Eastern Mennonite University

Isaac Spicher has been awarded Eastern Mennonite University's Outstanding First-Year Chemistry Student Award.

This award recognizes a student who has excelled in the core courses for a biology major early in their career. The primary purpose of this award is to acknowledge exceptional academic performance, which is evidenced by grades, collegiality, initiative, enthusiasm and understanding of concepts in these and other STEM courses.

Addison Shenk has been named Eastern Mennonite University's Outstanding Senior Biology Student.

This is the highest award given to a chemistry/biochemistry major at Eastern Mennonite University. It is given to an outstanding graduating senior biochemistry or chemistry major who demonstrates high academic achievement, significant research experience, and the potential to contribute to the field of (bio)chemical sciences.

Hannah Johnson (Staunton, Va./Wilson Memorial) went out in style. One of the best players in recent history for the EMU women's volleyball program, Hannah had perhaps the best match of her final season to lead her Royals to a huge upset of Randolph-Macon. That impressive win secured Hannah's first trip to the ODAC Tournament where she led the team in kills in a loss to eventual champion Washington and Lee.

The following people recently were initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines.

Elizabeth Miller earned the Ray Elvin Horst Award for Excellence in Spanish. She is recognized for her command of Spanish, her dedication to being a bridge between cultures, and for being a community-builder and servant leader.

Kayley Scottlind earned the Ervie L. Glick Award for Excellence in World Language Study for excellence in the classroom and service to the community and the Latino Student Alliance.

EMU's track athletes made a splash at this weekend's ODAC Championships in Lynchburg, breaking two meet records. Isaac Alderfer (Broadway, Va./Broadway) and Alijah Johnson (Upper Marlboro, Md./Frederick Douglass) each broke one record on Sunday, with Alderfer smashing the 1500m ODAC Championships record and Johnson taking down the record in the 200m.

Anna Cahill is awarded the Omar Eby Writing Award at Eastern Mennonite University for her diligent work in all genres and contributions this semester as co-editor of the Weather Vane. Eby, who died this year, is memorialized through this award, presented to a senior majoring or minoring in writing studies who demonstrates excellence in the craft of creative writing and who provides insightful critique and support for other writers in creative workshops.

James Dunmore earned the Jay B. Landis Award for Excellence in Literary Studies, for writing the best academic essay in the interdisciplinary humanities seminar offered annually at Eastern Mennonite University each spring. His essay was "Lines Leading Off the Page: Recontextualizing Underground Comics As Countercultural Phenonemon." Landis, who died this year, taught writing, speech, and literature including modern poetry, drama and Shakespeare over 51 years at EMU.

Megan Breidigan is the winner of the Carroll Yoder Award for Teaching Excellence, which honors an EMU senior or junior who has demonstrated academic excellence in both literary studies and education courses and has shown a clear call to the teaching profession. Professor Emeritus Carroll Yoder, who taught French, English, and writing, along with mentoring many aspiring teachers, provided his students and colleagues with a powerful example of scholarship in service to others during his thirty-four years in the Language and Literature Department.

Emily McCombs was selected by education department faculty for the annual Courage to Teach Award, modeled after principles in Parker Palmer's book of the same name. Department faculty selected Emily for her dedication and success in teaching, her genuine caring for students, reflective practice, highly principled behaviors, and her courage to navigate challenging experiences. She was presented with a copy of Palmer's book.

Lindsey Histand was awarded the Galen R. Lehman Outstanding Achievement in Research Award for her outstanding psychology research project, "A Comparison of Preference Assessment Modes & Methods." The award is given annually by the faculty of the psychology department at Eastern Mennonite University.

Five education students from Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) were chosen to attend the 2021 Teachers of Promise Institute, which was held virtually on March 20. The annual event provides professional development, mentor discussions, and networking opportunities for 100 of the best and brightest pre-service teachers in Virginia.

Maya Dula and Jakiran Richardson earned Eastern Mennonite University's Biology, Chemistry and Environmental Sustainability Department's Award for Exceptional Service, for their donation of time and effort to the biology and chemistry programs as they work to create a welcoming, equitable and fair learning environment for all students. They assisted with focus groups, data collection in the form of feedback from minority STEM majors on their experience in STEM classrooms and helped with a research study looking at retention rates among STEM majors.

