Students in the John Martinson Honors College excel in a variety of areas both in and outside of the classroom as they engage in endeavors that embody the values of our curriculum. To recognize those students who have achieved above and beyond their peers or who demonstrate great promise of excellence, the Honors College annually bestows the Pillar Awards, a recognition of student work in each of the four pillars of our curriculum: Interdisciplinary Academics, Undergraduate Research, Leadership, and Community and Global Engagement plus Belonging, Equity, and Inclusion (BEI).

Interdisciplinary Academics

Interdisciplinarity is the pursuit of knowledge by means of more than one discipline or field of study, especially in an attempt to understand complex problems. Pursuing interdisciplinary academics can mean taking classes or engaging in extracurricular activities outside your disciplinary home, but at its highest levels it entails breaking down or breaking through the traditional “silos” of these academic disciplines to reach across fields, modes of thought, or communities of practice to find novel ways to think, create, and thrive.

Undergraduate Research

Research is the production of new knowledge by means of scholarly inquiry, including creative pursuits. It requires dedication to answering questions that matter to individuals, communities and the world; strong reasoning, organizational, and interpersonal skills; an understanding of and commitment to research ethics; and follow-through to ensure that results are disseminated and shared with other scholars and the public.

Leadership Development

Leadership is the utilization of your best academic, professional, and personal qualities to empower others, build community, forward knowledge, and/or foster meaningful change in the world. Great and effective leaders demonstrate vision, take initiative, enact empathy and openness, learn and evolve, and ultimately, work inclusively with others to achieve shared goals.

Community and Global Engagement

Community is a concept that goes to the very heart of the Honors College experience. The Honors College values local engagement, global citizenship and cross-cultural exchanges between communities (domestic or international) that are different. Moreover, we recognize the importance of experiences that take place beyond classroom when students engage in local or global communities civically or as participants in study aways or research. Engagement in these experiences at the local level (Honors College, campus, and/or the Greater Lafayette area) or abroad expands one’s worldview and fosters complex understandings of the interconnectedness of our lives and communities as well as the nature of these relationships.

Belonging, Equity, and Inclusion (BEI)

Issues of BEI are integral to JMHC’s understanding of what an inclusive and collaborative living- learning experience entails. Attentiveness to BEI ensures that all students, from diverse backgrounds, in terms of their gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, abilities, receive the institutional, academic, and emotional support to thrive and succeed in the college and at Purdue. This award acknowledges the students as partners and collaborators in doing this important work. It recognizes students who support the college’s mission to embed and advance BEI in programs, leadership positions, academic and/or co-curricular experiences, build capacity around BEI-skills, and facilitate connections between and across communities, to advance a sense of belonging for others.

Apply for a John Martinson Honors College Student Pillar Award!

To recognize the great strides that our students make in each of these areas, each year the Student Pillar Awards will honor:

• One 2nd and one 3rd year student who excel in Interdisciplinary Academics
• One 2nd and one 3rd year student who excel in Undergraduate Research
• One 2nd and one 3rd year student who excel in Leadership Development
• One 2nd and one 3rd year student who excel in Community & Global Experiences
• One 2nd and one 3rd year student or student team that excels in Belonging, Equity, and Inclusion
• Two graduating seniors who embody all four pillars of an Honors Education

The deadline for applications is March 1. The 2025 Pillar Awards Application is coming soon.

2023-2024 Recipients

Second-Year Interdisciplinary Academics

Joshua Jackson promotes interdisciplinary thinking and collaboration throughout his various efforts at Purdue. As a double major in Aerospace Financial Analysis and Airline Management and Operations with a minor in Accounting, he seeks out coursework in disciplines such as business, science, and technology. He ultimately aims to improve aviation safety, efficiency, and sustainability. Joshua has authored a research paper on the critical nexus between NTSB recommendations and FAA actions in aviation safety for his Honors College Scholarly Project. Additionally, Joshua is highly involved in campus organizations, namely through his roles as President of the Purdue Aviation History Club and the treasurer of the Purdue chapter of American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE).

