Fina Amarilio '12, Philip Braunstein '12, Alyssa Kerr '12, Tamar Levkovich '12, and Jordan Talan '12 were granted the Brandeis Achievement Award, an annual award that recognizes sophomores for outstanding academic achievement, at the May 21 faculty meeting.Dean of Arts and Sciences Adam Jaffe announced the recipients of the award at the meeting, although only Kerr and Levkovich were present at the announcement.

According to the statement Jaffe read at the meeting, a copy of which he provided to the Justice, the Office of Students and Enrollment formulated the Brandeis Achievement Award in conjunction with the Student Union and the Office of the Dean of Arts and Sciences. The award was first presented in the 2004 to 2005 academic year, and 60 awards have subsequently been given out. The scholarships are worth $5,000 a semester.

Jaffe's statement goes on to explain that in order to be considered for this award, applicants must have a grade-point average above 3.5 and not already be the recipient of a merit award. The recipients of this year's award have been named to the Dean's List every semester, and their GPAs range from 3.773 to 3.973.

Jaffe wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that he was not responsible for the selection process and deferred questions to Dean of Student Financial Services Peter Giumette. Giumette was not available for an interview by press time.

In an e-mail to the Justice, Amarilio expressed extreme gratitude for receiving the reward. "I am beyond grateful for this award; I think it's wonderful that Brandeis has a way of recognizing its students' hard work while in college, because it seems that most scholarships are awarded upon entering the university," she wrote.

Levkovich wrote in an e-mail to the Justice that she learned she was a recipient of the award in April and that she was "shocked" when she found out.

"I heard that the award was especially competitive this year since so many incredible students applied, and although I was awaiting an answer, I didn't really think I would get it," she wrote.

-Alana Abramson