• Spark Awards

  • Spark Awards Graphic
  • As part of our annual Spark spring celebration, the university launched the Spark Awards to honor New School students, alumni, faculty, and staff who embody our bold spirit and commitment to one another. The awards spotlight achievements and recognize the passion, innovation, and actions that make our community unique. They honor those who generate fresh ideas, fuel creativity, and transcend boundaries to drive positive change on campus and beyond.

  • Spark 2025 Award Winners

    The Spark Awards recognize university members whose research, work, creativity, and passion light the way for others—whether through groundbreaking projects, boundary-pushing ideas, or everyday acts of care and connection that strengthen our community.

    The 2025 Spark Award recipients exemplify what it means to spark change, inspire others, and embody the progressive values at the heart of The New School.

    Black and white photo of four people

    The All for NarWELL Team

    Black and white photo of four people

    Since its inception, the All for NarWELL initiative—led by the Center for Global Mental Health and funded by a GLS SAMHSA Grant—has been dedicated to enhancing campus-wide suicide intervention efforts and mental health awareness programs. Working in collaboration with key partners, the initiative has trained over 500 individuals in suicide prevention strategies as well as over 200 in Psychological First Aid. To further support student well-being, platforms such as Togetherall and MindWise Innovation Screening & Training have been integrated into campus resources. Preliminary data indicates that these tools are effectively reaching vulnerable populations who might otherwise hesitate to seek help. 

    Key Contributors for the initiative include: Dr. Adam Brown, Director, Center for Global Mental Health; Psychology Professor, Linda Han, Research Coordinator, Center for Global Mental Health, Tamara Oyola-Santiago, Director, Wellness and Health Promotion, Dr. Sam Winer, Associate Professor of Psychology, Dr. Cheryl Greene, Associate Provost for Research, and Tracy Robin, Associate Provost, Student Health Services.

    Donna Weng Friedman portrait

    Donna Weng Friedman

    Donna Weng Friedman portrait

    Donna Weng Friedman has devoted her career to education and to championing diversity and inclusivity in classical music. She joined the piano faculty of Mannes Prep in 1989 and was named one of Musical America's Top 30 Professionals of 2024. Her virtual education program, "Heritage and Harmony: Her Art, Her Voice," created for the National Women’s History Museum, features leading women in the arts from diverse backgrounds who share their stories to inspire and empower school-age girls of color. Her latest initiative, "BRAVA Maestra," launching in 2025/2026 with the International Alliance for Women in Music, spotlights AAPI and BIPOC women conductors. Her award-winning documentary "Never Fade Away," which celebrates cultural heritage and resilience, is archived at the Statue of Liberty. Through her work, she aims to foster cross-cultural dialogue and help pave the way for a more inclusive and diverse artistic landscape.

    Portrait of the Food Pantry Team (group of people)

    The Food Pantry Team

    Portrait of the Food Pantry Team (group of people)

    An essential resource for The New School community, the Food Pantry allows many students to continue their studies and university involvement by reducing food insecurity. Managed largely by students for students, it has become a well-known resource and space for students to access not only for their food needs but to connect socially. The support of foundational needs like The Pantry are critical to successful efforts in every other dimension of The New School community. 

    The Food Pantry Team includes: Ivy Wang, Assistant Director of Student Support and Advocacy,  Ada Shookenhuff, Food Pantry Student Manager, and Food Pantry Student Assistants: Amanda Acevedo, Marcella Carter, Carolina Cortes, Nyliram Garcia, Jayla Glover, Daisy Green, Maneli Hosseinpour, Pamela McKeown, Sonya Perez, Vie Tolbert, and Joseph Velasquez.

    Portrait Grace Kelly

    Grace Kelly

    MA Political Science ’25

    Portrait Grace Kelly

    Grace Kelly is a creative and transdisciplinary scholar whose work bridges the arts, education, and social justice. Deeply committed to uplifting marginalized communities across New York City, she has led and contributed to initiatives ranging from teaching English through social-emotional learning to refugee children, to delivering reproductive health education and career readiness programs for Latina girls in multiple boroughs. Grace brings a unique blend of poetic insight, artistic expression, and academic rigor to every space she enters. Widely recognized as a collaborative peer and visionary educator, she continuously extends the impact of her university work into community-centered, interdisciplinary learning environments.

    Portrait of Molly David and Shannon Finnell

    Molly Davy and Shannon Finnell, MFA Photography ’18

    Portrait of Molly David and Shannon Finnell

    Staff & Part-Time Parsons faculty members Molly Davy and Shannon Finnell are spearheading Parsons Staff Art Show, to be on view in Fall ’25 at the Aronson and Kellen galleries. The work of staff can often feel more hidden than that of faculty, students, and even alumni, and can at times get overlooked within the context of our campus community's year-to-year activities and focus. Their efforts to lift up and showcase administrative staff as whole individuals, beyond their jobs, is the biggest and most far-reaching effort of its kind to take place at Parsons in recent memory. Taking on this initiative outside the purview of their administrative roles, while tapping into their expertise as curators themselves, sets a new precedent for staff recognition across the university.

