Faculty, Students Recognized at University of Pittsburgh Honors Convocation

Sit. Move sideways. Move into the future.

Brian Primack gave this advice in his remarks to about 1,300 faculty, students and guests in attendance at the University of Pittsburgh’s Honors Convocation on Feb. 23 at Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland.

Primack, dean of Pitt’s University Honors College, served as the keynote speaker at the 42nd annual event, which highlighted the accomplishments of more than 4,000 faculty and students.

Primack — who is also the Bernice L. and Morton S. Lerner Endowed Chair; the director of the Center for Research on Media, Technology, and Health; and a professor of medicine, pediatrics, and clinical and translational science — advised the awardees to adopt the series of what he described as “complementary, different directions.”

Sit. Reflect on your accomplishments.

“Even while we are thinking about the next thing, we will be most effective if, on a day-to-day basis, we are in a state that is more one of gratitude and pride,” he said.

Move sideways. Broaden your skill set. Primack offered examples such as astronaut John Glenn’s launch into the political arena and TV chef Julia Child’s former career as a CIA spy.

“Some sideways movement can help keep us fresh, marketable and satisfied,” he said.

Move into the future. Guide your peers to achieving what you have accomplished.

“In addition to starting on your next journey, help others start theirs,” said Primack.

Following Primack, Patricia E. Beeson, provost and senior vice chancellor, and Kenyon Bonner, vice provost and dean of students, addressed student accomplishments related to academics and leadership, respectively. Arthur S. Levine, senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and the John and Gertrude Petersen Dean of the School of Medicine, lauded faculty honors.

Of the many students and faculty members that were recognized at the event, a few notable scholars include:

• 2017 Beinecke Scholar Margaret Farrell,
• 2017 Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship awardee David Leftwich,
• National Endowment for the Arts’ 2018 Creative Writing Fellowship awardee Dawn Lundy Martin and
• 2017 Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize and Passano Foundation Laureate Award winners Yuan Chang and Patrick S. Moore.

Two seniors were also recognized with what the University considers as its most prestigious awards for undergraduate students:

Dina Fradkin won the Emma W. Locke Award for “high scholarship, character, and devotion to the ideal of the University of Pittsburgh.” Fradkin has served as a teaching assistant, first-year peer adviser and research assistant in the School of Nursing and engages in patient advocacy. She is also a student in the University Honors College.

Jahvon Dockery was presented with the Omicron Delta Kappa Senior of the Year Award for “a high standard of leadership in college activities.” Through student organization Students Engaging in Conversations about Consent and Sexuality, Dockery educates his peers about consent, sexuality and sexual assault. He is a student in both the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences and the College of Business Administration. Dockery’s name will join the names of previous awardees on the Omicron Delta Kappa Walk outside the Cathedral of Learning.