Department Majors honored at the HCLAS Academic Excellence Awards, October 15, 2019
On Tuesday 10/15/19, Professor Kari Jensen and Department Chair, Grant Saff attended the first HCLAS Academic Excellence Awards Celebration. This honored students who have excelled in each of the programs in HCLAS. Our two nominees were Ryan Leighton for Global Studies and Emma Rossetti for Geography. Some of our double majors won the award in other departments, and I want to congratulate them on behalf of the all of us, Sarah Dowd for Anthropology (also a Geography and GS major), and Angela Rienzo for Geology (also a BS GIS major). Very well done to all, it was really wonderful listening as all of your amazing achievements were read out to us (see the citations below). We are really proud to have you in our Department!
Ryan Leighton – Global Studies
Even at this early stage of his career, Ryan Leighton strives for excellence in service to the public, a trajectory that will change world in meaningful ways. Here at Hofstra he will soon complete a full triple major of Global Studies, Political Science, and Public Policy as well as a minor in Geographic Information Systems. The outstanding quality of his work is clear in both the standards that he maintains for himself in class and the projects he has created. For example, in cartography he created a poster map of disparities in individuals’ voting power across U.S. congressional districts, a project that he is currently in the process of developing into his honors thesis. His scholarly work has also already led him to research fairs, fellowships, and memberships in Gamma Theta Upsilon and Pi Sigma Alpha. Beyond campus, he has worked for a New York State Senator and at Gotham Government Relations on issues important to residents of Hempstead and all of New York State. He was also a part of the Presidential Fellows Class of 2018-2019 at the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress where his research paper, titled, "Mid-Century Opportunity: An Analysis of The Kennedy and Johnson Presidential Administrations" was published as part of the 2018-19 Fellows Review.
Emma Rossetti - Geography
Emma is an Honors College student excelling in all her three majors: Geography, Global Studies, and Public Policy and Public Service. She is a member of the international geographical honor society Gamma Theta Upsilon, and last year she was chosen to be part of a team representing Hofstra University at the Yale International Policy Competition. Before spending the spring semester of 2019 at Singapore Management University she was an active board member of Get Global where she gave presentations and helped organize Diversity Dinners open for the whole Hofstra community. At the Undergraduate Student Research Day last fall Emma presented her own map that analyzed changes in population density surrounding Special Economic Zones in the Ho Chi Minh City metropolitan area. Early in her Hofstra career, Emma received a full scholarship for the Washington Center’s January seminar: “Media, Politics, and Advocacy”, and this is her third semester as a Hofstra Public Policy Student Fellow. She has also interned with the US Commission for Refugees and Immigrants in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Sarah Dowd - Nominated by Anthropology. Also a Geography and Global Studies Major
Sarah Dowd is a senior Anthropology Major, and is completing majors in Geography and Global Studies and a minor in Sociology. The anthropology faculty consider her a top-notch student, a good department citizen, and promising young scholar. In addition to her coursework, Sara has an internship this semester with Nassau County Girls Scouts. She is a fellow at the Center for Civic Engagement and a peer teacher. Sara is also active on campus. She organized events, such as the education programs “Know Your Rights” and “The Deindustrialization of American Cities.” This semester, Sara is working on two senior theses. One focuses on community organizing in the Rust Belt; the other on gender exploration and performance in queer spaces, such as LGBTQ youth groups, on Long Island. After graduation and taking a year off to travel, Sara plans to attend graduate school. She is interested in pursuing a degree in Urban Planning with a concentration in Community, Economic, and Housing development.
Angela Rienzo – nominated by Geology. Also a BS GIS major
Angela is an honors college student and active member of the Department of Geology, Environment and Sustainability. In addition to her excellent work in the classroom, she has participated in several research projects, including field work studying volcanoes in Greece, and surveying individuals on campus and in the local community using virtual reality simulations of hazardous weather phenomena. Angela has presented the latter work at multiple conferences, including, when she was just a sophomore, an oral presentation at the American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting. Moreover, Angela shares her deep knowledge of the discipline with other students by serving as a tutor for Geology 1, Planet Earth. Angela plans to continue her education in Geology, specifically Geophysics, and will be applying to graduate schools in the coming months.
Professor Grant Saff, Ryan Leighton, Angela Rienzo, Sarah Dowd, Emma Rossetti and Professor Kari Jensen.