Monday, March 4, 2013

The Michael Pueppke Prize for Most Outstanding Conference Submission


The SMU English Grad conference is pleased to announce the Michael Pueppke Prize, a cash award of $125 given to the most outstanding conference paper submission. Nominees will be notified by email on March 8, 2013; the winner will be announced before the conference keynote address on March 23, 2013.  All abstracts submitted to smugradconference@gmail.com by the March 7, 2013 deadline will be considered for the prize. 


About the Michael Pueppke Prize

            Michael Pueppke (1982-2012) was a Ph.D. student in the SMU Department of English. A longtime resident of the Dallas-Ft. Worth Metroplex, he matriculated in the fall of 2008 after earning a Master’s degree in Technical Writing at the University of North Texas. He was a polite, somewhat reserved young man, possessed of a quick wit and wicked sense of humor. He also wrote perceptively and sensitively about his favorite subjects in Renaissance literature, especially Shakespeare. Mike stood out as one of the best students in the program.
In the spring of 2009, Mike fell ill with a rare form of leukemia. He took an extended leave to undergo treatment and work with his wife Brittni as they welcomed their first son, Luke. Over a year later, he returned to the program, and finished all his incomplete work in short order. He’d begun planning for his examinations when the leukemia returned. Mike passed away February 12, 2012.
The Mike Pueppke Award honors a bright, young, ambitious student who never gave up his dreams of finishing his degree and becoming a great teacher, a researcher, and eventually a university president. His drive, his love of friends and family, and his devotion to literature inspired all who knew him. The Pueppke award reflects work that befits that legacy.

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