Awards and PRIZES
Student Awards :
Hassenfeld Research Grant
Graduation Awards:
Award for Commitment for Social Justice in the City
Award for Contribution to the Urban Studies Program
Norman Glickman Prize for Best Senior Seminar Paper
Michael B. Katz URBS Teaching Award
Students may also want to check out the CURF web site for more opportunities
Hassenfeld award for Undergraduate Research
Application Deadline: Friday, April 10, 2009
The Hassenfeld Award for Undergraduate Research in Urban Studies are designed to support students to carry out summer research that will be used for their senior seminar papers. Awards of up to $2,000 for summer research are made to students each year on a competitive basis. The award is open to Urban Studies majors who have completed the introduction to urban research (URBS200 or equivalent).
Students interested in applying for the Hassenfeld Award are encouraged to speak with either Elaine Simon or Eric Schneider about their plans before applying. Applicants should submit a proposal to the Urban Studies Program. Proposals must include 1) a one-paragraph summary of the project, 2) a statement of the research questions to be addressed and and their significance, 3) a research plan, including the specific activities to be followed and methods used, 4) a schedule for the project, 5) an itemized budget for expenses, 6) a brief biographical statement including how the applicant became interested in the topic. Proposals must include a cover sheet with title of the research project, applicant's name, date, and, if applicable, the name and contact information of a faculty advisor and/or an organization representative who will host or support the research. The student must also include a letter of support or recommendation that will confirm the feasibility of the research and the likelihood that the student will be able to complete the proposed project.
A committee of Urban Studies faculty will review the proposals and select recipients on the basis of 1) overall quality of the proposal, 2) significance of the research questions, and 3) feasibility.
Undergraduate researchers will meet regularly during the summer to discuss progress with a graduate student assistant, who will be available to support student researchers. If students are working with a faculty member, they should meet regularly to trouble-shoot and report progress.
Recipients of a Hassenfeld Award must complete their work within the period of the award, submit a paper, and make a public presentation describing the results.
Applications for the Hassenfeld Award for 2009 are due by April 10, 2009 to Elaine Simon in the Urban Studies office, Room 130 McNeil, 3718 Locust Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6209. If you have questions, email the Urban Studies Program at urbs@sas.upenn.edu or call 215-898-6948.
Hassenfeld Award recipients from previous years
award for commitment to social justice in the city
Participating in Urban Studies courses, students can hardly avoid discussions of the problems cities face and how to deal with these problems. This award goes to the senior Urban Studies major whose on and off campus activities at the University of Pennsylvania and future plans reflect dedication to addressing urban problems and to the principles of providing opportunity and voice for all urban citizens.
award for contribution to the urban studies program
This award goes to the student who has contributed the most to the program through his/her involvement in Urban Studies activities, particularly through the governance board. Among ways in which this student may have participated are in selecting the annual speaker, organizing colloquia, helping with the newsletter and publicity, or helping to recruit new students.
norman glickman prize for the best senior seminar paper
In the senior seminar, Urban Studies majors write a paper based on original research they carry out on a topic of interest to them. Each year, the program recognizes the student whose paper was of highest quality, that is, stating a clear research purpose in the context of debate within the field, reflecting thorough and well designed data collection, and clearly written.
Michael B. Katz Award for Excellence in Teaching Urban Studies
Michael Katz, Sheldon and Lucy Hackney Professor of History, stepped down as Co-Director of undergraduate Urban Studies Program in 1996, succeeded by Anne Spirn. To acknowledge his contribution as Director of the Urban Studies Program for over 13 years, half the program's twenty-six year history, the Urban Studies program and the College of Arts and Sciences established a teaching award in his honor.
Each year's recipient of this award is presented with a certificate and a budget to be spent on books for the Urban Studies library which he or she deems to be classic or new and important books relevant to the field of urban studies. The books are inscribed with the recipient's name. The books augment the small library in the Urban Studies office and collectively, over time, will come to represent the scope of the field as defined by our leading teachers. An announcement of the winner of this award is made at the Urban Studies graduation ceremony in May of each year.
Students wishing to nominate a faculty member should submit a letter of nomination to Isabel Boston . You may nominate an urban studies faculty member you have had for a course in any semester since you have been here, as long as that person is teaching during the current academic year. (For a complete list of eligible faculty, refer to the course roster.) Indicate which semester you took the faculty member's course and include in the letter how the faculty member's teaching fulfills the criteria described below. Once we have received nominations, we will follow up to solicit further support for and information about nominees. The decision will be based on the strength of the nominating and support materials.
The quality of the program has always been of greatest importance to Michael Katz and a teaching award for Urban Studies should reflect the particular values with which he imbued the program. Below are some qualities to consider in your nomination, but you should feel free to discuss important qualities not included here. In your nomination, please describe how the nominee demonstrates these and other characteristics.
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High expectations for scholarship and respect for those who demonstrate commitment to grappling with important questions and dilemmas of urban life and society.
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The connection of theory and practice, a long-standing tenet of the program. The faculty member should demonstrate an equal enthusiasm for both forms of engagement with urban issues. The material covered in the class should stimulate students' thinking about the world around them and their experiences outside the classroom should be brought into the discussion.
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Enthusiasm for subject matter and engaging teaching that stimulates discussion and active involvement. Students participate in lively discussion and hear diverse points of view.
Photo: Ed Huang '05