Awards and Celebrations

The Athletes and Recreation Award recognizes athletes who participate in Division 1 sports, intramural sports or club sports and whose leadership has transcended their sport.

Recipients will have made invaluable contributions to their team, achieved academic distinction or have made significant contributions to our University and its surrounding community.

The Christine A. Bouchard School Spirit Award was established in honor of Christine A. Bouchard by her colleagues and friends upon her retirement as Vice President for Student Affairs at the University at Albany.  

The award recognizes undergraduate students who best exemplify and promote school spirit. This award carries a scholarship of $1,000.

The Five Quad Award is for an exceptional member of the University's student-run 24/7 volunteer ambulance service.

The Fraternity & Sorority Award is given to sorority and fraternity members who have contributed to their chapter, the Fraternity & Sorority Life system and the University.

Through strong leadership and valuable service, these students have exemplified the ideals of Fellowship, Scholarship, Service, and Leadership, and have worked to further develop Fraternity & Sorority Life at the University at Albany.

The Middle Earth Award is for an exceptional member of this important peer counseling and referral group.

The Outstanding Student Organization Advisor Award recognizes faculty or staff advisors who go “above and beyond” for the organization(s) they advise.

The nominated individual must serve as the official advisor to a Student Association, Graduate Student Association or University-recognized student organization in good standing. Nominations for this award should be submitted by students.

The Project SHAPE Award is for a student volunteer in recognition of exceptional performance, commitment and service as a valuable member of the Project SHAPE: Sexual Health & Peer Education program.

The Outstanding Student Employee Achievement Award honors individuals who strive to improve the quality of life for their peers. Recipients will have demonstrated exceptional leadership and taken an active role in their on-campus student employment position.

The Sustainability Award recognizes a graduate or undergraduate student who contributes to the advancement of environmental, economic and social sustainability within the UAlbany campus and surrounding community. This student will have demonstrated a leadership role in raising awareness and increasing campus involvement in advancing sustainability.

The Interfaith Center Award is given to an individual whose accomplishments reflect significant contributions to the Interfaith Center and the University.

The award acknowledges a student who has made laudable efforts to further interfaith understanding and to promote the spiritual growth of members of the Interfaith Center community.

The Jonathan Whyte-Dixon Memorial Scholarship recognizes a UAlbany student (undergraduate or graduate) who best exemplifies Jonathan’s school spirit, meaningful involvement within the UAlbany community, leadership on campus, and overall enthusiasm and passion.

Preference will be given to a student who has volunteered or worked for the Liberty Partnerships Program and demonstrates financial need. This award carries two scholarships of $1,750 each.

The UAlbany Fund Award recognizes a student caller who, through outreach to parents and alumni, is an exceptional representative of the University and has been successful in obtaining the private support that UAlbany needs.

The University Governance Leadership Award recognizes students who have provided important leadership by taking an active role in policy matters of student government and the University.

The Community Service Award recognizes students who most clearly evidence a service ethic in their citizenship.

Students will have demonstrated unselfish involvement at UAlbany or in the surrounding community as they strive to better an aspect of society by dedicating considerable time to worthwhile projects that benefit others.

This award carries two scholarships of $250 from the Isaiah “Zay” Caldwell ’22 Leadership & Service Endowment.

The Rod and Carolyn Hart Memorial Award is given to an undergraduate student of junior class standing who has demonstrated academic achievement and who has made a difference on the UAlbany campus by organizing benefit drives for charitable causes or demonstrated leadership within a campus organization that serves the good of the University community. This award carries a scholarship of $800.

The Common Ground Award recognizes a person who has demonstrated leadership in increasing the University’s commitment to community empowerment and coalition building. This includes promoting appreciation of individual differences and working with others to find common ground. 

The Social Justice Award recognizes two individuals who have demonstrated a passion for social justice and played a leadership role in advancing initiatives related to advancing social change and promoting equity and inclusion. This award includes two scholarships of $700 each.

The Juneteenth Scholarship commemorates the meaningful importance of Juneteenth, promotes the values of diversity and inclusion at UAlbany, and recognizes and celebrates the rich and complex histories of our Black and Afro-Latinx students.

