Women's Senior Honor Awards
Among the oldest traditions at the University of Pennsylvania are the senior class leadership awards. The oldest of them, the Spoon, is documented as early as 1865, when Penn still occupied a campus on 9th street, in Center City, Phladelphia. Today, no fewer than 8 of these distinguished awards are presented on Hey Day, the last day of classes in each academic year. Elected by their fellow students in recognition of outstanding service to the University community, the receipients of these awards have alw ays included the best and brightest of each graduating class.
The Women's Senior Honor Awards spawned from Women's Hey Day which was first celebrated in 1926, six years after the passing of the nineteenth amendment which gave women the right to vote. The ceremony, usually held in Bennett Hall, consisted of an academic procession, the changing of offices, a valedictorian address, as well as the induction of new members into various honor societies. Although women were not eligible for the Spoon, Bowl, Cane and Spade Awards, they had their own senior honors, which included the following awards:
Althea K. Hottel Shield Award
Established in 1959, the first women's award is named for Penn's first Dean of Women, educational pioneer Althea K. Hottel. Represented by the Shield, the University's most recognizable physical symbol, this award honors intellectual competence, commitment to ideals, and loyalty to the Univ
ersity . The Hottell Shield is etched in granite by the carver of your class Ivy Stone to connect it to the present. This award is proudly presented today as the top female award for faithful dedication to the Penn community.
Gaylord P. Harnwell Flag Award
The Harnwell Flag Ward celebrates the tremendous campus growth and diversification of Penn during the 1953-1970 tenure of its namesake, President Gaylord P. Harnwell, who believed that selfless service to the university and the community would impact generations to come. Established in 1969, this award honors Harnwell's ideals with a Penn flag that continues to "ripple the wind" over College Hall. This award which was flown over College Hall is presented today in honor of President Harnwell's public service to the University.
David R. Goddard Loving Cup Award.
In 1908, when Class Day was combined with Ivy Day, a silver Loving Cup was presented to the University Provost etched with names of dedicated class presidents. Today's Loving Cup honors former Provost David R. Goddard, who retired in 1969, and is etched with the iconic words of Penn's most popular song-but not official alma mater, the Red and Blue. This award recognizes seniors' exemplary service to the University and to their class.
R. Jean Brownlee Skimmer Hat Award
The Brownlee Skimmer Hat Award was established in 1977 and commorates one of Penn's most historic traditions, Hey Dey. The award is named for Dean R. Jean Brownlee, who oversaw the historic merger of the College and the College for Women into the School of Arts and Science as well as the combining of the men's and women's Hey Day strolls into a unifying class celebration. The commemorative Hey Day hat, appropriately bitten, is in honor of Dean Brownlee's enduring legacy of unifying the Penn community.
Women's Senior Award Winners 1959-Present
Year | Althea K. Hottel | Gaylord P. Harnwell | David R. Goddard | R. Jean Brownlee |
1959 | Barbara Foster | |||
1960 | Rosemary Yaecker | |||
1961 | Martha Taylor | |||
1962 | Mireille Lellouche | |||
1963 | Mary Kay Pedersen | |||
1964 | Elsbeth Joyce | |||
1965 | Ellen Casey | |||
1966 | Rebecca Bowers | |||
1967 | R. Barbara Berger / Lynne Miller | |||
1968 | Elizabeth Van Wezel | |||
1969 | Mary Selecky | Ellen Cohen | Ellen Gordon / Linda Plotnick | |
1970 | Alice Mann / Mary Sitgraves | Rona Zevin | Patricia Dinneen | |
