Honors and Awards

Honors and Awards 2020-21 

• A record 83 Pioneers earned selections to the NJAC All-Academic Team. William Paterson senior swimmer Joey Croce and junior field hockey back Alicia Mitchell garnered spots on the 2020-21 Academic All-NJAC First Team. Senior softball outfielder Vanessa Archibold and senior baseball outfielder Steven DiGirolamo were second-team selections. The other 79 Pioneers received honorable-mention laurels. (June 2021)

• The College of Education’s initial and advanced programs received full accreditation from the Council for the Accreditation of Educator Preparation (CAEP), with no identified areas for improvement or stipulations. (June 2021)

• The Pioneer Baseball Team reached the NJAC Tournament finals for the first time since 2009. The Pioneers posted a 27-8 overall record and landed eight individuals on the All-NJAC Team. (May 2021)

• Katherine Makarec, professor of psychology, Emmanuel Onaivi, professor of biology, and Brenda Marshall, professor of nursing, were the recipients of the 2021 Faculty Excellence Awards. Makarec received the 2021 Faculty Award for Excellence in Service; Onaivi received the 2021 Faculty Award for Excellence in Research, Scholarship, and Creative Expression; and Marshall received the 2021 Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching. (May 2021)

• Paola N. Ruiz ‘21, a first-generation college student, delivered the undergraduate student address for the William Paterson Class of 2021 virtual commencement ceremony. Ruiz graduated with a bachelor’s degree in communication, with a concentration in media production. She was selected to speak as one of the highest-achieving graduates in the College of the Arts and Communication. (May 2021)

• John Penola ’07, MFA ’21, delivered the graduate student Commencement address. Penola, a teacher, earned a master of fine arts degree in creative and professional writing. He was selected as speaker from among the highest-achieving graduates in the College of the Arts and Communication. (May 2021)

• Gwynne Stevenson ’21, an Honors College student who graduated summa cum laude with a BA in music and minors in music and entertainment industries and classical voice, was named the 2021 “Outstanding Senior” by the William Paterson University Alumni Association. (May 2021)

• Rob Quicke, professor of communication, won a 2021 Communicator Award from the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts for a radio documentary pressed exclusively on vinyl to celebrate the 10th anniversary of College Radio Day called "10 Years of College Radio Coming Together." Quicke founded College Radio Day in 2011. (May 2021)

• Four William Paterson nursing professors were honored by the Institute for Nursing at the 2021 New Jersey State Nurses Association CARES (Clinical, Administration, Research, Education and Support) Awards. Kem Louie, professor and nursing graduate director, was named Nurse Educator of the Year; Sandra Foley, DNP ’19, clinical instructor, chair of the Institute for Nursing, and president-elect of the New Jersey State Nurses Association (NJSNA), received an honorable mention in the same category. Adjunct professor Elisa Green, DNP ’20, was named Clinical Nurse of the Year and adjunct professor Uma Venugopal received an honorable mention for Nurse Administrator of the Year. (April 2021)

• Jonathan "Jay" Foley, professor of chemistry, received the prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER award for research in using computers to design materials for sustainable energy. Foley received the award for his research in the emerging field called polar-i-tonic chemistry. (April 2021)

• Rebecca Gilliland ‘23, an Honors College student majoring in psychology, was one of six recipients of the 2021 Changebuilder Scholars Award through New Jersey Campus Compact for her outstanding civic engagement. (April 2021)

• The William Paterson field hockey team earned its fourth New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Field Hockey Tournament title in program history—and its first in 44 years—with a 2-1 victory against Ramapo. (April 2021)

• Jaime Harris ’22 was one of only three in New Jersey to receive the 2021-22 Campus Compact Newman Civic Fellows Award for civic engagement. Harris, a triple major studying early childhood education, liberal studies, and disability studies, served the William Paterson University and local communities by participating in more than 25 University-coordinated civic engagement activities as a member of WP’s Changebuilder program, created in cooperation with New Jersey Campus Compact. (March 2021)

• Heejung An, professor, educational leadership and professional studies, won an Outstanding Paper Award from the International Conference of the Society for Information Technology and Teacher Education (SITE) for her paper, “Design of an Online Robotics Course Using the Learning by Design Approach.” (March 2021)

• Student-run WPTV television station won several awards at the 81st annual Intercollegiate Broadcasting System (IBS) awards virtual ceremony. The station won awards for Best Video Sports Program for WP Sports Desk and Best Video Comedy Program for iThe Fake News Network, a satire news series. In addition, the Best Student Station Manager Award went to Shaffer Johnston ‘21, and the Best Social Media Director Award went to John Conlow ‘21. In addition, WPSC-FM won the award for Best Specialty Music Show produced by Tiernan Doyle ‘21. (March 2021)

• College of Education Dean Amy Ginsberg was selected to participate in the 2021 HERS (Higher Education Resource Services) Leadership Institute, a highly selective and prestigious leadership program for women in education, which is designed to create and sustain a diverse network of women leaders in higher education. (March 2021)

