SIS Recognizes 2025 Student, Faculty, and Alumni Award Winners - College of Communication and Information

The School of Information Sciences recently held its Spring 2025 Awards Reception, honoring the outstanding achievements of students and alumni in both the bachelor’s and master’s programs, along with its faculty. Surrounded by family, friends, faculty, and staff, recipients were celebrated for their academic excellence, service, innovation, and impactful contributions to the SIS community. The event served as a meaningful way to recognize their hard work and dedication, and to send graduating students off with well-earned recognition.

“The awards reception is a new event replacing our formal graduate hooding and awards ceremony. It was a huge success thanks to the excellent SIS staff who organized the reception and the award winners and their families, who made it an engaging and memorable one. It was an honor celebrating the high level of achievements of an exceptional group of SIS students, faculty, and alumni who distinguished themselves through their excellent research, service, academic achievement, and innovation,” SIS Director Abebe Rorissa explained.

Award Recipients:

Student Awards – MSIS

Gary R. Purcell Award (which honors the memory of Professor Gary Purcell, the school’s founding director) – Joseph Edgerton
CCI Outstanding Information Sciences Graduate Award – Anna Currey
Academic Achievement Award – Addison (Addie) Patrick (Distance Education) and Nina Richard (On-Campus)
Outstanding Service Award – Anna Henderson (Distance Education) and Laura Harmon (On-Campus)
Best Paper Award – Loren Moulds
Best Project Award – Joseph Edgerton, Cherie House, Davy Marsicano, and Micah J. Rhodes

Joseph Edgerton, right, accepts the Gary R. Purcell Award from SIS Director Abebe Rorissa.

Anna Currey, right, accepts the CCI Outstanding Information Sciences Graduate Award from SIS Director Abebe Rorissa.

Nina Richard, right, accepts the Academic Achievement Award (On-Campus) from SIS Director Abebe Rorissa.

Laura Harmon, right, accepts the Outstanding Service Award (On-Campus) from SIS Director Abebe Rorissa.

Student Awards – BSIS

Academic Achievement Award – Kaitlyn Suzanne McGlothin (On-Campus)

Kaitlyn Suzanne McGlothin, on the right, accepts the Academic Achievement Award from SIS Director Abebe Rorissa.

Alumni Awards

Innovator’s Award – Kelsey Badger
Distinguished Alumni Award – Wendy Cornelisen

Faculty Awards

Bonnie Carroll and Roy Cooper Faculty Enrichment Award – Tenured (made possible by a generous gift from Bonnie Carroll and her husband, Roy Cooper) – Associate Professor Rachel Fleming-May
Bonnie Carroll and Roy Cooper Faculty Enrichment Award – Pre-Tenure (made possible by a generous gift from Bonnie Carroll and her husband, Roy Cooper) – Assistant Professor Ben Horne

Associate Professor Rachel Fleming-May, on the right, accepts the Bonnie Carroll and Roy Cooper Faculty Enrichment Award (Tenured) from SIS Director Abebe Rorissa.

Assistant Professor Ben Horne, on the right, accepts the Bonnie Carroll and Roy Cooper Faculty Enrichment Award (Pre-Tenure) from SIS Director Abebe Rorissa.