Global Citizen Awards

Nadia Rassech

2024 Recipient

Nadia is an undergraduate student from California studying International Affairs and Middle Eastern Studies (MES). She was originally drawn to FSU because of its international opportunities and education. “With so much uncertainty during the college application process, one thing I knew for sure was that I wanted to study abroad – to build my global perspectives, cross-cultural communication skills, and knowledge of language and international politics,” said Nadia. She was able to go abroad, completing an internship in Halle, Germany for a refugee aid organization, expanding her education at FSU outside of her classes: “This experience expanded my understanding of global issues and refugee protection, as well as other models for government and civil society resettlement programs.”  Read More

Yeimy Roberto

2024 Recipient

Yeimy is currently a Ph.D. Candidate from Colombia, majoring in Hispanic Linguistics. Throughout her time in Tallahassee, she has been a part of many organizations, serving as the president of the Hispanic Graduate Student Association, a volunteer with Good News Outreach, and the treasurer for both Sigma Delta Pi and the Spanish Honors Society. Yeimy also told us about the other awards she has acquired during her time at FSU alongside the Global Citizen Award: “I am proud to have been awarded the Sigma Delta Pi Summer Research Grant (2023), the Winthrop King Summer Research Grant (2023), the Outstanding Alumni Universidad Industrial de Santander (2023), and the Kerr Fellowship in Leadership (2021).”  Read More

Gizem Solmaz-Ratzlaff

2023 Recipient

Gizem is a doctoral student from Turkey who is enrolled in the Curriculum and Instruction program in Florida State University’s College of Education. In her time at FSU, Solmaz-Ratzlaff, has been involved in a variety of campus groups and activities and has been the recipient of numerous fellowships, awards and scholarships.  Read More

Jorge Galeano-Cabral

2023 Recipient

Jorge Galeano-Cabral is a doctoral student from Paraguay studying Mechanical Engineering at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering. Jorge said this is what it meant to him to win this award, “In addition to it being a great honor, winning this award reassures me that I am on the right track in helping to build a stronger and more global community on the Florida State campus. It also gives me more motivation to continue serving this community.” Read More

Laura Medina

2022 Recipient

Laura Medina is a senior studying International Affairs. She has participated in the Global Citizenship Certificate, served as a Global Noles Mentor for exchange students, facilitated English Conversation Club for international students and scholars, served as in intern for the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights, and participated in the Council for International Educational Exchange in Amman, Jordan. Her nominator described her as someone who, “believes in building a global society where we can acknowledge our differences, cherish them, and work together to create a better Earth for all of us.”  

Amit Kumar Nath

2022 Recipient

Amit Kumar Nath is a doctoral student in Bangladesh who is studying Computer Science. His leadership activities as president and cultural secretary for the Bangladeshi Student Association promoted social awareness and a global understanding while honoring the Bangladeshi heritage with the greater FSU community. While everyone was working and studying remotely in 2020-2021, he worked hard to make sure that his community was still able to come together online through events such as Virtual International Coffee Hour and Virtual International Bazaar. In addition, he developed the official BSA-FSU YouTube channel where members could upload and share cultural performances that were shot around Tallahassee. He has also been a key player in recruiting new students from Bangladesh and welcoming new international students to the FSU campus.  

Hanya Noussier

2021 Recipient

Hanya Noussier is a junior international student from Egypt who is studying Communications. She is described as the embodiment of the ideal global citizen. She works hard to provide outreach, support, and visibility for the international community, using her own experience as a platform for her advocacy. From her involvement in the College of Communication’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee to her role as an FSU Global Ambassador, her work furthers internationalization initiatives at FSU and provides the campus community with a critical understanding of the international student experience.  

Madelyn Johnson

2021 Recipient

Madelyn Johnson is a senior studying Middle Eastern Studies and International Affairs. Through her internship experience at the Center for Advancement of Human Rights and International Rescue Committee, extracurricular dedication to establishing an Arab Honors Society, and research abroad in Peru and Jordan, she is contributing in significant ways to refugee communities globally. Her determination and work ethic culminated in her receiving the prestigious Boren Scholarship, where she was able to provide direct humanitarian aid to refugees in Jordan.  