Elizabeth Eby won first place in Eastern Mennonite University's Haverim Writing Contest for "Dismantling the Dualism of Good and Evil." The Haverim writing awards are given to students whose essays demonstrate robust scholarship related in one way or another to biblical studies, religion, philosophy, and/or Anabaptist/Mennonite thought and practice. Cash awards of $300, $200, and $100 for first, second and third place, respectively, come with the prize.

Ambrose Monahan won second place in Eastern Mennonite University's Haverim Writing Contest for "Do You Feel Held? Acknowledgement and Midsommar." The Haverim writing awards are given to students whose essays demonstrate robust scholarship related in one way or another to biblical studies, religion, philosophy, and/or Anabaptist/Mennonite thought and practice. Cash awards of $300, $200, and $100 for first, second and third place, respectively, come with the prize.

After helping the Runnin Royals create a name for themselves in the ODAC, senior Tim Jones (Forestville, Md./Central) has added another accolade to his credit for the 2021 season. Jones was voted to the VaSID All-State First Team, his first such honor. The point guard adds this award to a year where he also earned a spot on the All-ODAC Team and his second Royals Athlete of the Week.

After their best season in a decade, the EMU Royals field hockey team had two standout players selected to the All-ODAC Second Team: Brandy Troutman (Mountville, Pa./Hempfield) and Skylar Hedgepeth (Smithfield, Va./Smithfield).

Rachel Brenneman earned the Peer Tutor of the Year Award. She was recognized for "combining the qualities of excellent technical skills, helping students with the structure and mechanics of writing, as well as excellent perceptions of what students want to say and how to say it better, and all the while she honors tremendous vulnerability that students can feel when they come for writing consultations," according to Steve Yoder, coordinator of academic success.

Isaac Alderfer (Broadway, Va./Broadway) headlined EMU's honorees on the recently named All-State Team for indoor track & field, presented by the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID). Classmates Alijah Johnson (Upper Marlboro, Md./Frederick Douglass) and Allison Shelly (Collinsville, Miss./West Lauderdale) were also represented on the All-State Teams.

EMU junior Isaac Alderfer (Broadway, Va./Broadway) has had quite a spring semester. This week he was named the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Athlete of the Week for the seventh time combined between the indoor and outdoor track seasons. Alderfer has only run at eight meets this semester.

Her bat was smoking. Over a pair of weekend doubleheaders, Sierra Lantz (Broadway, Va./Broadway) batted .600, with seven of her nine hits going for extra bases. Four of those went over the fence, as EMU's junior softball player used just that handful of games to eclipse her career home run total of three. Sierra's impressive slash line for the weekend was .600/.600/1.600.

Three EMU Royals took four spots on the All-ODAC Teams for indoor track & field this year, with juniors Isaac Alderfer (Broadway, Va./Broadway), Alijah Johnson (Upper Marlboro, Md./Frederick Douglass) and Allison Shelly (Collinvsville, Miss./West Lauderdale) each earning honors.

Once again, Brandy Troutman (Mountville, Pa./Hempfield) has played a pivotal role in the defensive line for the EMU field hockey team. Not only did Brandy lead the ODAC (and the nation) with eight defensive saves, but she also tied for first with three game-winning goals this year.

A few days after breaking both of EMU's middle distance records, track & field standout Isaac Alderfer (Broadway, Va./Broadway) was named the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Athlete of the Week. It was his sixth weekly honor from the ODAC this year.

Isaac Alderfer (Broadway, Va./Broadway) has efficiently re-written the history books at EMU.

4/13/2021 A huge week turned into a huge honor for EMU field hockey player Brandy Troutman (Mountville, Pa./Hempfield), as today she was named the ODAC Player of the Week.

Isaac Alderfer (Broadway, Va./Broadway) is not-so-quietly putting together one of the best seasons in EMU history. After breaking his third EMU Record of the year, the Royals' middle distance runner was named the ODAC Athlete of the Week. For the fifth time. In three months.