EUGENE–Three University of Oregon graduate students were honored for their service and leadership during the annual Family Weekend All-University Awards luncheon on May 19.

The trio–Lorraine Brundige, Mami Mitachi and Simon Yoassi–received the 2001 Graduate Service Award in recognition of their academic merit and outstanding service to the community and university.

The award, jointly sponsored by the Graduate School and the Office of Student Life, was established seven years ago to recognize graduate students who have succeeded in merging education and service. A subcommittee of the Graduate Council and representatives of the UO Graduate School are responsible for selecting recipients each year.

Brundige is a doctoral degree student in philosophy and the daughter of Dora Mayer of Brandon, Manitoba, Canada. She has top grades and has received the Laurel Research Award, the Multicultural Excellence Award and the Fighting Fund Fellowship. She is a guest teacher at the Springfield Indian Education classes, the graduate liaison for Affirmative Action and the graduate student representative to the Colloquium and the Graduate Placement committees. Treasurer of the American Indian Philosophical Association, Brundige is a member of the Native American Communities Research Interest Group, the Returning Students Association and the Native American Student Union, as well as the Advisory Board of the Center for Indigenous Cultural Survival and the Center for the Study of Women in Society.

Mitachi maintains top grades as a special education doctoral degree student. She is the daughter of Taisei Hori of Tokyo, Japan, and of Motoko Hori of Gifu, Japan. The recipient of Departmental Honors, Director’s Distinction, the International Education and Exchange Certificate of Excellence and the International Student Leader and the International Service awards, she also won the Fukusako Prize and holds a research grant from the Ministry of Education in Japan. Mitachi has volunteered as an interpreter for the Mobility International USA/Exchange Program and for the Loving Touch Parent-Infant Massage Program and as a caregiver at Hilyard Community Center.

A master’s degree student in Romance languages, Yoassi, 1660 Arthur St., Eugene, is the son of Pauline Npassa of Cameroon. He holds a graduate teaching fellowship and has top grades, is the sports coordinator for the International Students Association, and is co-director of the student-run KWVA radio station at the University of Oregon and a disk jockey for KLCC at Lane Community College. He is a student leader for International Students Orientation and an intern at the Office of International Education and Exchange. Yoassi has presented programs on African culture and music to high schools, and at the university’s Foreign Language and International Studies Day.

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