Pietro Pesce

2021 Recipient

Pietro Pesce is a graduate international student from Italy who is in the Italian Studies program. He goes above and beyond in his role as the President of La Societa Italiana, providing engaging and popular programs for the FSU community to connect more directly with Italian culture and language. He is considered a top tier leader and mentor at FSU, where he cultivates a positive, engaging, and supportive learning environment for all of his students. He embraces and celebrates the breadth of cultural contexts within the FSU community in everything he does.  

Chanelle Dupuis

2020 Recipient

Chanelle Dupuis is a senior studying French and Spanish. She has fostered a global community at FSU through her leadership of La Table Français, an RSO at FSU that promotes the understanding, study, and appreciation of the French language and Francophone cultures. Under her leadership, the group's membership increased from 5 to over 150 in three years. She has also extensively researched and advocated for endangered languages in the Amazon through “Amazon Week” at FSU. She approaches the Francophone and Amazonian worlds from a non-dominant American perspective, a skill any global citizen should practice. 

Alexander Alvarado

2020 Recipient

Alexander Alvarado is a senior studying International Affairs. He has served as the President of the Dominican Student Association and FSU’s chapter of Sigma Lambda Beta International Fraternity. His leadership and service include CARE, the International Rescue Committee, and three separate internships with non-profit organizations in India, the Dominican Republic, and France. As an employee and student leader in the Center for Global Engagement, he consistently strives to create a welcoming environment for students.

Vivianne Asturizaga

2019 Recipient

Vivianne Asturizaga, a doctoral student from Bolivia studying musicology, has used her boundless energy and passion for sharing her culture to foster intercultural connections between students and music organizations at FSU and around the world. Through music, Vivianne brings the culture of Bolivia and other Latin American countries to FSU and Tallahassee. As the leader of FSU's Andean Ensemble, Vivianne teaches students how to play instruments and music from the South American Central Andes. Read More

Allison Lang

2019 Recipient

Allison Lang, a senior studying political science and international affairs, has supported international students and internationalization initiatives at FSU since arriving in fall 2015. In addition to working on the Center for Global Engagement's intercultural programming team, supporting international students upon arrival at orientation and throughout the academic school year, and serving as the Global Ambassador Program coordinator, she has served as a mentor in the Global Nole program, providing incoming Global Exchange students with a real glimpse into her life as an American college student. Read More

William Vince Dewar

2018 Recipient

Dewar, a senior studying international affairs, has made significant contributions to the FSU community and beyond as a leader with the Tallahassee Haiti Medical Team. Under Dewar’s leadership since 2010, the Tallahassee Haiti Medical team has taken nine medical missions to Haiti, each of which included 15 or more American volunteers. In Haiti, he established a clean water program and managed a local staff of more than 10. As part of FSU’s Moellership Program, Dewar volunteered in Uganda to improve the economic well-being of local women through micro-loans. 

Lillie Sullivan

2018 Recipient

Sullivan, a junior studying international affairs and Middle Eastern studies, has engaged the FSU and Tallahassee community in relief efforts for Syrian refugees both within our community and abroad. As an executive board member for Students Organize for Syria, or SOS, Sullivan organized a clothing drive on campus that distributed nearly 10,000 clothing items to refugee camps in the Middle East and led a campaign to provide college scholarships for displaced Syrians. While studying last summer in Lebanon, she also served as a tutor in refugee camps. 

Ramy Noseir

2018 Recipient

Nosier, a senior studying psychology, is an international student from Egypt who has become an integral part of the FSU community and a bridge between cultures during his time as an FSU student. He is not only a community volunteer who leads FSU students in service projects for local and international refugees, he is also an award-winning Resident Assistant and a nationally competitive table-tennis player.  Through his volunteer work with at the Tallahassee International Rescue Committee (IRC), Nosier was praised for his integrity and dedication to assisting our community’s newly-arrived refugees.

Elisa Gomez

2017 Recipient

Gomez, a senior studying family and child sciences, has made significant contributions to the FSU community through her service in the First Responder/Emergency Medical Responder program. As a future health care professional, she is committed to equal access to healthcare for individuals worldwide. Gomez has assisted local doctors through MEDLIFE in Ecuador, she has served at both a hospital and schools in India as part of FSU’s Global Scholars program, and she has completed a medical internship with MEDLIFE in Peru.