Applicants should possess at least a 3.0 GPA in any major and must submit a 250- to 500-word essay on why Juneteenth is personally meaningful to them. This award includes two scholarships of $500 each.

The Justice Award honors a student whose commitment to the principles of fairness and equity has helped to foster justice at the University, promote the appreciation of individual differences, and worked with others to find and express common ground.

Recipients will have made distinct contributions toward achieving these ideals. This award carries a scholarship of $250.

The Minerva Award recognizes student leadership in academic settings. This may include the classroom, research laboratories and other research settings, and internship sites.  

A 3.25 cumulative GPA is recommended. A letter of recommendation from a faculty member is highly recommended.

The Great Dane Award is given to any student who has demonstrated leadership in several co-curricular activities or significant leadership in one such activity during the current year.

The Great Dane Ambassadors Award recognizes a student who has performed exceptionally well and demonstrated leadership during their study abroad by succeeding academically, making many new friends and creating a positive impression at the host institution.

The International Great Dane Award recognizes an undergraduate and graduate student whose efforts and involvement have enhanced the lives of international students or the University community.

The I AM FIRST GEN Scholarship helps college students pay for their post-secondary education. It specifically recognizes residents of the State of New York with a parent or guardian who has not been awarded a bachelor’s degree or higher. This award carries a scholarship of $500.

The Veteran/Military Leadership Award recognizes a student veteran who has been involved on campus or in the local community or has contributed to the success of other student veterans. The recipient must be a past or present member of the U.S. Armed Forces.

The Distinguished Scholar-Leader Award recognizes and honors graduating undergraduate or graduate students who best exemplify the scholar leader service ideal. The recipient will have demonstrated academic excellence, effective leadership in the University community and a commitment to serving others.

Distinguished Scholar-Leaders demonstrate a strong commitment to their academic and intellectual development as evidenced by participation in research or other creative scholarly activity. Recipients will be asked to nominate a faculty or staff member to be recognized at the award ceremony.

This award is among the highest conferred upon undergraduates. A 3.75 cumulative GPA is recommended. For this award graduation status is defined by date of graduation, not by credits earned. December graduates are eligible.

The Outstanding Senior Award recognizes undergraduate seniors who have contributed greatly to the University during their undergraduate careers. Their leadership abilities may have been demonstrated at the University level or in more than one organization.

The Community Service Award recognizes the organization that best represents the service ideal of the University by unselfishly serving the Albany and/or University community.

Please include information regarding the frequency of the commitment (such as number of hours per week or per semester), the nature of the service and whether you were compensated for the service.

The Cultural Awareness Award recognizes the organization that has demonstrated leadership in increasing the University community’s cultural awareness, thereby enabling students to appreciate the diversity that underpins our society.

The Fraternity & Sorority Leadership Award is given to sorority and fraternity organizations who have contributed to their chapter, the FSL system, and the University.

Through strong leadership and valuable service, these students and organizations have exemplified the ideals of Fellowship, Scholarship, Service, and Leadership, and have worked to further develop fraternity and sorority life at the University at Albany.

The Great Dane Award is given to any organization that has demonstrated leadership in several initiatives or significant leadership in one activity during the current year.

The Justice Award honors an organization whose commitment to the principles of fairness and equity has helped to foster justice at the University.

This organization promotes the appreciation of individual differences and works together to find and express common ground. Recipients will have made distinct contributions toward achieving these ideals.

The Common Ground Award recognizes an organization that has demonstrated leadership in increasing the University’s commitment to diversity and inclusion. This includes but is not limited to promoting appreciation of individual differences and working with others to find common ground.

To receive a Spellman Top Academic Achievement Award, scholars must be enrolled full-time undergraduates with a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or above at the end of the Fall semester. Juniors and seniors must have been enrolled at the University for at least two consecutive semesters.

Top Academic Achievement Award honorees are of the highest ranking in their class. Our top honorees have an average GPA of 3.97 and many of them have perfect 4.0 GPAs.

The NIA ALANA Scholarship Award recognizes students who have exhibited a strong commitment to the University at Albany community through their outstanding service and leadership. Recipients will be presented with a monetary award.  

Eligible applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 by the end of the previous academic semester. They must also have been full-time students at UAlbany for at least two semesters and be in good judicial standing. Financial need will be considered.