Skip to main content

WRD Awards 2014

On April 14th, 2014 students and faculty from UK A&S WRD gathered in the Hilary J. Boone Center to recognize the award winners of the Kelly Feinberg Memorial Essay Contest; Outstanding TA and instructor; Outstanding Writing Center Peer Tutors & Award-Winning Essays and Digital Projects.

To find more about WRD click on the link below:

wrd.as.uky.edu/

Kelly Feinberg memorial Essay Contest - In May 2010, UK lost one of its most dedicated and inspiring writing instructors, Kelly Feinberg, to breast cancer. The Division of Writing, Rhetoric, and Digital Media honors her with a call to UK undergraduates for personal essays exemplifying the qualities that Kelly embodied as a writer and teacher. The subject matter of these essays matters less than the substance of the ideas therein. Writers can highlight an injustice, issue a call to action, find big meaning in small things, or reflect on a personal struggle. The voice-driven personal narratives of the “This I Believe” series (www.thisibelieve.org) and the Moth Radio Hour (themoth.org/radio) provide good examples. The essay can be something written earlier or for a class or can be something written specifically for the contest.

Outstanding TA and instructor – Each was selected based on a nominating letter and a review of their teaching portfolio (containing a philosophy of teaching statement, representative examples of assignments, and evidence of effective teaching.

Outstanding Writing Center Peer Tutors – selected based on their outstanding work with students.

Award-Winning Essays and Digital Projects – Instructors in WRD courses submit their students’ essays and digital projects. They may be individual or group essays/projects. Students may also self-nominate. The outstanding essays and projects are selected by the Director of Composition, WPA Intern, and mentors. The students are awarded a cash prize and certificate.

Kelly Feinberg Memorial Essay Contest

First-place Winner

Lizzy Southard for Greater Than the Sum of My Parts

Honorable Mention

Jean Thomas for Fallen Pillar

Honorable Mention

Roberto Rivera for Dreamer Living the Dream: An American Struggle

Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award

Amy Anderson

Outstanding Instructor Award

John Barbour

Outstanding Writing Center Peer Tutors

Marissa Elko

Chia Hong

Award-Winning Essays

First-place Winner

Jean Thomas for Fallen Pillar


Instructor – Lisa Shroot

Second-place Winner

Logan Borzotra for Social Television

Instructor – Jessica Evans

Honorable Mention

Aeesha Ranavaya for Medical Commercialization: Conflict of Place & Profession

Instructor – Dax Jennings

Honorable Mention

Tyler S. Hill for Stalingrad, Not Volgograd: A Man, A City, A Nation's Soul

Instructor – Dax Jennings

Honorable Recognition

Kelsey N. Potter for I'm Not Asian: A Heritage Odyssey

Instructor—Steve Alvarez

Honorable Recognition

Rachael LaMastus for The Pentagon: Evolution of Rhetoric Surrounding Homosexuals in the Military

Instructor—Dax Jennings

Honorable Recognition: Group Essay

Meredith A. Bickett, Maggie Bourne, Rachel LaMastus, Aeesha Ranavaya, and Austin Sprinkles for Education: The Impact of the Societal Gender Gap

Instructor—Dax Jennings

Award-Winning Digital Projects

First-place Winner: Group Project

Francis LaRosa III, Kathrine Donnowitz, Gordon South Whitt, Vincent Gouge and Holly Kramer for Cystic Fibrosis: Need for a Cure

Instructor – Mark Wood

Second-place Winner: Group Project

Anthony Haggard, Boone Proffitt, and Nicholas Thornberry for Green Amidst the Gray

Instructor – Mark Wood

Honorable Mention: Group Project

Hollie Coleman, Zachary Joseph, Anna Townsend, Justin Hill, and Grace Coy for The Faces of Music

Instructor – Mark Wood

Honorable Recognition

Ava ZhiJie Corwin for Public Service Announcement: Read A Book

Instructor – Wes DeShano