The Braun Awards for Writing Excellence

“Our ability to write well is our ability to think well.” ~ Ruth Braun

Outstanding student writing will be recognized with a cash prize in each of the following categories:

Undergraduate Writing

• General Education (all departments)
• Scott L. Carmona College of Business
• College of Education
• College of Science, Engineering and Technology
• College of Health and Human Services
  • Category One: Health Sciences, Kinesiology, and Occupational Therapy
  • Category Two: Nursing and Social Work
• College of Arts and Behavioral Sciences
  • Category One (Arts and Humanities): Art, English*, History, Modern Foreign Languages, Music, Philosophy, Rhetoric and Professional Writing, and Theatre
  • Category Two (Behavioral Sciences): Communication, Criminal Justice, Geography, Political Science, Psychology, and Sociology
• Multimedia: including podcasts, voiceover infographics, Prezis, graphical abstracts, sound projects, video projects, social media campaigns, writing from poster presentations, and other creative categories.

Graduate Writing 

• All programs
• Multimedia: including podcasts, voiceover infographics, Prezis, graphical abstracts, sound projects, video projects, social media campaigns, writing from poster presentations, and other creative categories.

In each category, judges will evaluate the essay using the following criteria:

• Represents appropriate writing in the discipline
• Presents engaging content, integrating critical and/or creative/original thinking
• Displays logical organization
• Demonstrates synthesis and integration of authoritative sources, including appropriate citation
• Communicates significant content effectively to audience. (Minor surface errors will not disqualify a submission.)

Papers written since Winter semester 2024 may be submitted for this award.

All submissions require the student paper and faculty nomination letter for consideration.

To learn more about this award and/or to submit your work, visit:

Undergraduate: https://svsu.infoready4.com/#competitionDetail/1958477

Graduate: https://svsu.infoready4.com/#competitionDetail/1958474

The submission deadline is Friday, February 28, 2025. 

If you have any questions about this award, please contact Dr. Kim Lacey (krlacey@svsu.edu).  

Note: Honors theses and proposals, Faculty Association Scholarship projects, SRCI proposals and projects, senior design projects, and the like are not eligible for nomination. Previously published work is not eligible.

*If you have submitted a paper for the English department’s Tyner or Seitz Awards, that paper is ineligible for consideration for a Braun award. Students in ENGL 111 and ENGL 080 should submit their work to the First Year Writing Awards