ryan Jackson

• “Extraordinary; brilliant, creative, and accomplished; smart and enthusiastic; curious, dedicated, and interested in learning; a wild and terrific writer; an outstanding classroom citizen; memorable—these are some many ebullient praises for Rylan from faculty that distinguish him for this award.” (Tom Sarmiento, for the selection committee)

Writing Center Excellence Award: Lee Ellwood

• “The Writing Center staff is honored to present the Writing Center Excellence Award, which recognizes overall excellence in Writing Center work, to Lee Ellwood for their remarkable work tutoring student writers and supporting their colleagues and Writing Center community. Lee has worked in the Writing Center for many semesters as an undergraduate tutor, and their role as a mentor and community builder was the highlight of all their nominations. One colleague expressed, ‘Lee is so knowledgeable about everything writing center! They are always the first person I go to with questions when I have them. Also, they are just so kind and a joy to work with.’ Another added, ‘I really appreciate the work Lee has done in making signage/flyers/etc. in the past year, and I think the effort they’ve put in should be commended.’ Nominators also noted Lee’s eagerness to participate in the Writing Center community in a multitude of other ways –making food, giving rides, organizing Center space and supplies. As one nominator expressed: Lee deserves the award this year for ‘their consistent hard work over the years and this semester!’” (Stacia Gray, for the selection committee)

Children’s Literature Graduate Essay Award: Caitlyn Crane, “Unpacking the Unicorn: A Close Reading of Peter S. Beagle’s The Last Unicorn to Define ‘Unicorn Fiction'”

• “This year’s Children’s Literature Graduate Essay Award goes to the author an essay that invites us to think about unicorns and the stories people tell about them — an essay that, in fact, offers an entire theory of ‘unicorn fiction.’ For ‘Unpacking the Unicorn: A Close Reading of Peter S. Beagle’s The Last Unicorn to Define “Unicorn Fiction,'” I’m delighted to give the Children’s Literature Graduate Essay Award to … Caitlyn Crane!” (Phil Nel, for the selection committee)

Composition & Rhetoric Research Essay Award: Griffin Fergerson

• “In this well-researched rhetorical analysis, Griffin’s ‘Wolf in the Hen House’ investigates the Colorado Conservation Alliance, a ‘new conservation’ group that has fought the reintroduction of wolves to western Colorado. Griffin reveals this group’s rhetorical strategies, which include informal fallacies and populist appeals. At stake in Griffin’s research is the definition of ‘conservation’ as well as how certain animals can become national icons or scapegoats.” (Phillip Marzluf, for the selection committee)

Cultural Studies Essay Awards: Ruth Okon

• “The winner of this year’s Cultural Studies Essay Award is Ruth Okon for a theoretically astute and engaging essay titled ‘The Aesthetics of Cringe: Embarrassment, Self-Surveillance, and the Performance of Social Norms.’ It drew on the work of Immanuel Kant and this year’s Cultural Studies Symposium speaker, Sianne Ngai, and on the analysis of contemporary popular cultural to propose ‘cringe’ as a new aesthetic category. In the paper, Okon shows how cringe is not only a deeply embodied aesthetic judgment but also a form of social surveillance that encourages conformity and self-policing.” (Greg Eiselein, for the selection committee)

Expository Writing Program Essay Award:

• Bailey Todd (first place), “Cell Phones Should be Banned in All High Schools” (written in Ruth Okon’s ENGL 200 class): “this essay argues that the negative impact of cell phones on students’ focus, learning, and even happiness outweighs parents’ desire to be able to contact their children at any time of day.” (Abby Knoblauch, for the selection committee)
• Taylor Fry (second place), “The Belief of Proper Grammar” (written in Mizanul Bari’s ENGL 100 class): “In this essay, the writer explores the limits of standard language ideology, explaining that ‘our language is one of the most powerful tools we have. We can do a lot of good, and bad, with it.’ We agree.” (Abby Knoblauch for the selection committee)

Graduate Creative Writing Award: Fiction: Watson Lee, “Hollywood, Alabama. County Road 33” (first place); Aidia Kite, “Illumination” (second place)

• “Hollywood, Alabama. County Road 33“: “This story swept me away with its gripping action, high stakes, and razor-sharp descriptions. The Northern Alabama setting is grounded and specific, and I felt like I was a fellow passenger in Lee’s run-down pickup truck. Both characters have so much to lose, making the story a wild ride.” (External judge’s comments)
• “Illumination“: “I loved the strangeness and emotional depth of this story. The author does a great job unraveling the strained relationship between Kelsey and her daughter Sam over the course of an unconventional fortune telling session. It gets weird at the end, which is a lot of fun!” (External judge’s comments)

Graduate Creative Writing Award: Non-Fiction: Mary Adeyemo, “Conversations With My Grandfather” (first place); Watson Lee, “Cigarettes” (second place)

• “Conversations With My Grandfather”: “I loved the window this essay provided me into Nigerian family life, loved especially all the actual details about the sewing machine, and the juxtaposition of tailoring and soldiering. I liked the application of Nigerian wisdom to the madness of Trump/Ice in Manhattan, KS, and perhaps what I liked best of all was the music and rhythm of the language.” (External judge’s comments)
• “Cigarettes”: “I loved [this essay] for its brashness and honesty, its lack of apology, and its in-your-face quality. I love the decision to defend the indefensible, and then to go ahead and have second thoughts.  This writer establishes so much trust by being exactly who themself. I would follow this writer a lot of places.” (External judge’s comments)

