STUDENTS WHO SHINE
Arnold Damen, S.J., came to Chicago with a vision of a better community, one built on a foundation of education and service. In 1870, with the help of Holy Family Parish and other Jesuit fathers with whom he shared his mission, Father Damen founded St. Ignatius College, where students would receive a challenging education grounded in ethics and values.
“Our President’s Medallion winners exhibit the qualities that best represent the Loyola student.”
PRESIDENT MICHAEL J. GARANZINI, S.J.
That small college grew to become Loyola University Chicago, a place where today’s students continue in the legacy of leadership begun by that visionary priest more than 130 years ago.
Each year, one student in each of Loyola’s nine colleges and schools is honored with the President’s Medallion, a University tradition more than 40 years old. “Our President’s Medallion winners exhibit the qualities that best represent the Loyola student and the spirit in which Loyola’s founders created our University: a focus on scholarship, leadership, and service,” says President Michael J. Garanzini, S.J. “These students stand as examples of a Loyola education, and we are extremely proud of their accomplishments.”
“I want to act as an advocate for my students, providing them with the strength to achieve their dreams.” |
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| EDUCATION MAJOR LAUREN DI BENEDETTO, RECEIVING THE PRESIDENT’S MEDALLION FROM MICHAEL J. GARANZINI, S.J. | |
Medallion recipients are recommended for the award by their respective academic deans because they exemplify achievement in and out of the classroom. They demonstrate scholarship, leadership, integrity, and community service.
Senior elementary education major Lauren Di Benedetto took her place in Loyola’s history of excellence at the annual President’s Ball in October, where she received the President’s Medallion for the School of Education.
“I’ve chosen to work in the field of education because I want to make a difference and act as an advocate for my students, providing them with the strength to achieve their dreams,” Di Benedetto told President’s Ball attendees. “I will continue to work to carry out the meaning behind the President’s Medallion.”
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| Stephen Wells, President’s Medallion winner for the School of Business Administration, shares his Loyola experiences at a December luncheon for alumni. |
Daniel Bateman, recipient of the Stritch School of Medicine medallion, has been rated one of the medical school’s most able and committed students by Stritch faculty members. He’s vice president of the Medical Student Union, and participated in an immersion mission trip to Guatemala.
“It was an honor to be chosen as the recipient of the President’s Medallion for the medical school,” says Bateman. “The medallion is a reflection of the excellent medical education I’ve received at Stritch, and I felt humbled to be among such outstanding students.” | APRIL SPECHT (BS ’01)
LOYOLA’S 2006-07 PRESIDENT’S MEDALLION WINNERS
Daniel R. Bateman, Stritch School of Medicine, a top-rated student, vice president of the Medical Student Union and the Student National Medical Association, participant in a mission immersion trip to Guatemala, and peer counselor for University Ministry
President Michael J. Garanzini, S.J. (back, center), poses with President’s Medallion winners (front, from left) Christie Mason, Purnima Chennamaneni, Christine M. Winford, Lauren Di Benedetto, (back row, from left) Daniel Fraczkowski, Patrick Query, Denis Ehmig, Stephen Wells, Jeremy Daniel, and Daniel Bateman.
Purnima Chennameneni, College of Arts and Sciences, member of the honors program, recipient of a Presidential Scholarship and a Mulcahy Scholarship for undergraduate-faculty team research, recipient of early admission to the Stritch School of Medicine, and volunteer at Evanston Hospital and the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago
Jeremy C. Daniel, School of Law, among the top 3 percent of his class, a senior member of the Loyola Law Journal, and a volunteer with the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center and Black Law Students’ Association’s Community Service Committee
Lauren Di Benedetto, School of Education, holder of a 3.8 GPA, president and major conference planner for the Future Teachers’ Organization, and an active member of several service-oriented student organizations
Denis Ehmig, St. Joseph College Seminary, holder of a 3.8 GPA, seminary resident assistant, parish religious education instructor and youth minister, and minister of care to an elderly terminal cancer patient
Daniel E. Fraczkowski, Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing, a Dean’s List member throughout his time at Loyola, officeholder in organizations including Amnesty International and the Student Nurses’ Association of Illinois, and volunteer in pediatric and adolescent units of Lutheran General Hospital
Christie Mason, School of Social Work, full-time instructor in the SSW’s undergraduate program, recipient of the 2005 Jimmy and Dorothy Fuerst Award for a paper, former editor of the SSW’s student-run journal, and a therapist at the Family Counseling Service of Aurora
Patrick Richard Query, Graduate School, winner of a Crown Fellowship, publisher of five articles and seven reviews, instructor at Loyola and other institutions, tutor at the Loyola Literacy Center, volunteer at St. Ignatius Pantry, and Little League coach
Stephen A. Wells, School of Business Administration, three-time Dean’s List honoree, vice president of student affairs at WTC for Unified Student Government, mentor and academic tutor at Youth Organization Umbrella Inc., and recipient of a peer-selected Damen Award for leadership
Christine M. Winford, School of Continuing and Professional Studies, full-time healthcare consultant, recipient of five scholarships this year, volunteer sign language interpreter, and mentor and nurse for the youth performance group Soul Children of Chicago