At a school-wide meeting held on April 23, the Rutgers School of Communication and Information honored a select number of school faculty and staff for their exceptional research, teaching, and professional achievements during the 2024-2025 academic year.

SC&I congratulates the awardees, whose contributions benefited the school’s students, alumni, and others, Rutgers University, New Jersey, and beyond.

2025 Honorees

Department of Communication

• Award for Excellence in Teaching: Assistant Professor Yoniara Rivera
• Award for Excellence in Research: Assistant Professor Sarah Shugars
• Award for Excellence in Service: Professor and Chair Marya Doerfel
• Award for Excellence as a Lecturer: Jay Stefanelli
• Award for Excellence in Instructional Support: Cimmi Alvarez

Department of Journalism and Media Studies

• Award for Excellence in Teaching: Professor of Professional Practice and Director of Undergraduate Studies Steve Miller
• Award for Excellence in Research: Assistant Professor Celeste Wagner
• Award for Excellence in Service: Distinguished Professor Amy Jordan
• Award for Excellence as a Lecturer: Erica Herskowitz
• Award for Excellence in Instructional Support: Grant Lattanzi

Department of Library and Information Science

• Award for Excellence in Teaching: Assistant Teaching Professors LeAnne Barclay-Platenburg and Kaushal Trivedi
• Award for Excellence in Research: Assistant Professors Tawfiq Ammari and Jessica Yi-Yun Cheng
• Award for Excellence in Service: Associate Professor Sunyoung Kim
• Award for Excellence as a Lecturer: Eamon Tewell
• Award for Excellence in Instructional Support: Yunhee Shim

Continuing and Professional Studies

Instructor Excellence Award: 
Director of Marketing and Communications Brenda Sheridan

Master of Communication and Media (MCM) and Master of Health Communication and Information (MHCI)

• DiMartini Service Award: 
  Trina Chatterjee
• MHCI Outstanding Student Award:
  Rida Zainab Shah
• Outstanding Student Award:
  Rachel Brill
  Tsu-Yi (Joy) Chien
  Evan Leong
  Ertunc (Ernie) Mumcuoglu

Master of Information

• Excellence in Service
  Lauren Gaudite
  Lauren Popp
• Research and Academic Excellence:
  Lili Dudas
• Academic Excellence:
  Nicole Avanzato
  Jeanette Barton
  Nicole Blemur
  Erik Chemeis
  Alexandra Cross 
  Clayton Finn
  Natasha Hunter
  Berit Huseby
  Roma Mitra
  David Quinn
  Jenna Squasoni
  Eva Stewart
  Rebecca Tseng

Ph.D. Program

• Outstanding Continuing Doctoral Student in the Area of Communication:
  Nicole Mendoza
• Outstanding Continuing Doctoral Student in the Area of Media Studies:
  Kateryna Bystrytska
• Outstanding Continuing Doctoral Student in the Area of Information Science:
  Emma May
• Outstanding Doctoral Student in Interdisciplinary Studies:
  Eunbin Ha
• Outstanding Graduating Ph.D. Student in the Area of Communication:
  Casey Randazzo
• Outstanding Graduating Ph.D. Student in the Area of Information Science:
  Kaitlin Montague 
• Outstanding Graduating Ph.D. Student in the Area of Media Studies:
  Corinne Weinstein

Awards Given by Student Groups to Faculty or Staff

• Doctoral Student Association (DSA) Award for Outstanding Faculty Support of Students:
  Associate Professor of Communication Shawnika Hull

Staff Service Excellence Awards:

• Senior Department Administrator Kathy Frauenheim
• Assistant Director of Student Services for Career Services Ildi Koczan
• Administrative Assistant, Faculty Support Jalin Wojcik

Learn more about the Rutgers School of Communication and Information on the website.