Professors Gary King in Government, Joanna Nizynska in Slavic, Anne Pringle in Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, and Christopher Winship in Sociology are the recipients of the 2011 Everett Mendelsohn Excellence in Mentoring Awards, given by the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.
The awards were presented on April 12 in a Dudley House ceremony attended by GSAS deans, the winning and nominated faculty mentors, and their students. They are presented annually by the Graduate Student Council and named for Professor of the History of Science, Emeritus Everett I. Mendelsohn, a former master of Dudley House. They celebrate faculty who go out of their way to mentor GSAS students, supporting them professionally and personally in ways large, small, and always meaningful — doing everything from inviting them to collaborate on papers and critiquing their talks to inviting them home for Thanksgiving. Read on for excerpts of winning nominations and photos.
Gary King
Gary King is the Albert J. Weatherhead III University Professor in the Department of Government and founding director of the Institute for Quantitative Social Science. In nominating him for the award, students wrote that they appreciated his dedication and legendary availability. One student wrote that King “kindles genius in others. . . . I came up with better ideas in 10 minutes of brainstorming in Gary’s office than in 10 hours of thinking on my own. His advice literally changed the trajectory of my thesis and inspired the chapter that is likely to form the core of my research for some time to come.” Another student said King “is one of the best mentors in the social sciences. Even though he runs a large institute and has several prominent business and consulting projects, all graduate students have to do (to speak with him) is stop by. We are the priority, and if you are a graduate student, Gary is available to you 24/7.” Another wrote, “He has continued to be an invaluable source of professional and technical advice,” and as a result, “countless (of his) graduate students . . . now have jobs at top universities all over the world.”
Joanna Nizynska
Joanna Nizynska, associate professor of Slavic languages and literatures, was lauded for her honesty and her unflagging commitment to students. One student wrote that Nizynska was “totally committed to engage in intellectual dialogue with her students, a dialogue that stretches well beyond classes and office hours.” Another wrote that “her ability to support me when I feel overwhelmed . . . has been invaluable. I cherish the experience of cultural discovery that I gained while studying with Professor Nizynska.” Another student said, “Her advice is always very personal and unique to the given situation. Being an international student with family and friends living abroad, you very seldom find a mentor and a friend who would understand and support you not only professionally but also personally, seeing you as not a mere student but as a human being with problems and feelings.”
Anne Pringle
Anne Pringle, associate professor of organismic and evolutionary biology, was commended for her honesty. One student wrote, “the high importance with which she regards students and her willingness to communicate with us honestly as colleagues have been representative of my interactions with Anne throughout my graduate career . . . she is a wonderful manager, advisor, and friend.” A second student wrote, “Anne is one of the most enthusiastic people I have ever met. Conversations with Anne never lack energy, no matter how trivial the subject. I invariably end a meeting with Anne feeling excited about research.” And another said that Professor Pringle “manages to strike an astonishing balance: she is unfailingly constructive in her criticism, which (for me) led to a dramatically improved thesis proposal, and a much more focused trajectory to my research. When I look at what is developing into a fantastic story in my data, I owe a lot to that experience with Anne.”
Christopher Winship
In nominating Christopher Winship, the Diker-Tishman Professor of Sociology and a senior faculty member at the Harvard Kennedy School, students repeatedly cited his support and encouragement. “Unlike most academics (myself included!), Chris never tries to move students’ research (or research interests) into alignment with his own,” one student wrote. “Rather, he listens deeply to what we are trying to do . . . and then he tries to help us improve and refine it—theoretically, methodologically, and even in terms of how best to present it.” Another student wrote that Winship “has attended virtually every workshop talk I’ve given and always has equal parts praise and suggestions for improvement once I’m finished. Whether by putting me in touch with colleagues at other universities or speaking to other professors on my behalf, he always seems to be working to lay the groundwork for my future success.” Another wrote, “His intellectual scope, his generous spirit, his unwavering support, and his strong commitment to mentoring new generations of graduate students distinguish him from all other faculty members that I have interacted with over the last six years at Harvard.”