1971 | Miriam Labbok | Hope Sukin | Judith Teller / Adele Lindenmeyr | |
1972 | Linda Magoon | Claudia Cohen | Ann Fleming | |
1973 | Anita Sama | Donna Webster | Laureine Knight | |
1974 | Ruth Ann Price | Susan Peikes | Holly O'Neil | |
1975 | Holly James | Heidi Solomon | Currie Kelly | |
1976 | Tracy Dibble | Ann Kelley | Cynthia Chanenson | |
1977 | Kimberly-Ann Woolwich | Rebecca Peikes | Alison Bender | Kathleen Bell |
1978 | Trish Brown | Ellen Cooper | Amy Borrus | Lori Goldstein |
1979 | Kathryn Sklar | Maria Shao | Debra Silverman | Barri Bernstein |
1980 | Laura Anne Foggan | Joanne Wise | Charlotte Baron | Ruth Cornfeld |
1981 | Allison Accurso | Geralyn Orlovitz | Mindy Crandus | Ellen Goldberg |
1982 | Cheryl Saban | Barbara Cantwell | Carrie Altman | Dawn Van Dam |
1983 | Elizabeth Cooper | Jeanne Reich | Laurie Dameshek | Elizabeth Lombardo |
1984 | Stephanie Dangel | Lori Landew | Karen Glass | Pam Seidenman |
1985 | Vicki Bernstein | Wendy Platt | Carol Turner | Karen Barr |
1986 | Jean Sherman | Gena Kutin | Jennifer Weiss | Renee Solomon |
1987 | Wendy Ferber | Lisa Green | Ilana Long | Hayley Bryant |
1988 | Wendy Bloom | Jill Kaufman | Colleen Buggs | Laura Fuller |
1989 | Suzanna Pappas | Traci Miller | Megan O'Brien | Rachel Greenberger |
1990 | Linda LaGorga | Lynn Halpern | Tara Fitzpatrick | Farah Jiminez |
1991 | Miriam (Duchess) Harris | Theresa E. Simmonds | Jodi Krasilovsky | Susan Moss |
1992 | Barbara E. Lewis | Christina Smith | Maureen Juliet Hernandez | Helen Jung |
1993 | Allison Bieber | Michelle Peluso | Lisa Nass | Hallie Levin |
1994 | Jai-Jai Ramsey | Lisa Deutsch | Jun Bang | Kirsten Bartok |
1995 | Leigh Molinari | Jordana Horn | Ha Thi Nguyen | Tama Weinberg |
1996 | Tamara Dubowitz | Alison Deitch | Heather Dorf | Lissette Calderon |
1997 | Abby Close | Katinka Domotorffy | Rachel Sheibein | Kara Blond |
1998 | Rachel Ehrlich | Michelle Millstone | Martha Speranza | Bethany Rubin |
1999 | Samara A. Barend | Janelle M. Brodsky | Sarah B. Gleit | Roshini S. Thayaparan |
2000 | Lisa Marshall | Jennifer Brown | Lindsay Faber | Michele Sacks |
2001 | Diana M. Caramanico | Lipika Goyal | Dayna S. Platt | Hoa T. Duong |
2002 | Dana E. Hork | Lindsey F. Mathews | LaToya J. Baldwin | Jennifer Kwon |
2003 | Julia S. Gottlieb | Aviva N. Moster | Ella S. Schwartz | Rebecca L. Silberman |
2004 | Meredith M. Seidel | Jessica R. Brand | Amy M. Potter | Aparna Chandrasekhar |
2005 | Caroline A. Canty | Paige Fitzgerald | Jennifer J. Choi | Imanni P.S. Wilkes |
2006 | Rachel I. Fersh | Caroline Rothstein | Hayley M. Gross | Sheri E. Halpern |
2007 | Catherine C. Mark | Kate E. Liberman | Caroline G. Gammill | Alexis Ruby Howe |
2008 | Sarah R. Abroms | Colleen E. Donovan | Beth Newton | Shirley Liang |
2009 | Drew Feith Tye | Rahima F. Dosani | Erica M. Evans | Mia Kumagai |
2010 | Eileen M. McKeown | Claire S. Choi | Alissa R. Eisenberg | Sakina R. Zaidi |
2011 | Lindsey T. Eatough | Janice Y. Dow | Wendy J. De La Rosa | Rachel R. Romeo |
2012 | Kathryn J. McCabe | Faye G. Cheng | Jordan A. Sale | Allison S. Zuckerman |
2013 | Ariela R. Cohen | Isabel Friedman | Pallavi R. Podapati | Lakshmi Sivaguru |
2014 | Lindsay Y. Tsai | Urja R. Mittal | Natalie M. Riemer | Tania V. Chairez |
2015 | Ariel S. Koren | Joyce J. Kim | Victoria N. Ford | Jordyn H. Feingold |
2016 | Renata M. O'Donnell | Julie M. Bittar | Jane R. Meyer | Mahalatchmi Subramaniam |
2017 | Temilola M. Ransome-Kuti | Hannah E. Fagin | Tunmise A. Fawole | Olivia S. Nelson |
2018 | Makayla C. Reynolds | Silicia I. Lomax | Alexamdra P. Rubin | Madeline G. Gelfand |
2018 Senior Honor Award Recipients
The Women's Senior Honor Awards are generously endowed by Sally L. Katz C'82, a devoted alumnus and President of the Class of 1982.