Department Scholarships
Dr. Charles A. Messner Scholarship Fund
A $5,000 annual scholarship; half awarded at the beginning of the fall semester and half awarded at the beginning of the spring semester.
The scholarship is renewable for up to three additional years provided the recipient earns a 3.0 cumulative GPA and continues to have a declared major in a humanities program.
George T. Hole Scholarship
Established in 2010, the George T. Hole Philosophy Scholarship Fund provides one $1,000 scholarship each year to a student majoring in philosophy. To be eligible, candidates must meet the following criteria:
- be a full-time, undergraduate student enrolled at Buffalo State
- have a declared major in philosophy
- be a sophomore or junior at the time the recipient is selected; and
- have an overall GPA of 3.25 or higher.
The scholarship is renewable as long as the recipient continues to meet the above criteria.
The department chair identifies a pool of candidates each spring. The recipient is selected by a committee composed of the department chair and the personnel committee. The recipient will be notified in the spring and will receive the scholarship the following fall semester.
Victor Balowitz Scholarship
The Victor Balowitz Scholarship fund was established to provide scholarship assistance to outstanding students majoring in philosophy. Balowitz (1931-1996) received his Ph.D. in philosophy from Columbia in 1969. He started teaching at Buffalo State in 1964 where he pursued his interests in Frege and Descartes. In 1994 Professor Balowitz received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching.
Scholarship Recipients
- 2019-2020 Taylor Seymour, Philosophy
- 2018-2019 Taylor Seymour, Philosophy
- 2017-2018 Taylor Seymour, Philosophy
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2021-2022: Nicholas Stanford, Philosophy and Music Education
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2020-2021: Nicholas Stanford, Philosophy and Music Education
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2017-2019: Bianca Gonzales, Honors, Philosophy and English
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2015-2016: Maria Lema, Philosophy and Mathematics
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2014-2015: Sarah Johnson, Philosophy
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2013-2014: Troy Caruana, Philosophy and French
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2011-2013: Sarah Caputi, Honors, Philosophy and Urban Planning
- 2021-2022: Justin Agurto, Philosophy; Nicholas Stanford, Philosophy and Music Education
- 2019-2020: Taylor Seymour, Philosophy
- 2017-2018: Taylor Seymour, Philosophy; Julia Hamilton, English
- 2016-2017: Nolan Wall, Philosophy; Justin Tasker, Philosophy
- 2013-2014: Joshua Terhaar, Philosophy and Mathematics; Leslie Edminton, Philosophy
- 2012-2013: William Watkins, Philosophy; Casey Brescia, Philosophy
- 2011-2012: Nadeen Bawab, Honors, Philosophy and Individualized Studies; Jason Offerman, Philosophy and German minor; Jenna Tomasello, Philosophy and Legal Studies minor
- 2010-2011: Nathan Grammer, Philosophy; Thomas Vrabel, Philosophy and Political Science
- 2009-2010: David Whitehead, Philosophy and English
- 2008-2009: Darla-Jo Joyce, Philosophy; Jacob Platt, Philosophy; Yevgeny Yarmolinets, Philosophy, Psychology minor