Kimberly Huynh

Graduate Fellowship Recipient, 2014

Kimberly Huynh, received a Bachelor of Science in environmental engineering from the McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science, in June 2014. Entering Northwestern University, Kimberly was invited to be a Murphy Scholar, an honor awarded to the top 16 engineering freshmen. She notes that “her passion is water” and her interest lies in water management and public health. For three years, she led Project Thirst, an effort to improve drinking water for a community in northern Chile, both managing a $10,000 budget and securing more than $20,000 in grants. Kimberly has done original and creative research in fluid mechanics recognized by several honors and awards. Her professor comments that “it is really incredible and a great tribute to Kimberly that she won such honors at both the largest undergraduate research conference in the area and at a major water conference (the Illinois Section of the American Water Works Association).” She is described as “clearly focused on being an environmental scientist.” Kimberly is studying for a master's degree in mechanical engineering at the McCormick School.

Lynn Lyster

Graduate Fellowship Recipient, 2014

Lynn Lyster received her Bachelor of Science in communications from Northwestern University in 2009. After graduating from Northwestern, Lynn spent more than five years on the business team at Axiom Law, the world’s largest and fastest growing non-traditional provider of legal services. There she led business development and account management efforts with Chicago-based Fortune 500 technology and professional services companies. Her manager noted, “Lynn stands out for her internal drive and track record of success vis-à-vis her peers and even those more senior to her.” Lynn is also a volunteer with the Horizons for Youth organization, providing mentorship to a high school student from a low-resource neighborhood in Chicago. Her goal is to teach high school English in a public school in the Chicago area and to become a leader in secondary English instruction. She believes that “proficiency in English is integral to every career and to leading a personally enriching life.” Lynn is studying for a master's degree in education at the School of Education and Social Policy.

Jessica Yu

Graduate Fellowship Recipient, 2014

Jessica Yu received a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science in June 2014. While Jessica’s major is chemical engineering, she has a minor in computer science. She became fascinated with the field of computational biology and has worked for three years pursuing this research. This year she earned a McCormick research award and also gave an oral presentation at the American Institute of Chemical Engineers national conference. Jessica feels that working in computational biology while completing chemical engineering and computer science coursework has given her a diverse set of skills. With a degree in biotechnology, she will be able to work at the interface of multiple fields. As an undergraduate, she also held a job and marched with the Northwestern band. One professor places Jessica “among the top 1% of her students.” She will pursue a Master of Biotechnology from the McCormick School.

Susan Phillips

Alumnae Teaching Professorship Recipient, 2014

Susan ("Susie") Phillips, associate professor of English and associate department chair, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, is the recipient of the 2014 Alumnae Teaching Professorship Award. The three-year award honors a tenured faculty member for excellence in teaching and curriculum innovation.

A medievalist who “brings the past to life,” Phillips is admired by her colleagues for her “academic brilliance” and by her students for infectious enthusiasm and innovative assignments. She teaches courses on late medieval and Early Modern book culture, medieval literature and culture (with an emphasis on the representation of sin and confession, heresy and rebellion), drama, Shakespeare and Chaucer. Her course on Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales concludes with a full-dress performance of one of the tales and counts as the final exam. Her courses on Shakespeare not only incorporate students’ favorite poems and pop songs, they include visits to the Deering Library Special Collections and trips to the theater for a live performance.

Phillips has published essays on later medieval pastoral practice, Renaissance dictionaries, gossip theory and medieval multilingualism. Her first book, Transforming Talk: The Problem with Gossip in Late Medieval England (Penn State 2007) explores the religious, cultural and literary work of “idle talk” in late medieval England. Gossips’ supposedly idle words, she argues, are transformative; they blur the boundaries between people, discourses, genres, and religious and cultural practices. Her current project, titled Polyglots and Pocketbooks, traces the cultural history of the dictionaries, phrasebooks and guides to conversations that flooded the European marketplace from the 15th through 17th centuries.

Professor Phillips, on the faculty of the English department since 2003, completed her Ph.D. and M.A. at Harvard University. She also earned a master’s degree from Cambridge University and graduated from Harvard and Radcliffe Colleges with a B.A.

Phillips is a recent recipient of the Weinberg College of Arts and Science Award for Distinguished Teaching in 2008 and the Alice Kaplan Institute for the Humanities Fellowship in 2009.

Letters in support of Professor Phillips’ nomination are filled with accolades and words of praise from faculty and students:

• “Students speak again and again of the engaging, accessible ways she brings Chaucer to life.”

• “One of her amazing talents is the ability to memorize the names and faces of all her students -- within a week or two.

• Her genuine interest in each student is seen in the time and attention she gives to students’ essays and papers.”
• “She has had a profound effect on my writing…my prose is clearer, more concise, and more scholarly,” writes one student.

• Another said, “Her feedback on papers alone is worth the cost of tuition.”

• A letter titled “Susie Phillips: Professor, Mentor, Life changer Extraordinare” says it all.