    Spitting Image: three people pose in a black and white photo

    Spitting Image Art Book Fair

    Spitting Image: three people pose in a black and white photo

    Spitting Image Art Book Fair is The New School's first community exhibition and tabling event for print media. Launched in Fall ‘23 and student-run, it has borne a beautiful community of book artists, chapbook makers, and print aficionados across campus, gifting many with their first opportunity to exhibit their work in a public setting. The team’s passion for the project is palpable. In its exhibition efforts, Spitting Image has facilitated and presented the contemporary presence of the book arts amongst our student body, which connects outwardly to NYC's generation's-old print and DIY scene. Spitting Image continues to connect its students to other opportunities in the arts by programming its exhibition with guest speakers that are truly engaged professionals in arts publishing and community organizing. It is funded by university opportunities like the Provost's Investment Fund and Lang College's Community Events grant. Its organizers have also allocated funds to make this event accessible for students to participate in and free of charge for external visitors. It creates a platform for art exhibitions, cultural engagement, and community building. 

    The Team includes: Gabriella Acquafredda, BA Literary Studies and BFA Communication Design ’26, Manuela V. do Amaral, Research Assistant and BA Literary Studies ’25, Camila Pernisco, Research Assistant and BA Literary Studies ’25, and Polina Sotnik-Platt, BA Anthropology and BFA Illustration ’26. 

    Portrait of (Pepi) Yi Qing Ng

    (Pepi) Yi Qing Ng

    Design & Technology BFA ’25

    Portrait of (Pepi) Yi Qing Ng

    (Pepi) Yi Qing Ng has done incredible work on campus, leading the work of Frugalicious Mamas, working with the Food Pantry and other spaces to share resources and materials that students need, and creating a culture of mutual aid in the university. She has many creative projects focusing on supporting communities and is an outstanding student, always finding ways to support and collaborate with her peers and faculty.

    Portrait of Kim Nauer

    The Team at Understanding FAFSA.org

    Portrait of Kim Nauer

    The Team at UnderstandingFAFSA.org is proud to offer how-to instruction, service, and breaking news for families and counselors who need help with an often byzantine financial aid process. The website is best known for its popular book, Understanding FAFSA and Financial Aid: Your Guide to Paying for College. The NYC DOE has been a longtime partner, translating the guide into ten languages, printing it, and distributing it to all high school seniors and their families in their home language. This project has always been run on passion and a shoestring budget, which is why The New School’s name and its ability to inspire a cadre of committed creatives has been so important. UnderstandingFAFSA.org benefits from the pure passion of artistic souls who care about college. But it is the student's work that has powered this project and made it truly special. 

    The Center for NYC Affairs UnderstandingFAFSA.org Team includes: Kim Nauer, UnderstandingFAFSA.org Founder, Editor Laura Zingmond, Illustrator RJ Matson, Publication Design Patrick Moroney, and Curriculum Development Geoff Decker. The Team also includes numerous student and alumni contributors, including but not limited to: Shristi Singh, Design and Technology Alum, and Frida Moreno, Transdisciplinary Design and Civic Service Design Alum, and the 2025-26 New School Student Team (Federal Work Study): Myles Ashitey, Gil Hatcher, Hannah Lee, Joshua Renner, Johnny Rieg, and Lu Williams.  

  • 2025 Spark Award Nominees

    In its inaugural year, over 180 individuals and groups—including students, faculty, staff, and alumni from all areas of the university—were nominated or submitted nominations for the 2025 Spark Award.

  • Guidelines

    The Spark Award nominations are open to all current community members—including students, faculty, staff, and our alumni community. A diverse committee of faculty, staff, students, and alumni will review nominations and select the final award recipients.

    Note: Nominations for the 2025 Awards are now closed and winners have been announced. Learn more about this year's winners.

    Eligibility

    Nominees must be current students, faculty, staff or alumni of The New School. Both individuals and collaborative groups are eligible for nomination. We encourage nominations that reflect our community's unique spark and The New School’s bold spirit.

    Criteria

    All nominations should meet at least one of the following criteria to be considered for selection:

    • Impact: The nominee’s work or creative pursuits ignite forward-thinking ideas and innovation that make a difference on campus, in NYC, or beyond.
    • Leadership: The nominee inspires and nurtures others through their vision and leadership.
    • Community: The nominee fosters community on campus through their work at any level, from their own circles to the university as a whole.
    • Collaboration: The nominee facilitates collaboration, employing an inclusive approach that builds creative connections.

    Recognition & Celebration

    Each of the award recipients will receive a $250 cash prize, will be highlighted in university communications, and will be celebrated at the university-wide Spark reception event in the spring. 

    All nominees and New School community members are invited to attend the reception.

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