{"id":1296,"date":"2023-01-25T14:18:36","date_gmt":"2023-01-25T22:18:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/english.wsu.edu\/newsletter\/?page_id=1296"},"modified":"2025-06-30T09:49:08","modified_gmt":"2025-06-30T16:49:08","slug":"2021-2022-scholarships-awards","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/english.wsu.edu\/newsletter\/2021-2022-scholarships-awards\/","title":{"rendered":"2021-2022 Awards & Scholarships"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\r\n\t\t2021-2022 Awards and Scholarships\t<\/h1>\r\n\t\t<\/header>\r\n\n\n
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College of Arts and Sciences<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Humanities Master\u2019s Student Achievement Award:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Matthew Kollmer<\/h4>\n\n\n
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Matthew Kollmer<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Fueled by his digital expertise and intellectual curiosity, Matthew Kollmer has made immeasurable contributions to the humanities at WSU and in elevating students\u2019 understanding of the field. With years of knowledge of historical literature under his belt, Kollmer enriches his students\u2019 perspectives on various historical subjects (i.e., the impacts and consequences of America\u2019s colonial, racial, geographic, and ecological decisions on society in the 19th century) by engaging them in discussions of historical literature pertaining to a given subject of debate. Kollmer\u2019s work as an editorial team member on a major faculty-led project concerning the work of Edith Wharton has been bolstered by his scholarly analyzing skills and experience in the field of rare books, digital technology, literary production, and descriptive bibliography. His easygoing nature and humor-infused teaching style grab students’ attention and invite them to find creative ways to enrich their understanding of historical literature.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Humanities Doctoral Student Achievement Award:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Lindsey Carman Williams<\/em><\/h4>\n\n\n
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Lindsey Carman Williams<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

As a driven and creative scholar and a compassionate teacher, Lindsay Williams possesses the tenacity, determination, and potential to become an exemplary college professor. Her dissertation examined conflicts between authority, science, and female supernatural characters often found in Victorian-era American and British ghost stories. Williams\u2019s analysis of this topic has already contributed to studies of technology, science, gender, and feminist critical disabilities. Additionally, her classrooms are vibrant and inclusive intellectual places for students to achieve their own success. A Publicly Engaged Fellow at WSU, Williams began a virtual summer book club, wherein high school English teachers hailing from rural areas could pair reading classic gothic novels with young adult books of the modern era. Her service to the WSU community spans a wide range of activities, from being co-chair of the University\u2019s Feminist\/Queer Dialogue Series to organizing workshops and colloquia designed to encourage and promote interaction between students and faculty, and leading the English Graduate Organization. Needless to say, Williams is a champion of social justice and an extraordinary example of a person who faithfully represents the college and University with courage and dignity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students’ Award for Teaching Excellence: <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Carol Siegel, Professor of English and Women\u2019s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies<\/h4>\n\n\n
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Carol Siegel<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

The Students\u2019 Award for Teaching Excellence recognizes a faculty member who commits time outside of the classroom to prevent students from falling through the cracks, demonstrates an enthusiasm for the subject matter, and instills enthusiasm and passion in students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Carol Siegel thinks a lot about teaching. In terms that are anything but ordinary, she describes her teaching philosophy on her faculty research page this way: \u201cGood writing is like good coffee or chocolate: rich, thick, with a deep lingering flavor to it.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She continues: “Assignments should allow for accretion of knowledge, as one idea builds on prior ideas so that students\u2019 work can enter into the conversations on the topic that have already taken place among writers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Siegel deeply respects her students, their role in the evolution of culture, and their growing minds. In turn, they respect her, calling her, for example, \u201cmy favorite English professor at any school\u201d and \u201cone of the best women\u2019s studies professors I\u2019ve ever had.\u201d One student\u2019s comment says it all: Explaining how interesting her class with Siegel was, the student concluded, \u201cI was so sad when the semester ended.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The road to college teaching was long and winding for Siegel. \u201cI was a returning first-generation college student who began as a landscape gardening construction major,\u201d she said. \u201cI then switched majors to humanities because my professors in that field were enthused about my work.\u201d They urged her to continue her schooling. \u201cI decided to get a secondary teaching credential, but when I was finishing that program, they urged me to go on for the PhD.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Siegel received her associate\u2019s degree in humanities from San Francisco City College, bachelor\u2019s and master\u2019s degrees in English from San Francisco State University, and a PhD in English from the University of California Berkeley. She joined WSU Vancouver as one of two professors hired to create a humanities program on the Vancouver campus in 1990. She teaches a variety of courses in English and humanities and is also on the faculty of the new Women\u2019s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2021, Siegel received the systemwide Distinguished Faculty Award from WSU\u2019s College of Arts and Sciences. The award notes, \u201cHer scholarly work on the representation of sexuality and gender identity contributes an important perspective to critical conversations about literature, film and popular culture,\u201d and cites her expertise and publications in Victorian and modernist literature, Asian-American literature, youth cultures, cinema studies, and Jewish studies. Siegel is the author of six monographs, including Goth\u2019s Dark Empire<\/em> (2005) and Sex Radical Cinema<\/em> (2015), as well as journal articles, reviews, and book chapters. She also has edited several essay collections.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Siegel\u2019s wry voice and lack of humility are especially endearing to students. Introducing herself on her WSU faculty web page, she writes: \u201cI continue amusing myself and, I hope, others by teaching a variety of college classes. In all seriousness, as I can frequently be heard shouting in the halls, working with students is often the only thing that I truly enjoy about being a professor. But then again, sometimes I enjoy it all.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Her students return the compliment. \u201cShe is consistently responsive in her communications, flexible in how she assesses a student’s fulfillment of the course requirements, and she loves to engage in conversation about things that make students think both inside and outside class material,\u201d one student nominator wrote. \u201cThese points speak to the abundant care and compassion she has for all who take her classes.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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English Department Award Recipients<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While some award amounts are disclosed, others are not due to funding availability<\/i>
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Avon J. Murphy Scholarship:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The Avon J. Murphy Scholarship is merit-based, and the selection criteria, in descending order of importance, include: (1) demonstrated promise for future academic achievement; (2) academic merit; (3) demonstrated academic leadership; (4) demonstrated creativity; and (5) demonstrated contributions to campus life and environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n