Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Campus & Community

Pellow Receives Wasserstrom Prize for Graduate Teaching

Monday, May 13, 2019, By Rob Enslin
Share
College of Arts and SciencesGraduate SchoolMaxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs
Woman outside Maxwell School building

Deborah Pellow

Deborah Pellow, professor of anthropology in the College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) and the Maxwell School, is the 2019 recipient of the William Wasserstrom Prize for the Teaching of Graduate Students.

A&S Dean Karin Ruhlandt conferred the prize on her at the Graduate School Doctoral Hooding Ceremony on Friday, May 10.

The prize memorializes William Wasserstrom, a noted English professor at Syracuse, who died in 1985. “Deborah Pellow embodies his approach as a graduate seminar leader, research and dissertation director, advisor and role model,” Ruhlandt says.

A multidisciplinary scholar, Pellow specializes in urban studies, the anthropology of space and place, and feminism, with emphasis on West Africa.

She is the author of five books, including the forthcoming “Living Afar, Longing for Home: The Role of Place in the Creation of the Dagomba New Elite”—drawing on more than four decades of research in Ghana, the past 15 years of which have been spent in the country’s Northern Region.

Douglas Armstrong, professor and chair of anthropology in A&S and Maxwell, notes the “strong bond” between Pellow and her graduate students. “It is a relationship characterized by intensive mentoring and impressive dedication,” he says.

Armstrong also mentions Pellow’s “open-door policy,” in which she invites students into her home for a delicious meal or quiet place to study. Pellow’s Thanksgiving Dinner, in fact, is a departmental tradition. “People come for the food, but stay for the conversation,” he adds.

Many of Pellow’s students have found their calling in academe. Fritz Lampe G’03, G’06, for example, teaches anthropology at Northern Arizona University.

“Deborah’s fieldwork experience, intellectual perspective and comfort in entertaining new data sets, collaborative relationships and ethnographic voice [have] created space for lively conversations,” says Lampe, also a campus pastor. “Her commitment to giving back to the department, the University and professional societies has inspired me to do the same.”

Other former students echo these sentiments. Richard L. Warms G’84, G’87, professor of anthropology at Texas State University, regards Pellow as an “ideal intellectual sparring partner”—someone who encourages students to “think deeply and challenge received ideas.”

Anthony Kwame Harrison G’99, G’04, the Gloria D. Smith Professor of Africana Studies, as well as associate professor of sociology and Africana studies at Virginia Tech, praises her “unwavering guidance, wisdom and love,” all of which have influenced his own professional trajectory.

For Pellow, the Wasserstrom Prize joins other honors from Syracuse, including A&S and Maxwell’s 2016 Faculty Advisor of the Year award.

Robert A. Rubinstein, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology and professor of international relations, considers Pellow a friend and colleague. “To say Deborah is involved in the life of the University is almost an understatement. Recognition for her decades of dedicated service to and care for doctoral education is richly deserved,” he says.

  • Author

Rob Enslin

  • Recent
  • Exploring the Existence of Life at 125 Degrees Fahrenheit
    Tuesday, September 26, 2023, By Dan Bernardi
  • Cool Class: Mona Awad’s Art of the Fairy Tale
    Tuesday, September 26, 2023, By Dan Bernardi
  • How Climate Warming Could Disrupt a Deep-Rooted Relationship
    Tuesday, September 26, 2023, By Dan Bernardi
  • Be Proactive: How to Keep Yourself Safe on Campus
    Tuesday, September 26, 2023, By Christine Weber
  • Academic Strategic Plan Launch Symposium Set for Sept. 26
    Monday, September 25, 2023, By Wendy S. Loughlin

More In Campus & Community

Be Proactive: How to Keep Yourself Safe on Campus

While the chances of you becoming the victim of a crime during your time at Syracuse are low, it is still important to know what steps you can take to keep yourself and your belongings safe. We have teamed up…

College of Visual and Performing Arts Welcomes New Full-Time Faculty

Sixteen new full-time faculty joined the College of Visual and Performing Arts (VPA) for the 2023-24 academic year. Two of the faculty members are also new department chairs in the college. Gregg Barron, assistant teaching professor of music industry in…

Academic Strategic Plan Launch Symposium Set for Sept. 26

Following a yearlong planning and development process involving hundreds of members of the campus community, “Leading With Distinction,” Syracuse University’s new academic strategic plan, was unveiled earlier this month. A launch symposium will be held on Tuesday, Sept. 26, from…

Water Main Break Near Bird Library to Be Repaired Monday

After a water main break occurred near Bird Library Sunday afternoon, construction efforts to resolve the issue will start around 6 a.m. Monday. While no buildings will be impacted by the efforts to repair the break, there will be both construction…

University Musicians, West Point Band to Perform Together This Weekend As Part of Events Around Military Appreciation Day

The spirit of the Orange will unite with the precision of the United States Army’s oldest active-duty band, the West Point Band, for several events this weekend at the University, including a public concert with the University’s Wind Ensemble in…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • X
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2023 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.