Graduate Creative Writing Award: Poetry: Miracle Okpala, “Where Did You Find Your Water” (first place); Aidia Kite, “27 – Cobalt” (second place)

• “Where Did You Find Your Water“: “In every moment, ‘Where Did You Find Your Water’ twists and turns across time and perspective. The poem manifests such tangibly hopeful emotions, but when I try to grab one, it disappears. To me, this ​is Pure Poetry Magic (PPM).”  (External judge’s comments)
• “27 – Cobalt”: “The elemental title is the perfect wheel from which to begin the poem’s expansion. The formal experimentation connected me (ironically!) to a welcomed inner connectedness beyond the page.” (External judge’s comments)

Graduate Critical Essay Award: Ciel Trojnar, “Drag, Daggers and Destruction: Queer Performance and Time in Beowulf“(first place); Aidia Kite, “Savoring the Self: Feeding Ghosts, Graphic Memoir, and the Process of Mapping the Self” (honorable mention)

•  “The committee was especially impressed by this essay’s originality, which takes on the difficult task of engaging with a canonical text. Demonstrating  a sophisticated understanding of the existing critical conversation around Beowulf, this essay subverts standard readings of the poem. ‘Drag, Daggers and Destruction’ proposes a new approach to Beowulf through an argument that is both highly theorized and thoroughly meticulous in its handling of an Old English text.” (Shirley Tung, for the selection committee)
• “The committee admired this essay’s engagement with a complex contemporary text, Feeding Ghosts. In the absence of an existing critical conversation, this essay deftly situates its argument within a broader debate around graphic memoirs and trauma studies. In addition to identifying what seems likely to be recognized as a significant contemporary work, this essay shows admirable attention to both the text and material production of Feeding Ghosts.” (Shirley Tung, for the selection committee)

Professional Writing Award: Austin Thon, “A Proposal to Restore Harley-Davidson’s Cultural Influence Through Youth Apparel” (first place, written for Phillip Marzluf’s class); Gweneth Sullivan, “The Importance of Writing Skills in Banking” (second place, written for Krista Danielson’s class).

Technical and Scientific Writing Awards: Dylan Potter, “Exploration of Solar Windows: A Review” (first place, written for Theresa Merrick’s class); Rhyan Schmidt, who wrote “Feasibility Study of the Re-Implementation of a Natatorium at Kansas State University” (second place, written for Krista Danielson’s class).

Touchstone Creative Writing Awards: Fiction: Luke Clifton (first place); Isabelle Greenmeyer (second place)

Touchstone Creative Writing Awards: Poetry: Lily Hansen (first place); Isabelle Greenmeyer (second place)

Graduate Student Service Award: Mary Adeyemo

• “This year’s winner is known for her wide-ranging contributions in service to the department: as a volunteer for department-sponsored events and outreach, ready to assist with any task, large or small; as a leader for one of our graduate student organizations; as a leader for others around campus, including K-State Libraries and the Graduate School; and as an active, consistently constructive presence throughout the department. Our thanks and congratulations to Mary Adeyemo!” (Karin Westman, for the faculty)

SAGE Graduate Faculty Award for Distinguished Teaching: Wendy Matlock

• “This year’s recipient of the SAGE Faculty Award for Distinguished Teaching is known by her students for her engaging approach to teaching that has us looking forward to class each day. As one student aptly noted, ‘her approach to the classroom was a lot of fun to experience. She handled having a decently large class very well, making sure that everyone had a chance to share their thoughts and engage with the content regardless of prior experience with the time period.The variety of discussions and activities were really interesting and well moderated in a way that felt like we were leading the discussion without it feeling aimless.’ Others note her willingness to go beyond the classroom to support students in their academic pursuits and interests, something I can attest to on many occasions personally, as well. Another student nomination noted, ‘She was an incredibly helpful resource to reach out to/work with.’ We are happy to award Dr. Wendy Matlock the SAGE Faculty Award for Distinguished for her engaging, collaborative, insightful and consistently supportive instruction!” (Ciel Trojnar, for the selection committee)

SAGE Graduate Faculty Award for Distinguished Service: Anne Longmuir

• “This year’s recipient of the SAGE Graduate Faculty Award for Distinguished Service is known for her willingness to support grad students in all endeavors including struggles or questions about teaching, academics, or our personal lives. One nominator noted, ‘She was the first professor that volunteered to help provide groceries for international students whose social security numbers were not issued on time, consistently offering moral support during those trying times.’ Others have noted her faith in our ability to get tasks done and how she is one of the first to offer grace in the moments we are struggling. She’s both willing to offer suggestions or just listen depending on what’s going on and her advice has been helpful in my own success during my time here. On top of her support for individual students, she’s also constantly attending department events and engaging with the department as a whole, helping to foster community within ECS. Congratulations to this year’s recipient of the SAGE Distinguished Graduate Faculty Award for Service, Dr. Anne Longmuir!” (Cariana Kut, for the selection committee)

Excellence Award for Term Instructor: [TBA]

English Dept Award: Excellence in Advising: [TBA]

English Dept Award: Excellence in Teaching: [TBA]

Donnelly Faculty Award: [TBA]

Our thanks to the faculty who assisted with selecting our awards, to our main office staff who helped assemble the certificates, and to the faculty and graduate students who contributed recognition for the award winners — and to all of the students and their families and friends who can celebrate their success!

— Karin Westman, Department Head