Class of 1879 Prize
The Class of 1879 Prize is awarded by the Humanities and Arts Department each year to three students for excellent work in the culminating project for the Humanities and Arts Requirement. These projects must demonstrate exceptional creativity and skill in conceiving, developing and expressing a theme within any discipline in the humanities and arts.
WPI has recognized exemplary work in the humanities and arts since 1872, when the Department of English and Modern languages established an award for the best paper in composition classes. At their reunion in 1900, the Class of 1879 endowed this prize for a paper "on a topic of general interest." The Class of 1879 Prize was then awarded annually to the best term paper in the Departments of English, History, and Languages until the adoption of the WPI Plan in 1970. In 1983, the Department of Humanities began to award the Class of 1879 Prize to the three best Humanities Sufficiency Projects. In addition to the three projects that receive the Class of 1879 Prize, the Humanities and Arts Department prize committee may award a number of Honorable Mentions citations each year.
Details for each year's competition are announced in November/December, with the names of the prize committee, and a deadline for submission in January. Each year's competition recognizes the best individual projects completed in the Humanities and Arts Inquiry Seminar, Practicum, or Sufficiency Project completed during the previous calendar year. Individual students must submit a copy of their own project for consideration in the competition. The winners and honorable mention recipients are announced at an award ceremony held each April. The winners receive a cash prize, a certificate, and the names and titles of the winning projects are listed in the Commencement program.
The deadline for the 2010 Class of 1879 Prize, for projects completed during calendar year 2009, will take place in January 2010. Congratulationis to this year's winners which were announced at an Award Ceremony.
Award Winners
2009 (for projects completed in 2008):
Winners:
- Andrew Marchese '10, "Origins of Emergent Order: The Inadequacy of Reductionism and the Complexity of Light Phenomena," advisor: David Spanagel
- Richard Pampuro '09, "Right within Anarchism," advisor: John Sanbonmatsu
- Maggie Allard '10, "The Butterfly (animated short)," advisor: Joshua Rosenstock
Honorable Mention:
- Rui Dai '10, "Red and the Rest (a memoir)," advisor: Lorraine Higgins
- Kirk Lanciani '10, "Soaring on the Ground: The Flight Simulator," advisor: E. Malcom Parkinson
- Ryan Whetstone '10, "Jazz Saxophone Performance; From Swing to Fusion," advisor: Richad Falco
2008 (for projects completed in 2007):
- Rebecca C. Baron '09, "A Change in Expectations: Staging of Dueling in Shakespeare's Romeo & Juliet and Hamlet," advisor Michelle Ephraim
- Craig D. DiGiovanni '09, "The Planning and Implementation of Denazification in Post War Germany," advisor David Dollenmayer
- Lucas Samuel Lincoln '09, "An Analysis of Pat Metheny as a Jazz Composer," advisor Richard Falco
2007 (for projects completed in 2006):
- Benjamin W. Dwyer '08, "Spirits of the Dead: a Musical Composition," advisor: Richard Falco
- Amanda J. Tarbet '07, "Multimodal Tensions in the Graphic Novel," advisor: Ruth Smith
- Eric G. Wilusz '08, "Competing Visions for Technical Education: the Founding of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Worcester Polytechnic Institute," advisor: David Spanagel
2006 (for projects completed in 2005):
- Charles A. Gammal III '08, "John Boynton: Farmer to Founder," advisor: David Rawson
- Karim G. Makram '06, "Breaking Out," advisor: Lorraine Higgins