• Head women’s basketball coach Erin Monahan ’91 earned her 500th career victory on February 13, 2021. Monahan, who is the most successful women’s basketball coach in William Paterson history, was also named to a list of the top 50 college basketball coaches of all time in New Jersey in an article in the Asbury Park Press. Eight of her former players have been inducted into the William Paterson University Alumni Association Athletic Hall of Fame. (February 2021)

• For the 11th year in a row, William Paterson University was recognized in the Guide to Military Friendly Schools, honoring those institutions that are implementing best practices and policies to recruit, develop and support student veterans, with the goal of providing them the tools they need to successfully move into the next chapter of their lives. (February 2021)

• William Paterson became the first institution in New Jersey to establish a chapter of Alpha, Alpha, Alpha or Tri-Alpha, the national honor society that recognizes the accomplishments of first-generation college students. (January 2021)

• Nursing doctoral student and adjunct professor Christiam Fajardo ’09, MS ’17, was named March of Dimes Nurse Manager of the Year. The award recognizes nursing excellence and achievements in research, education, quality patient care innovation, and leadership.  (January 2021)

• Honors College student Tiernan P. Doyle ‘21, was selected for a spring 2021 internship with NASA as a virtual multimedia specialist intern for the Low Boom Flight Demonstration mission, located at NASA’s Langley Research Center. He helped to produce media content about the mission, from editing to pre-planning. (January 2021)

• Freshman Nick Montesano ’24 took classic chess pieces and recreated them to incorporate the quarantine essentials of the pandemic. His idea stemmed from the final project of a 3D Design class in which the students were challenged to develop and present a themed chessboard that integrated 3D modeling and fabrication methods. The project drew significant media attention, with articles on major regional news websites nj.com and northjersey.com. (January 2021)

• Students Ryley McKiernan ’24 and Sean Mauro ’21 won national recognition in a student podcast competition emphasizing the importance of media history organized by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication. McKiernan won second place for a podcast examining the history of music copyright law and Mauro, a dual major in popular music and communication, won an honorable mention for his podcast discussing the concept of prior restraint of publication. The episodes aired during March 2021 on the Journalism History podcast, which has listeners in 96 countries. (January 2021)

• LaShauna Dean, associate professor of special education and counseling, received the NARACES 2020 Social Justice Award from the North Atlantic Region Association for Counselor Education and Supervision organization for her significant work on social justice and multicultural issues. (December 2020)

• Lydia Albuquerque, DNP ’18, assistant professor of nursing, was inducted as the eighth president of the National Association of Indian Nurses of America (NAINA). The organization represents more than 3,000 nurses across 22 chapters in 15 states. (December 2020)

• For the 13th consecutive year, William Paterson University’s Cotsakos College of Business was included in The Princeton Review’s guide to the top graduate business schools. (December 2020)

• William Paterson University climbed 43 spots to no. 76 of 1,449 four-year colleges and universities in the 2020 Social Mobility Index. The rankings, by CollegeNet, are based on how effectively they enroll students from low-income backgrounds and graduate them into good-paying jobs. William Paterson ranked in the top 5 percent of four-year colleges and universities nationwide. (November 2020)

• An animated short film, The Spirit Seam, by Ashley Gerst, assistant professor of art, was included in the Animation Celebration Fest in October 2020 and won Best Animated Film at Mind in August 2020. Overall, the film was accepted into more than 40 film festivals worldwide and won more than a dozen awards. (October 2020)

• The University’s student chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) was named SPJ National Campus Chapter of the Year for 2020. William Paterson beat out 95 chapters across the United States. (September 2020

• William Paterson University’s bachelor’s degree program in computer science was reaccredited through 2026 by ABET, the global accreditor of college and university programs in applied and natural science, computing, engineering, and engineering technology. (September 2020)

• William Paterson University ranked no. 38 of 176 regional universities in the northern United States—jumping 27 spots from last year’s report—in U.S. News & World Report’s list of top performers on social mobility in its 2021 edition of Best Colleges. In addition, the University ranked at no. 8 of the same 176 regional universities in the northern part of the country in the category of “campus ethnic diversity,” which identifies colleges where “students are most likely to encounter undergraduates from racial or ethnic groups different from their own.” (September 2020)

• William Paterson University was ranked 125 out of nearly 400 four-year institutions nationwide that offer master’s degrees by Washington Monthly’s 2020 Master’s in Universities rankings—a unique ranking based on an institution’s contribution to the public good in three broad categories: social mobility, research, and promoting public service. William Paterson was placed in spot No. 103 for social mobility, 138 for public service, and 365 for research. (September 2020)

• Aileen Torres, professor of psychology, was recognized as one of two statewide winners of the New Jersey Psychological Association’s Dr. Stanley Moldawsky Mentor Award for 2020. The award recognizes exceptional leadership in the form of “enduring and exemplary contributions to mentoring new psychologists and/or graduate doctoral level students.”  (August 2020)

• Darlene Russell, a professor in the University’s College of Education, was honored by the New Jersey Governor’s Awards in Arts Education for demonstrating excellence and leadership in her discipline. She was recognized after receiving the Educator of the Year Award from the New Jersey Council of Teachers of English. (July 2020)