2nd Year Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors

Leanne Alsatie has taken an intrepid and dynamic approach to undergraduate research and creative endeavors. As part of the Teamwork LevelUp! research team, she co-creates seriously fun collaborative video games to promote teamwork skills among young adults. With the skills she has gained pursuing a major in Computer Science, Leanne has taken the lead in solving several game design challenges while also demonstrating great acuity in thinking through and analyzing how collaborative video games promote interpersonal relationships. She embraces opportunities to develop new research skills, and spearheaded key aspects of the team's focus group testing, helped process the results, and presented them as part of a student research poster session at the National Collegiate Honors Council conference in 2023. Leanne and the rest of the team received first-place for the Sloane Prize for Undergraduate Research at this conference, an acknowledgement of the outstanding research they have conducted.

2nd Year Leadership Development

Mia Schmetter has shown outstanding leadership development by utilizing a myriad of resources and opportunities within the John Martinson Honors College. Mia is an Honors Ambassador, an Honors Mentor, and has taken part in multiple leadership courses we offer. Outside of the JMHC, Mia takes pride in working as a Resident Assistant and head research assistant. In those roles, what she learns about leadership development in honors college, such as conflict management skills and a commitment to learning and growth, have not only allowed her to become an effective leader, but a thriving leader. In her own words, "effective leadership embodies a fervent dedication to growth, underscored by genuine compassion. Leadership hinges not only on enthusiasm for mentoring but, fundamentally, on the profound respect leaders hold for their team members."

2nd Year Community and Global Engagement

John Robbins actively engages with opportunities to broaden his view of communities locally and beyond. Engagement on campus, in the local community, and in his hometown where health, culture, and society meet enrich his understanding of healthcare disparities and social determinants of health. As John pursues a major in Brain and Behavioral Sciences with minors in Biological Sciences & Sociology, he underscores the importance of addressing systemic challenges and promoting equitable access to healthcare. This can be seen in his engagement with the Kidney Disease Screening and Awareness Program, Caduceus Club, the Munster Community hospital, Food Finders Food Bank, the Brain Exercise Initiative, and Alzheimer's Buddies. He states that, overall, his engagement with the Honors College has expanded his awareness of global issues and inspired him to contribute meaningfully to positive social change.

3rd Year Interdisciplinary Academics

Abhirami Narayanan values both the theory and the practice of interdisciplinary academics. It comes through as an Honors College mentor and in the work for herScholarly Project through an Honors course covering Ecodesign, which has been informed by her experience conducting research in the electric vehicle field with "the front-end community engagement aspect of sustainability, as well as the back-end understanding of modern-day environmental initiatives." Additionally, she applies the lessons on interdisciplinarity learned in Honors College to blend her business and engineering curricula in community-based projects and collaboration such as designing an Aquaponics system for a community center while on an EPICS Environmental Justice, Access, and Education team.

3rd Year Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors

Elsa Davis is recognized to receive the Third Year Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors award for her outstanding research efforts. Elsa is majoring in Biomedical Health Sciences with minors in Biological Sciences and Business Economics. As she conducts researcher in the Movement Science Research Lab, she works to understand the factors that influenced gait changes in young and middle-aged adults. She is deeply committed to this research, having spent four semesters and over 350 hours working on the project. She has presented her findings at multiple conferences, including the Purdue Undergraduate Research Conference (Spring 2023 and 2024) and the Gerontological Society of America 2023 Annual Conference. Elsa is part of two JMHC Research Generators: ISS and HEAL with Eli Lilly, and is on Honors College's Research Response Team. Additionally, Elas has conducted qualitative research, which culminated in her writing a chapter in the Forging the Future publication celebrating the JMHC's 10-year anniversary.

