Congratulations to MA student Tori Tensi on being named one of the three recipients of the 2023 Phillip J. Amsterdam Graduate Teaching Assistant Award!
Tori Tensi is a second-year criminology master’s student from Asheville, North Carolina. She has been a graduate teaching assistant in each of her four semesters at GWU, working with professors in three different classes: Sociology of Law, Introduction to Sociology (2 semesters) and Quantitative Data Analysis. Before coming to GWU, Tori received her undergraduate degree in sociology from Appalachian State University in 2018. She then worked at a nonprofit in Atlanta, Georgia working with survivors of sex trafficking and sexual violence. Tori’s various work and internship experiences with survivors of sexual violence/trauma has driven her interest in studying how power, institutions, policy, and societal norms influence and intersect with sexual & gendered violence. Following graduation in May, Tori plans on entering back into the professional workforce, and is pursuing employment within the federal government.
When asked about receiving the award, Tori said:
“I am incredibly honored and proud to have been selected as one of three recipients of the 2023 Phillip J. Amsterdam Graduate Teaching Assistant Award. Being a GTA has been one of my favorite, most challenging, and most rewarding parts of graduate school. I am so delighted and grateful to receive this accolade. A huge thank you to my nominator and faculty supervisor, Jee Jee Kim, as well as to the Department Chair Hiromi Ishizawa and Graduate Program Director Fran Buntman for the support they have shown me. I’m very proud to represent the Sociology/Criminology Department!”
The Honors Ceremony will be held on May 4th at 4:00 PM in the Jack Morton Auditorium, with a reception immediately to follow. Make sure to RSVP for the event, and please see the Faculty Affairs website for more information.