STEVENS POINT — The following students and student groups at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point have been recognized for academic excellence, according to UWSP:
Josiah Turner, Brown Deer, Wisconsin, a senior drama major, was the first student from Wisconsin to win the Undergraduate Playwriting Award from the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival. He was selected from student playwrights across the country to receive this highest honor for undergraduate playwriting. His work, “Uncle Tom’s Nephews,” also won the Lorraine Hansberry Playwriting Award. The awards included a check for $1,500, membership in the Dramatists Guild and the Playwrights’ Center of Minneapolis, an invitation to attend the National Festival at the Kennedy Center in April and a professional development residency during the summer of 2019.
The Soil Judging Team brought home the first Region III Collegiate Soil Judging Competition Championship in 30 years last fall. In April, the team took sixth place out of 26 teams at the 2019 National Collegiate Soils Contest in California. Led by faculty member Bryant Scharenbroch, the team includes 10 first-time competitors and five students with prior experience.
The Symphonic Wind Ensemble was recognized by College Band Directors National Association as one of the finest small university wind ensembles in the nation, both in 2019 and 2017. The ensemble was also selected through peer review to perform at the 2019 Wisconsin Chapter of the National Band Association conference in Eau Claire. Assistant Professor Michael Butler directs the group.
The ROTC program was ranked 32nd out of 271 nationwide for U.S. Army Cadet Command, which puts it in the top 11 percent. The program also earned second place from the 3rd Brigade Cadet Command for its cadet summer training performance and third place for administration support to cadets and cadre.
Katie Kallaus, Crystal Lake, Illinois, a musical theater student, was one of seven selected for a $500 Emerging Talent Award as part of the Kurt Weill Foundation’s 2019 Lotte Lenya Competition, which honors versatility in vocal performance and is named for composer Kurt Weill’s wife, an actress and singer. Kallaus was selected for her “storytelling abilities” in her audition, which consisted of four songs totaling 15 minutes.
Susanna Baker, Columbus, Wisconsin, a soil and waste resources-waste management major, received the Outstanding Achievement in Waste Reduction and Recycling from the Associated Recyclers of Wisconsin during the 2019 Wisconsin Integrated Resource Management Conference. She was recognized for her work with Rising Sand Organics to collect compost curbside in Stevens Point. The Waste Management Society student organization received a Certificate of Recognition for its work on projects to reduce waste at the holidays, recycle electronics, creating videos to encourage composting and talking to fellow students about recycling. Chelsea Huckbody, a double major in soil and waste resources-waste management and geography, won a scholarship at the conference on behalf of the Solid Waste Association of North America Badger Chapter.
Daniel Rider, Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, a soil and waste resources-soil science major, won the 2019 Academic Excellence Award from the Central States Water Environment Association. He received a one-year membership to the CSWEA and Water Environment Federation, a $250 cash award, attendance at the group’s annual meeting in Madison in May, lodging and money for expenses.
The Student Government Association was named SGA of the Year for the fourth year in the row by the UW System Student Representative Board. The award is given based on campus involvement, accomplishments, actions and initiatives taken throughout the year. This year, the UW-Stevens Point SGA introduced and passed three action items and five discussion items to the UW System Student Representatives.
Photos courtesy UWSP.