3rd Year Leadership Development

Natalie Horgan is a pharmacy student who strives to be an accountable, adaptable, and confident leader. In her leadership positions in the Honors College she has demonstrated her leadership skills serving as an honors ambassador, research accelerator mentor, and as the student director of HonorServes. Her leadership has contributed to increased participant involvement in HonorServes service events and empowered students to pursue research opportunities and academic aspirations. Seh states that her vision as a leader is to inspire individuals to embrace the discomfort that comes with reaching for opportunities and to pursue their goals without the fear of failure. Her focus for the future in leadership development is advancing her professional skills to provide exceptional care for patients and establish herself as a trusted and reliable healthcare provider.

3rd Year Community and Global Engagement

Elsa Davis aspires to be a future physician and leader who bridges gaps between different viewpoints and cultures to create a more inclusive healthcare environment. She states that, while in JMHC, she has expanded her community and worldview exponentially., forging connections between various organizations and her community with the goal to bridge gaps between different viewpoints and cultures to create a more inclusive environment. Elsa is majoring in Biomedical Health Sciences with minors in Biological Sciences and Business Economics, and pursues experiences beyond the classroom that expand her understanding experiences and cultures different from her own. Her engagements are many, highlighted by her work connecting 120 student volunteers with 12 local nursing homes to fill 31 volunteer shifts each week through the Purdue Chapter of Brain Exercise Initiative. She further explored differing healthcare approaches through an Honors College study abroad experience in the Netherlands focused on ethics in healthcare.

3rd Year Belonging, Equity and Inclusion

Olan Sodunke's experience in the John Martinson Honors College has been rooted in creating an environment where every student is valued. As a Student Diversity Officer, Olan's commitment to growth has allowed him to experience diverse perspectives while meeting leaders within the Belonging Equity and Inclusion sphere as well as speak with representatives from marginalized communities. He is dedicated to ongoing education and creating dialogues around emerging trends and relevant issues in the field of Belonging, Equity, and Inclusion. Olan credits his personal experiences and collective opportunities as driving his commitment to Belonging, Equity, and Inclusion. In the future, Olan hopes to deepen folks' understanding of the intersections of identity and power.

Outstanding Senior [Two Outstanding Seniors Awarded]

Natalie Penry is recognized for her interdisciplinary efforts, promotion of belonging and inclusion, and global engagement. Natalie is a Film & Video Production major with minors in Creative Writing, Spanish, and English. Natalie used her unique educational background to engage in a variety of creative initiatives throughout her time at Purdue, such as an internship with the Purdue University Film Department and the completion of Creative Writing Capstone Project. Natalie completed her Scholarly Project with Honors College faculty member Dr. Nathan Swanson to illuminate racial housing legacies in the Greater Lafayette area and showcased findings at an exhibition at the Caretaker's Cottage. She has also served as an Honors Mentor for three years as a Team Lead, in the process helping numerous first year students transition into college and develop as team members and interdisciplinary scholars. In addition, Natalie is an active member in Alpha Gamma Delta as the Director of Leadership for the organization and a Senior Member in the Women in Film Learning Community. Natalie has immersed herself in a variety of global experiences to enrich her education and worldview, namely, a summer study abroad in Madrid, an Honors study abroad in the United Kingdom, and a Semester at Sea. She hopes to pursue international opportunities related to film in the future and continue to grow as a self-proclaimed life-long learner.

Sarah Bhuiya is recognized for her outstanding achievements across the pillars of the honors college. In her writing, Sarah expressed how the John Martinson Honors College "brought her community and endless possibilities." Her Honors College experience exposed her to fruitful leadership opportunities, passionate faculty and staff mentors, and life-changing study abroad through its support in applying for the Gilman Scholarship. Sarah has demonstrated leadership as the co-chair for the Honors Leadership Council for three years, ideating and organizing community engagement events, a highlight being student participation in a research conferences that bridged her academic college and honors college. Sarah strives for interdisciplinarity and has conducted research that integrates psychology, human development, speech, language, and hearing sciences to investigate the roles of care partners and their spouse's use of hearing aids. In her words, "JMHC has given me a greater passion for constant learning of different worldviews. There is so much out there that I have yet to explore, and I believe that the honors college has instilled the courage and passion to pursue such opportunities."