Steve Martin recipient of Senior Class Award

Professor of Communication Steve Martin

At this spring’s Awards Convocation, Steve Martin ’96, professor of communication, received the Senior Class Award.

Dakota Marlega ’21, a member of the Senior Class Board, says of the selection process, “We felt Professor Steve Martin really embodied a lot of what we appreciated during our time at Ripon: a commitment to the liberal arts, a genuine enthusiasm for learning and teaching, and tenacity through everything, including a pandemic.”

This year’s senior class included nearly 20 communication majors and minors, and Martin “diligently led us through our Senior Seminar,” Marlega says. “He took time to check in with his students, in addition to his stellar instruction. He fosters critical thinking and improves students’ verbal and written communication skills.”

Martin, a 1996 graduate of Ripon, also demonstrates the significance of connections at Ripon, Marlega says. “We’re all alumni now, and we feel a strong connection to Ripon because of past graduates like Steve, who not only teach us in the classroom, but also outside of it — especially when it comes to supporting fellow Red Hawks for years to come. We were really grateful to show some appreciation for a professor who has time and again risen to the challenge and made us all better students, thinkers and human beings.”