On Thursday night, 115 graduating seniors, other students, professors, faculty, and staff were honored for their contributions to the Lasell community and the commitments they have made towards it at the Student Leadership Awards Banquet at DeWitt Hall.
The ceremonial feast, hosted in part by Chief Diversity Officer Jesse Tauriac and Director of Student Activities & Orientation Thomas Morgan, is, at least for the graduating seniors, a way to honor each other and what they have done for their community as they head on into the real world and begin their careers.
Some of the winners for the Student Government Association positions include: SGA President ‘24 Arielle Hornbaker, Vice President of Academic Affairs ‘27 Rose Rudich, Vice President of Student Affairs ‘26 Annalee Messina, Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion ‘26 Cesar Morel, and Class of 2025 President ‘25 Madalyn Scully.
The ceremony also honored some of Lasell’s more unsung entities and persons, including their highlighting of POLISHED Magazine as Student Organization of the Year for the 2023-2024 school year.
The magazine, written and produced by students, has received numerous awards from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association in both their Gold and Silver Circle categories. Their most recent entry, their fall and winter 2023 edition entitled Trashion, goes into “reducing waste and reclaiming the fashion industry.”
Other notable winners of the night are numerous, but their contributions to Lasell will and should all be remembered equally, as what they did will leave their mark on campus and the people who call this place their second home.
Eight students were nominated as winners for the Lasell Bowl Award, given to those who have had noteworthy and commendable contributions to campus life. The winners include Andrew Soares, Jacob Lustig, Marino Kozaka, Sydney Morgello, Jaiquan Jones, Jiani Zhang, Hampton Clancy, and Ray Karaczun.
Leadership in Equity Award winner Alexa Pagán was recognized for her commitment and exemplary determination to create and maintain a socially fair environment for all students and people on campus. Emily Spertner won the Commitment to Service Award for her civic contributions and efforts to advance a socially hospitable and responsible environment at our university. The Lasell Chair Award was given to Arianah Rivera, recognized for her extraordinary time at Lasell characterized by immense achievement, success, and leadership across the board.
And, uniquely, two Michael B. Alexander Student Leaders of the Year Award winners were selected this year, as it was decided that it would be pitiful not to equally recognize the contributions of L. J. LaFiura and Cecilya Wood equally, both selected for their commitment to being leaders on campus and balancing their involvement in our campus community with superb academic performances.