Four public policy students graduated from CEU in June 2015 with more than just their diplomas. They left also with Outstanding Academic Achievement Awards. Each year, CEU bestows these prestigious awards to graduating master's students from every department and school who have earned the highest GPA (grade point average). The four public policy students who were recognized for academic excellence in June 2015 were: Dustin Biero (MPA ’15), Lena Jacobs (MA ’15), Robert Papp (MPA ’15), and Myles Stiffler (MA ’15).
Looking back on his time at CEU, Biero comments on the great diversity of students. “As a Canadian one can sometimes think of themselves as fairly well acquainted with the subject of multiculturalism, however I was not prepared for the diversity of students, their individual stories, and the way our small community at SPP cared for one another.”
Jacobs says she too will remember the diversity of opinions and of cultures. “Conversations over breakfast in the dorms turned into lively discussions in class and later casual arguments over a beer in the city,” she says.
It’s not just their classmates that these students will remember. They also have very fond memories of their professors. Papp, for example, says that he especially enjoyed the classes he took with Professor Michael Dorsch “who taught me probably the most useful skills I learned – and did it in a very friendly classroom environment.” Stiffler cites Professor Lajos Bokros’ “vast experience in the real world” as just one of the reasons why his lectures were so memorable.
“Most importantly,” says Stiffler, “Dr. Bokros is a wonderful and caring individual who is more than willing to make time to have coffee with students to discuss their own individual interests, or to go more in-depth into the course material covered.”Stiffler too mentions “the special relationships that were fostered between my colleagues and other members of the CEU community.”
Papp says that what he will remember most is “that although every student was busy doing readings, writing papers, and meeting deadlines,” they still had time “for a smile when you met in the corridor.”
Jacobs says that her thesis advisor Professor Uwe Puetter also created a collaborative and uplifting atmosphere in class. “He also had an amazing ability to draw out important information from students, ensuring involvement from everyone,” she remembers. Biero says that Professor Cristina Corduneanu-Huci was also especially good at “bringing out the best in all of her students.” He says that she also “inspired me to reflect on academic topics in unexpected ways.”
Looking back, Jacobs says, “it was a lot of work, but it was rewarding too. I am happy that I made the most of it.”