Anwer Al-Kaimakchi

2017 Recipient

Al-Kaimakchi, a master’s student studying civil and environmental engineering, is an international student from Iraq who has dedicated his free time to serving FSU students and the Tallahassee community. Al-Kaimakchi worked at the Center for Global Engagement assisting new international students with their transition to life at FSU. He is a member of the Global Ambassadors Program, giving cultural presentations and Arabic language workshops to young students at local Tallahassee schools and community organizations. In addition, he has spent a great deal of time assisting refugee families and serving as an Arabic translator for the International Rescue Committee.

Jesse Smith-Appleson

2016 Recipient

Jesse Smith-Appleson, a senior Sociology major with a wide range of cross-cultural engagement, including volunteer service in Nicaragua, a Social Science Scholar research internship in Paraguay, an internship working with Latino farmworker youth, involvement with FSU’s Advocates for Immigrant and Refugee Rights’ Farmworker Committee, and her work with the Center for Global Engagement as a student assistant. 

Ye Wang

2016 Recipient

Ye Wang, a doctoral student in Educational Psychology. Wang has volunteered to assist new international students to ease their transition to life at FSU and is ever-present at intercultural events on campus. He has had a campus-wide impact through his service to the Asian American Student Union (AASU) as he works to bridge the gap between FSU’s international students and AASU members.

Austin Wisdom

2015 Recipient

Austin Wisdom double majored in International Affairs and Latin-American Caribbean Studies. From supporting anti-human trafficking efforts to hosting holiday meals for exchange students and helping international students improve their English skills, Austin’s nominator sums it up well: Austin “has been selfless… in his commitment to serving the international community.”

Daniela Donoso

2015 Recipient

Daniela Donoso double majored in Economics and International Affairs. Daniela worked as a Peer Mentor, leading and living alongside FSU exchange students from China, South Korea, Japan, Mexico and Canada. She also served as Community Outreach Chair for AIRR, Advocates for Immigrants and Refugee Rights, and Volunteer Coordinator for FSU’s Chapter of the International Justice Mission.

Parth Vakil

2014 Recipient

Parth Vakil received his doctoral degree in Chemistry. In addition to serving as International Student Advocate with the Congress of Graduate Students and Vice President of the student organization InternatiNole, Parth presented interactive talks about his home country of Kenya to local schools as a Global Ambassador, assisted in organizing a TEDxFSU event, and represented FSU at the Florida International Leadership Conference.

Matthew Vedrin

2014 Recipient

Matthew Vedrin received a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He worked as an International student Peer Mentor and Critical Skills Mentor in the CGE and advocated for international exchange at the College of Engineering. He went on an exchange to Jonkoping University in Sweden and spend a semester in Brazil collaborating with Brazilian students on a joint senior design project in sustainable energy.

Marlene Baldeweg-Rau

2013 Recipient

Marlene Baldeweg-Rau received a bachelor's degree in Editing, Writing, and Media. She went the extra mile to make people feel welcomed. Marlene used her cross-cultural experiences to educate and motivate others. She studied abroad in Germany and served as Vice President of InternatioNole.

Paige Dabney

2013 Recipient

Paige Dabney received her bachelor's degree in International Affairs. She volunteered as a conversation partner with the Center for Intensive English Studies, presented sessions at the Multicultural Leadership Summit and Going Global, represented FSU as a participant at FILC, assisted with Global Café, and served as director of public relations and treasurer for InternatioNole.

Pradiip Alvarez

2012 Recipient

Pradiip Alvarez received his bachelor's degree in physics and astrophysics. Pradiip played a central role in encouraging other Venezuelan and international students at the Panama Canal campus to take advantage of the opportunity to study at the FSU main campus in Tallahassee. In 2011, Pradiip represented FSU at the Florida International Leadership Conference.

John Sheetz

2012 Recipient

John Sheetz earned his graduate degree from the College of Social Work. Prior to studying at FSU, John served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Ukraine for four years.  At FSU John studied abroad in South Africa, interned with the Catholic Charities Refugee Services, and completed the Global Pathways Certificate – Human Rights track.

James Arinaitwe

2011 Recipient

Khadijah Gray

2011 Recipient

Dustin Daniels

2011 Recipient

Safiah Afify

2011 Recipient

Marie LeBlanc

2010 Recipient