2025 Spring Awards and End of Year Celebration at the Stone Center
The 2024-2025 Academic Year has been an extra especially meaningful one at the Stone Center for Latin American Studies. It began with continued celebrations of the centennial anniversary of Latin American Studies at Tulane University, and the Spring semester opened with the Moving Media Pre-Conference Symposium.
As we wrap up the year, we celebrate the achievements of our students and toast to our graduating students. We also bid farewell to key members of our community who have shaped the Stone Center for decades: Assistant Director of Administration Suyapa Inglés and Executive Director Thomas F. Reese.

This year’s End of Year Celebration took a new form. Instead of our traditional picnic, we gathered on May 9 at the 1834 Club for a special evening that combined community and recognition. During the event, the Latin American Graduate Organization (LAGO) presented the LAGO Outstanding Awards, and we presented the newly renamed Maureen E. Shea Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching and honored Suyapa Inglés, who is retiring after 34 years of dedicated service.
Some traditions, however, remained: the 2025 Spring Awards Ceremony was held as usual in the Greenleaf Conference Room on May 2. The Best Graduate Paper in Social Sciences by a Latin American Graduate Student was renamed to honor Samuel Z. Stone Professor of Latin American Economics, Nora Lustig. Below is the full list of this year’s award recipients.
In addition, on May 1, Tulane University celebrated Thomas F. Reese’s 25-year legacy at his Retirement Celebration at 2 Audubon Place. Tulane News recently published an article reflecting on Dr. Reese’s contributions—read it here.

2025 Awards Paper Prizes
William J. Griffith Award for Outstanding Teaching Assistant in Latin American Studies – Erin Hannahan
William J. Griffith Award for Outstanding Teaching Assistant in Latin American Studies - Rachel Moody, “Gender Quotas and Gender Stereotypes: Their Impact on Reproductive and Sexual Health Policy”
Alberto Vázquez Award for the Best Undergraduate Paper in Humanities by a Latin American Studies Major/Minor - Sophia Young, “The Bilingual Paradox: Disadvantages for Monolingual Guaraní Speakers in Paraguay’s Education System”
Stone Center Award for Best Campus-Wide Graduate Paper on a Latin American Topic - Ezra Remer, “From the Countryside to the City: A Study of Geography and Labor Organizing in Dominica’s 1979 Revolt”
Nora Lustig Award for the Best Graduate Paper in the Social Sciences by a Latin American Graduate Student - Juliette Maasland, “The Extractivist Populist Playbook of Latin American Leaders in the 21st Century”
Donald Robertson Award for the Best Graduate Paper in Humanities by a Latin American Graduate Student - Isdanny Morales Sosa, “Historia extraordinarias en relación: en lugar pequeño en PR3 Aguirre (2018) de Marta Aponte Alsina”
Guillermo Náñez-Falcón Prize - Sarah Brokenborough, “Strong Brews and Bold Views: Exhibiting the Empire of Brazil and its Coffee Exports in the U.S. South”

2025 LAGO Outstanding Awards
LAGO Outstanding Faculty Service Award - Laura Rosanne Adderley
LAGO Outstanding Staff Service Award - Suyapa Inglés
LAGO Outstanding Graduate Student Service Award - Juliette Maasland

2025 Maureen Shea Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching
I. Carolina Caballero
