A student from Salina has been named the outstanding male graduate at the University of Central Missouri.
According to the school, each spring one male and one female student are named as the top graduates.
Sydney Montague, a political science and international studies major from St. Louis, and Dalton Pittenger, a speech and theatre education major from Salina, Kan., have been named the 2018 recipients of the University of Central Missouri’s prestigious Charno Award.
The award is presented annually to the top male and female member of the graduating class at UCM. Montague and Pittenger were recognized with the 2018 awards at the annual Who’s Who at the University of Central Missouri reception April 12.
Montague, the daughter of Christopher and Angela Montague of St. Louis, is a 2014 graduate of Oakville High School. She served as a teacher’s assistant while serving on several boards and committees during her college career. She also served as an international conversation partner and academic research coach for the Office of Mentoring, Advocacy and Peer Support, and as a Mule Team Leader for the IMPACT student leadership camp. The served as president of the Model United Nations at UCM, vice president of Students for Political Action, and secretary of Pi Sigma Alpha. She was selected to attend the Missouri Girls State Youth Leadership China Study Tour, and completed a summer internship with the U.S. State Department Mission to International Organizations in Vienna, Austria, where she worked for the International Atomic Energy Agency that studies peaceful uses for atomic energy.
Pittenger, the son of Todd and Shana Pittenger of Salina, is a 2014 graduate of Salina South High School. He has volunteered with the Project Community Connect community outreach program. He is a member of The Honors College and served as vice president of Theta Chi fraternity, vice president of Theta Alpha Phi honor fraternity, and president and vice president of the Department of Theatre and Dance Student Teacher Association. He also has served in leadership roles with the Nickerson Hall Council, the UCM Players, and Shenanigans Improv Group, and he holds membership in the Institute for Theatre Technology. As a senior, he became the first student to direct a Department of Theatre and Dance Mainstage production.
Montague and Pittenger will be recognized and honored at the spring 2018 commencement ceremonies May 4 and 5, where each of them will speak.
The Charno Award is named for George Charno, Sr., a Kansas City attorney who established the award in 1940 to recognize the outstanding male member of the graduating class. The companion award for the outstanding female class member was established in 1941.
