UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State Smeal College of Business Director of Honor and Integrity Michelle Darnell recently announced that Felix Xu has been selected as the 2020-21 academic year recipient of the RISE Above Graduate Student Award.
Xu is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Marketing.
“Commitment to Honor & Integrity plays a critical role in Smeal’s efforts to be one of the very best business schools in the world," Darnell said, "and it is important that we take the time to recognize and celebrate those specific efforts by members of community that help to sustain our cultural commitments.
“Each of this year’s nominees exemplify the spirit of the Smeal Honor Code in their own way, but the award committee was particularly impressed by Felix, whose demonstration of ethical leadership was multifaceted – in his teaching, research and contributions to his academic department," added Darnell.
The RISE Above Graduate Student Award recognizes a graduate student for their commitment to advancing Smeal’s goals of promoting honor and integrity. This commitment can be demonstrated through any combination of behaviors demonstrated in the classroom, research, professional work or student leadership.
Two faculty members independently nominated Xu for the award. Nominations include a supporting statement regarding the contributions of the nominee to promote integrity and ethical behavior. Nominations were evaluated on quantity of activities that demonstrate advocacy of honor and integrity at Smeal or in professional work, innovation of described activities and impact of described activities.
The selection committee included Brian Cameron, associate dean of Professional Graduate Programs; Brent Ambrose, director of the doctoral program; Darnell; and the previous year’s recipient.
Previous recipients include:
- 2020: Nick Tessmer, Penn State Online MBA
- 2019: Anjier Chen, doctoral student in the Department of Management and Organization