2018 Student Awards, Honors and Scholarships
Minority Fellowship Program
Two master’s students and two doctoral students have been selected this year to participate in the Minority Fellowship Program through AAMFT. The Minority Fellowship Program is designed to provide financial support and professional guidance to graduate students pursuing degrees in Couple and Family Therapy. The program also strives to provide a fellowship program open to Marriage (Couple) and Family Therapy students who are committed to research and serve ethnic minority and underserved populations. The goals of the program look to expand the delivery of culturally competent mental health and substance abuse services to underserved minority populations and to increase the number of culturally competent Marriage and Family therapists. Forty-two Master’s students and twenty-five PhD students were selected nationwide for this award.
The Master’s Fellows selected from K-State are:
- Scott May; Research interests: Emerging adults; Technology use and its impact on relationships; Relationship and sexual satisfaction within couples.
- Jackie Harden; Research interests: Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in queer and Trans populations, Internal Family Systems therapy as a model for working with queer and Trans people, Working with LGBT+ people experiencing disordered eating.
The Doctoral Fellows selected from K-State are:
- Heather Love; Research interests: suicide prevention in a myriad of populations, particularly those affected by trauma, military service members and their families, LGBTQ individuals, and individuals and families affected by cultural and identity issues.
- Michelle Busk; Research interest: trauma recovery, sexual shame, gender roles, and addressing organizational sexism resulting from male dominated patriarchal systems, and difficulties couples encounter when simultaneously encountering gendered power imbalances and chronic illness.
JMFT Outstanding Apprentice Reviewer
Chelsea Spencer was recognized as a 2018 Outstanding Apprentice Reviewer from the Journal of Marital and Family Therapy. Chelsea is one of three students to receive this award each year.
Timothy R. Donoghue Graduate Scholarship
Two master’s students, Christina Wilson and Nate Astle, and six doctoral students, Katelyn Coburn, Lorin Kelly, Rich Dell’lsola, Bornell Nicholson, Michelle Washburn-Busk, and Preston Morgan, received a 2018 Timothy R. Donoghue Graduate Scholarship. This scholarship program was initiated by Timothy Donoghue, former Graduate School dean, as a way to recruit top candidates throughout the United States to K-State graduate programs by offering graduate assistantship packages that are highly competitive. Donoghue Scholarships enhance the maximum package a graduate program can offer to top candidates, making the total package a partnership between the graduate program and the Graduate School.
Haruv Student Research Award (IFVCVRC Conference Scholarship)
Fatima Nikparvar was one of two recipients for the 2018 Haruv Student Research Award. The Haruv Institute provided two scholarships in memory of conference founder and original chair Gerry Hotaling. The graduate students were chosen on the basis of the abstract submitted for their paper presentation at the conference. The purpose of the research award was to give student recipients the opportunity to present their work at the July 2018 conference in Portsmouth, N.H.The scholarships covered travel expenses, hotel stays of three days and conference registration.
Award for Outstanding Academics
Lauren Ruhlmann received the K-State graduate student Award for Outstanding Academics.
Ruhlmann’s research focuses on the development of protocol for treating the complex trauma and substance abuse issues facing victims of human trafficking resulting in the establishment of RESTORE, a community-based research and education program dedicated to promoting resilience and empowerment for victims. She taught advanced undergraduate courses, presented at national conferences and submitted 10 research publications. She also served as Lab Coordinator for the Trauma Research Education and Consultation lab at K-State.
Golden Key Outstanding GRA of the year award
Lauren Ruhlman received the 2018 Golden Key Outstanding GRA of the year award. Recipients are nominated by faculty to be recognized for their outstanding leadership and diligence at the Golden Key International Honour Society’s GRA and GTA Awards Ceremony and Reception.
Issues in Aging Award
Hunter Stanfield received the Issues in Aging award for his NCFR proposal,
“Variations in grandfathering: Characteristics of involved, passive, and disengaged grandfathers”
Alumni Awards
College of Human Ecology Rising Professional Award
CJ Aducci and Kale Monk received the 2019 College of Human Ecology Rising Professional Award in March. The Rising Professional Award is given to honor significant contributions made by a graduate in the early stages of his or her career. Recipients have demonstrated significant professional accomplishments through publications, professional organizations or programs and have made efforts to improve the health and well-being of the community.
Read more at: https://www.hhs.k-state.edu/faces/
Kansas State University 2019 Distinguished Young Alumni Awards
Kale Monk received one of two Kansas State University 2019 Distinguished Young Alumni Awards. Monk, a native of Bennington, Kansas, assistant professor, state Extension specialist, and Center for Policy and Family Research Fellow at the University of Missouri. He graduated from K-State in 2010 with dual bachelor’s degrees in psychology and family studies and human services and in 2013 with a master’s degree in family studies and human services. While at K-State, Monk was a member of Mortar Board Honor Society, HandsOn K-State, K-State Cru and the Staley School of Leadership Studies. As a professor, Monk’s work focuses on establishing and maintaining healthy relationships. As a primary social context in which people develop, relationships are a vital part of life. To date, he has published over 21 scholarly manuscripts in outstanding peer-reviewed journals. His research has also been featured in prominent national and international media outlets, including The New York Post, USA Today, TIME, Science Daily, Men’s Health, Huffington Post and The Wall Street Journal. As a state specialist for University of Missouri Extension, Monk oversees initiatives providing educational opportunities and programs to those who would otherwise not have access throughout the state.
NCFR 2018 Wesley Burr Graduate Student Scholarship Award Advancing Family Science Section
Jessica Cless (2018 graduate) received this award for her presentation of “Experiential Learning Theory as a Resource for Shifting Student Bias”. This award is intended to encourage and recognize the scholarly activity of students who are members of NCFR and the Advancing Family Science Section. The competition is open to students who serve as first authors of a poster or paper accepted for presentation at the annual conference by the Advancing Family Science Section.
Best Student/New Professional Award
Denzel Jones (2018 graduate) was awarded the Best Student/New Professional Award from NCFR’s Ethnic Minorities section for his proposal based on his Dissertation research, The impact of ethnic-racial socialization messages on Black emerging adults’ ethnic-racial identity.
