Academic achievement prizes, prize scholarships and other recognition of student accomplishments were awarded at Hamilton's 58th annual Class & Charter Day convocation on Friday, May 9 in the Chapel. Among the top prizes, Casey Green '09 won the Milton F. Fillius Jr./Joseph Drown Prize Scholarship and Marco Allodi '08 was awarded the James Soper Merrill Prize.
The Milton F. Fillius, Jr./Joseph Drown Prize Scholarship, established by the Joseph Drown Foundation, is awarded to a student completing the junior year who has been very successful academically, who has demonstrated outstanding leadership qualities while at Hamilton and who is likely to make a significant contribution to society in the future.
The James Soper Merrill Prize is awarded to the member of the graduating class "who, in character and influence, has typified the highest ideals of the College." The winner is selected by the faculty.
A total of 151 students won other prizes and scholarships for public speaking, writing and achievement in all academic disciplines. This year's speaker was Austin Briggs, the Hamilton B. Tompkins Professor of English Literature emeritus. His talk was titled "The Good Old Days/The Bad Old Days." Briggs has taught at Hamilton for more than 50 years.
An all-campus picnic followed the awards and HamTrek, the fifth annual campus triathalon, began at 2:30 p.m. with more than 100 teams competing.
