Juniors Jacob Bruggeman and Miranda Woods awarded Miami's Goldman Prize

By Susan Meikle, university news and communications

Goldman Prize winners Jacob Bruggeman and Miranda Woods.

Juniors Jacob Bruggeman, a history and political science double major from Brunswick, and Miranda Woods, an architecture major from Washington, D.C., have each been awarded Miami’s Joanna Jackson Goldman Memorial Prize for the 2018-2019 academic year. The prize, worth up to $11,000 for each winner, will support their independent research and creative projects during their final year at Miami.

Bruggeman’s project, "The Origins of Homelessness in Frontier Cities: A Comparative Study of Cincinnati, Minneapolis-Saint Paul, Albuquerque and Salt Lake City," will be directed by faculty mentor Andrew Offenburger, assistant professor of history. 

Woods’ project, "Made in Africa: Connecting African Resources with American Sneaker Culture," will be directed by J. E. Elliott, lecturer in architecture and interior design.

Goldman Prize: No longer for one graduating senior; two juniors selected annually

Starting this year, the Goldman Prize is awarded to two rising seniors who will be supported for a year to carry out independently designed projects in scholarship, journalism or the arts under the direction of a faculty mentor. To be eligible for the prize, a student must have compiled an outstanding academic record, demonstrated a capacity for independent work, and shown creative initiative in some field of scholarship or the arts.

Miranda Woods at the Pensole Footwear Academy.

Students may propose a budget of up to $11,000. The support may be used to undertake incidental academic work related to their project.  

For instance, Woods will conduct research in Accra, Ghana, in the summer and will study shoe construction, pattern making and prototyping at the Pensole Footwear Academy in Portland, Oregon, during winter term. Bruggeman will travel across the country and conduct research in archives.

The intention of the prize is to give students with exceptional promise the rare luxury of pursuing ideas and activities that will enrich their later work and careers.

Students from any major may apply. To learn more, go to the university honors program website.

The prize honors Miami alumna Joanna Jackson Goldman's intellectual initiative on campus and her post-graduate activities in music, writing and publishing.