- Hilal Tetik '08, "Robert Fludd's 'De Musica Mundana' and the Ideals of the Rasicrucian Brotherhood," advisor: Lee Fontanella
2005 (for projects submitted in 2004):
- Laura E. Baldassari '06, "Flute Music of the Classical Period," advisor: Douglas G. Weeks
- Patrick A. Hogan '06, "Dying by Inches: Imperialism and Asian Famines," advisor: Peter H. Hansen
- Steven J. Tufo '05, "Considering the Absurd, Judgment, and Love: Albert Camus' Revolt Against Death," advisor: John Sanbonmatsu
2004 (for projects submitted in 2003):
- Griffin R. Bryant '05, Torment: a Story," advisor: Michelle K. Ephraim
- Ryan Patrick Jones '05, "Ministry: a Screenplay," advisor: Dean O'Donnell
- Gregory I. Ratner '06, "The Outcomes of the 'Record War': History of the Record Industry, 1930-1955," advisor: Michael M. Sokal
2003 (for projects submitted in 2002):
- Kimberly Johnstone '04, "The United States Supreme Court: The 2000 Presidential Election," advisor: JoAnn Manfra
- Amanda A. Roberts '04, "Sequencing within the Short Story Collection: An Experiment in Design and Practice," advisor: John Trimbur
- Benjamin K. Sandofsky '04, "The Shawl: The Study and Application of David Mamet's Filmmaking Theories," advisor: Dean O'Donnell
2002 (for projects submitted in 2001):
- Brendan Morris, '04, "Rastro: The Essence of Madrid," advisor: Lee Fontanella
- Jennifer Persico, '03, "The Jump From Resentment to Revolution," advisor: Deborah Gray
- Lauren Wojtkun, '02, "Like the World of Dreams Itself': An Analysis of William Shakespeare's Use of the Green World in A Midsummer Night's Dream and As You Like It," advisor: Michelle Ephraim
2001 (for projects submitted in 2000):
- Florentin Groeli, '03, "British Jazz, or Jazz in Britain?," advisor: Douglas G. Weeks
- Janaki Kirloskar, '03, "A Glimpse of Reality in the Hindu Temple," advisor: Ruth Smith
- Emily Reynolds, '01, "Becoming a Woman: A Look at the Influences of Patriarchy, Materialism and Relationships in The Great Gatsby and The Color Purple," advisor: Lisa Lebduska
2000 (for projects submitted in 1999):
- Amelia A. Gilbreath '01, "Flute Recital," advisor: Douglas G. Weeks
- Richard E. Harang '00, "Mind and Materialism," advisor: Marianne Janack
- Corbin T. Hodder '01, "Toothpaste and Orange Juice: a Play," advisor: Dean O'Donnell
1999 (for projects submitted in 1998):
- Quach B. Hai '98, "Self-Sponsoring Writing at WPI," advisor: John M. Trimbur
- Siu L. Ng '99, "Interwar Progress in Aerial Photographic Mapping," advisor: E. Malcolm Parkinson
- Ian E. Parmenter '00 "A Work in Progress: a Screenplay," advisor: Dean M. O'Donnell
1998 (for projects submitted in 1997):
- Jeffrey L. Bayko, '99, "The Road to Jensenism (1923-1969)," advisor: Michael M. Sokal
- Janet L. Brennan, '00, "A Consideration of Consciousness Explained," advisor: Roger S. Gottlieb
- Daniel Murphy, '98, "The American Dream: Has it Become Unreachable," advisor: William A. Baller
1997 (for projects submitted in 1996):
- Greg Amiro, '97, "The Rock n' Roll Renaissance," advisor: Douglas G. Weeks
- Andrea Kodys, '98, "Promises, Policies and Goals: The U.S. Occupation of Haiti, 1915-1934," advisor: James Watters
- Mickey Lacroix, '97, "A Critique of Husserlian Phenomenology," advisor: Bettina Bergo
1996 (for projects submitted in 1995):
- John D. Kedziora, '96, "The Failure of Command," advisor: James E. Watters
- Patricia L. Panlillo, '96, "Toni Morrison's Women: Strengths and Variations," advisor: Laura J. Menides
- Nancy L. Round, '97, "The Origins of Violent Behavior: A Look at Behavior Genetics, Modern Biology, Serotonin, and the Ethics Involving Criminals," advisor: Thomas A. Shannon
1995 (for projects submitted in 1994):
- Karl F. Dicker, '96, "A Comprehensive History of Black Baseball," advisor: Deborah Gray
