Announcing the Winners of the Inaugural DSAS Award for Excellence in Graduate Mentoring

February 27, 2020

Dean Hoock has announced the 2020 winners of the Award for Excellence in Graduate Mentoring:

Dr. Khirsten L. Scott, Assistant Professor of English, and

Dr. Jennifer Josten, Associate Professor of History of Art and Architecture

The award committee appreciated and celebrated the outstanding contributions to the culture of diverse and inclusive excellence in graduate mentoring exemplified by all nominees for this year’s awards. Graduate student nominators shared testimonies of the thoughtful and effective ways in which their mentors

  • tailor their mentoring styles to the experiences, needs, and aspirations of individual students
  • create a supportive environment for research by fostering mutual respect and integrity, maintaining open lines of communication, and holistically supporting their students’ success and broader well-being;
  • promote an inclusive and diverse environment and actively support the success of students who are underrepresented in their disciplines
  • advance their students’ professional development, including by assisting with developing professional goals, connecting them with opportunities and resources, integrating them into the broader culture of the discipline, and helping them develop their professional networks within and beyond academia;

On behalf also of an award committee that represented all DSAS divisions, Dean Hoock thanked all the nominating teams of students, faculty colleagues, and chairs of department, saying: "We saw wonderful examples of how innovative mentors impact students well beyond their own advisees – across their departments and indeed at the national, disciplinary level. We appreciated graduate faculty continuously investing in their own professional development as mentors. And we wish to highlight an emphasis on mentoring the next generation of mentors – as graduate faculty collaborate with their graduate students in mentoring undergraduate research experiences, engaging local communities, and promoting the success of our bridge students."