FYE Prize | FYE | Skidmore College

The Candace Carlucci Backus Prize

Each year, the First-Year Experience Office recognizes exceptional work completed in Scribner Seminars through the Candace Carlucci Backus Prize. During the spring semester, Scribner Seminar faculty nominate outstanding individual or collaborative projects that demonstrate creativity, intellectual curiosity, and academic excellence. Nominated work may take many forms, including essays, research, visual art, performances, and other creative projects.

Congratulations to the Class of 2029 recipients and nominees for the 2025–2026 Candace Carlucci Backus Prize.

Class of 2029 Winners

Julian Hoàng, for their creative project No Longer Human, No Longer Tragic: Despair Remodeled into Ironic Detachment, with accompanying original artwork from the Scribner Seminar, World of Japanese Animation, with Professor Masako Inamoto
Madeline Mechanic, for the literary memoir Khatchkar from the Scribner Seminar, Imagining Memory: Storytelling, Movies, Memoir, with Professor Melora Wolff
Ben Rosan, for the essay and original song Sounds Like Chaos from the Scribner Seminar, Dynamics of Chaos, with Professor Rachel Roe-Dale

Congratulations to the Class 2029 FYE Backus Prize nominees!

Luke Splendido, nominated by Professor Adam Tinkle
Rebecca Perl, nominated by Professor Charlotte D'Evelyn
Julia Nguyen, nominated by Professor Eunice Ferreira
Maisie Shuffelton-Sobe, nominated by Professor Joerg Bibow
Finnean Sieks, nominated by Professor Joerg Bibow
Virginia Kyle, nominated by Professor Matt Wilt
Jazzy Matthews, nominated by Professor Matt Wilt
Ada VanDyke, nominated by Professor Matt Wilt
Audrey Williams, nominated by Professor Matt Wilt

Contact FYE

Office

Starbuck Center 201
518-580-5070
fye@skidmore.edu

Director

Rachel Roe-Dale
Professor of Mathematics
rroedale@skidmore.edu

Team

Marla Melito, Associate Director
mmelito@skidmore.edu

Christy Brown, Coordinator
christybrown@skidmore.edu