- Shaun P. Heaney, '96, The Construction of New Union Station: A Product of Worcester's Grade Crossing Problem," advisor: James P. Watters
- Scott J. Higgins, '96, "Who Am I? The Problem of Identity," advisor: Bettina Bergo
1994 (for projects submitted in 1993):
- Ahmed S. Al-Baiti, '95, "Decorative Art of Door Carving on Zanzibar and Pemba Islands," advisor: David Samson
- Christopher G. McKeever, '95, "From an Alphabet to Strange and Interesting Designs: an Analysis" of Musical Notation," advisor: Douglas G. Weeks
- Henry R. McTague, '94, "Do Animals Have Rights?," advisor: Bettina Bergo
1993 (for projects submitted in 1992):
- Chad L. Council, '94, "From Love Comes the Pieces of a Broken Heart - A Play," advisor: Susan Vick
- Lily Lau, '94, "The Monster in the Closet of Our Souls: The Gothic and Wuthering Heights," advisor: Joel Brattin
- Kevin M. Parker, '94, "The Society of Friends - Antislavery Pioneers," advisor: Steven C. Bullock
1992 (for projects submitted in 1991):
- Eric R. Bell, '92, "Reagan Administration Foreign Policy Toward Dictatorships: A Comparative Study"
- Matthew R. Bontell, '93, "The Flood: A Suite for Brass Quartet"
- Stephen T. Kapushoc, '94, "The Knowledge and Vision of Loren Eiseley"
1991 (for projects submitted in 1990):
- Athena Demetry, '91, "The Individual in Israeli and Palestinian Literature"
- Bernard L. Dion, '92, "The Risk of Slavery: Warning Through Structure in 'Benito Cereno'"
- John A. MacNeill, '92, "Tellurian Suite for Synthesizers, Clarinet and Flute"
- Joseph M. Sabatini, '92, "The Machine Gun as a Reflection of America Industry"
1990 (for projects submitted in 1989):
- Jeffrey L. Quirke, '90, "Tragedy and the Gothic," advisor: Kent P. Ljungquist
- Sharon A. Savage, '91, "How the Organic and Mechanistic Conceptions of Life Apply to the Body and to Medicine," advisor: Iris Young
- Paul F. Wojiak, '91, "Obstinacy and Naïveté: The Organized Labor Movement in Worcester, Massachusetts, During the 1930's," advisor: Robert L. Kolesar
1989 (for projects submitted in 1988):
- Christopher J. Buntil, '90, "Give and Take: Anencephalic Babies as Organ Donors," advisor: Thomas A. Shannon
- Marc J. Champagne, '89, "American Gas Mask Research During World War I," advisor: W.A. Bland Addison
- Jeanette M. Cheetham, '89, "The Mask: a Window to Understand the Eskimos," advisor: Ruth Smith
1988 (for projects submitted in 1987):
- Shawn D. Harrison, '89, "Niépce, Daguerre and Talbot: the Motives Behind the Men," advisor: E. Malcolm Parkinson
- Edward C. Hein, '88, "A Psychological Assessment of Lee Iacocca," advisor: Patrick P. Dunn
- Richard D. June, '89, "William Carlos Williams' Paterson: the Voice of a Nation," advisor: Laura J. Menides
1987 (for projects submitted in 1986):
- Chrysanthe Demetry, '88, "Healing and Growing: American Civil War Fiction," advisor: John Zeugner
- Robert Provost, '88, "African Percussion," advisors: David McKay and Richard Falco
- Nancy Teasdale, '88, "I Don't Have to Cry for the Rest of My Life," advisor: Susan Vick
1986 (for projects submitted in 1985):
- Jeanne M. Benjamin, '86, "Pet-Facilitated Therapy for the Elderly"
- Charles Champagne, '87, "Konrad Adenauer Erster Kanzler der Bundesrepublik," and "Ahnlichkeiten zwichen der Franzozischen Revolution und der Deutschen Revolution von 1848"
- Rita Patel, '88, "The Light Burning in the Heart: A Comparative Analysis of the Concepts of the Soul in Hinduism, Plato, and Aristotle"
1985 (for projects submitted in 1984):
- Barbara Jean Gray, '86, "The Development of American Blackfaced Minstrelsy"
- Walter F. Precourt, III, '86, "Henry V: Shakespeare's Ideal King"
- Daniel Weinshenker, '84, "Facing Nuclear Threat"
1984 (for projects submitted in 1983):
- Julie Anne Beberman '84
- Martin Joseph Pierce '85
- JoAnne Shatkin '85
Last modified: September 17, 2009 10:55:49