They study human trafficking, Buddhism, postpartum depression and geometry and dynamics. Yet despite their academic differences, Amy Saltzman '05 and graduate students Paul Copp, Holly Sanders, Michael Shell and Lior Silberman all received the highest academic awards bestowed by the University at Alumni Day Saturday.
Saltzman received the Moses Taylor Pyne Honor Prize, which annually recognizes a senior exemplifying extraordinary academic achievement, strength of character and effective leadership.
When Saltzman received an email three weeks ago from Dean of the College Kathleen Deignan, she thought she was in trouble, she said.
"But when I walked into the office, Dean Deignan and Dean Malkiel were smiling," Saltzman said. "And I was shocked."
Saltzman, an anthropology major, also studies molecular biology in hopes of fulfilling her lifelong dream to be a doctor.
After graduation, Saltzman is considering pursuing a Ph.D. in medical anthropology or researching ethnography in the formation of culture before attending medical school.
In addition to her work at Princeton, Saltzman has worked in the genetics department at Case Western Reserve University, the social medicine department at Harvard University and a biopharmaceutical company in Cleveland.
She spent last summer in Fiji, researching for her senior thesis on the effect of postpartum depression on Fijan women within the context of social and economic change.
Graduate students Copp, Sanders, Shell and Silberman received the Porter Ogden Jacobus Fellowship, which funds the final year of study for graduate students. It is awarded to one student in each of four disciplines: engineering, the natural sciences, the social sciences and the humanities.
Though the graduate students were informed of their honor in June, they still remember their excitement at learning of their awards.
"It was an unexpected honor," Copp said. "I was humbled knowing that many prominent professors selected me after looking at my work."
Copp, a doctoral student in the religion department, is writing his dissertation on Buddhist spells in late medieval China.
After becoming interested in martial arts and Buddhism in high school and at the University of Connecticut-Storrs, Copp studied tai chi and classical Chinese in Taiwan for five years.
Copp — whose research touches on art history, literature and philosophy — said he thought that the interdisciplinary nature of his studies led to his recognition.
Shell, a chemical engineering major who earned his bachelor's degree in the subject from Carnegie Mellon University, uses computer simulation to model protein design. His work could have prominent effects in nanotechnology.
Shell is propelled by his passion and by the freedom of study the University allows him.
"I feel a lot of key ingredients have come together here at Princeton," he said. "I was co-advised by two people . . . who let me pursue many avenues of study. They also gave me control of where my research project went. And I always studied subjects I was interested in and fascinated by."
Silberman was recognized for his ability to apply a wide range of data to difficult mathematical problems. He earned an undergraduate degree from Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and plans to join the Institute for Advanced Study this year.
Sanders, a doctoral student in the history department, earned her bachelor's degree in Asian studies from the University of Texas-Austin and a master's degree in Japanese studies from Osaka University in Japan. Her studies trace the changing dynamics of prostitution in Japan after World War II.
She expressed gratitude to the University for acknowledging her work.
"I still cannot believe it," Sanders said. "This is the highest award Princeton gives to grad students. I think it's nice that the University supports tracks of study that are not necessarily in the norm — for example, my tracing of sexual slavery and human trafficking. And I'm happy that [the University] chose to honor not only me, but also the work that I'm doing."
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