Classical Studies 2021 Graduation Prizes

Sophia Gutierrez, Tulane Student

Sophia Alexandra Gutierrez received The 2021 Ernest Henry Riedel Classical Studies Prize.

The Ernest Henry Riedel Classical Studies Prize, established in 1971, is awarded to an outstanding senior in the Department of Classical Studies.

Sophia is a skillful reader, a gifted writer, and someone who lifts up the energy of every class or group she participates in. What is so remarkable about her, though, is that she knows how to communicate her great interest in Classics to other students and draw them into the field. She has been as co-chair of the undergraduate Classics club and was a natural choice to serve on the first SLA student advisory board.


Renee Trepagnier, Tulane Student

Renee Marie Trepagnier received The 2021 George H. Terriberry Classical Prize.

The George H. Terriberry Classical Prize, established in 1924 by Mr. George H. Terriberry, is awarded to the outstanding senior in the Department of Classical Languages.

Renee is a first-class student: bright, incredibly precocious, passionate, dedicated, hard-working, and humble. Her work demonstrates her rare fascination for the intertwining of different types of evidence, when it comes to reconstructing ancient societies. Renee has demonstrated time and again a clear understanding of how complex it is to create, test, and refine a methodology to reconstruct antiquity. Because of this, she is on a trajectory to be an excellent scholar of the next generation.


Ethan Rite, Tulane Student

Ethan Michael Rite received The 2021 Judah Touro Medal Prize.

The Judah Touro Medal, established in 1856, is awarded for excellence in ancient history, Greek, Hebrew, or Latin.

Ethan is a natural philologist and a scholar of unlimited potential. No one has ever asked more challenging questions about the Greek language. His linguistic ability, whether cultivated on his own or in a classroom community, is truly remarkable. His primary academic interest is linguistics, and he has proved himself to be an extraordinary student in Latin and Greek, after taking up these languages relatively late in his career at Tulane.