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Honors and Awards

At the end of the academic year, outstanding anthropology majors are selected for awards in various categories.

  • The Irwin Press Paper Award in Medical Anthropology: Given to students who have produced a quality paper outlining research in medical anthropology. 
  • The Father Patrick Gaffney Integrative Anthropology Paper Award: Given to a student who has written a paper that crosses traditional boundaries and draws from a range of different areas of scholarship in an effort to develop a fuller, even if sometimes messier, understanding of being and becoming human. 
  • James McKenna and Joanne Mack Promising Anthropology Major Award: Awarded to a first and second year student with outstanding early performance in the major.
  • The Julian Samora Award: Awarded to the student who has demonstrated broad engagement with academic life.
  • The Carolyn Nordstrom Professional Achievement Award: Awarded to the student with outstanding performance in academic publication, presentation at professional meetings, grants, and fellowships.
  • Lambda Alpha Honors Society: Lambda Alpha is the national honors society for anthropologists. Notre Dame became the Beta Chapter of Indiana in 1981. Its purposes are to promote interest in the study of anthropology, to recognize outstanding student performance, and to encourage scholarship and research in anthropology.  Membership and Fees

2024 Honors and Award Winners

  • The Irwin Press Paper Award in Medical Anthropology: Amber Jun for her paper  “Uncovering the Significance of Nonverbal Communication in the Light of Technological Advancements for Delivering Care with Compassion.”
  • The Father Patrick Gaffney Integrative Anthropology Paper Award: 

    Molly McNamara for her paper “Yours Are His Hands and Feet on Earth”: The Ritualization of Spirituality Amongst Religious Healthcare Practitioners.”

  • James McKenna and Joanne Mack Promising Anthropology Major Award:
    Katharine Steffes
  • The Julian Samora Award: Mackenzie Pitman
  • The Carolyn Nordstrom Professional Achievement Award: Sophie Chorek
  • Anthropology Honor Society of Lambda Alpha, Beta Chapter of Indiana: 

    Emily Barrett, Sophie Buonavolonta, Charlotte Cardarella, Kaitlyn Donton, Greta Hillesheim, Sean Kelley, Shannon Kelly, Madeline Kohl, Madeline, Kiera Mermejo-Varga, Claire Novak, Kathe Pribyl Pierdinock, Paul Quimby, Mehwish Rehman, Alexa Schlaerth, and Elanor Sullivan

Past award winners