KINGSTON, R.I. – April 26, 2023 – The University of Rhode Island recently honored three undergraduate student leaders and one student organization as part of the 35th annual A. Robert Rainville Student Leadership Awards ceremony. The award is named in memory of A. Robert Rainville ’64, vice president for Student Affairs from 1980 to 1986, who was a friend and mentor to students.
This year’s recipients are: Matthew Wilson of East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, Employee Excellence Award; Staci Pinkowitz of Providence, Servant Leadership Award; and Christopher Bove of Middletown, Student Leadership Award. URI’s iSTAND group received the Team Excellence Award.
Christopher Bove, Student Leadership Award
A political science and communication studies major, Christopher Bove has been involved in numerous advocacy and leadership roles throughout his young life, including as speaker of the Student Senate. During the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bove worked to bring student concerns to the administration and Board of Trustees. In his junior year, he worked with the Office of Student Affairs to secure funding for a Student Senate program aimed at ensuring all students have free access to RIPTA bus passes. A student in perpetual motion, always ready to speak up, Bove says being at URI has been a growth experience for him, teaching him the importance of listening to others and collaborating with peers. “My time at URI has truly made me a better person,” he says. Bove is a leader outside of URI as well, as the first student representative on the URI Board of Trustees and a member of the board of directors of the Ocean State Center for Independent Living. Melissa Boyd-Colvin, of the University’s Center for Student Leadership Development, says, “Chris is a force. He is one of the most effective change makers that I have witnessed in my time at URI.”
Staci Pinkowitz, Robert L. Carothers Servant Leadership Award
Staci Pinkowitz defines herself as a nontraditional student and arrived at URI in the fall of 2021, joining the community at age 24 as a commuter from Providence. Fortunately, Pinkowitz had applied for a job on campus in the Office of Civic Engagement and Action in the Center for Career and Experiential Education. Not only did this help her transition to URI, she brought her considerable skill set and talents to the University, including a background in community organizing. At URI, she has coordinated a number of opportunities for students to come together in service, including a documents clinic assisting people with homelessness with vital paperwork. Pinkowitz used her position on campus to create connections and to unite the University’s service community. “Staci is a professor’s dream student,” says Julianna Golas, a professor in human development and family science, noting Pinkowitz’s ability to create a culture of participation wherever she goes. “I wish we could bottle up just an ounce of Staci’s enthusiasm and sprinkle it on the classroom each semester.” Pinkowitz will graduate this spring with her bachelor’s degree in human development and family science.
Matthew Wilson, Student Employee Excellence Award
A self-described “goofy kid” arriving at college in 2019, Matthew Wilson signed up as an intramural sports referee in his first year and quickly became an integral part of the Campus Recreation program. He says working in the department, most recently as program assistant for events and outreach, has given him a sense of purpose. You can find Wilson on the North Recreational Fields most nights of the week; he’s happy to see the joy intramurals bring to other students. Wilson’s marketing approach and video savvy (courtesy of his film media and sports media communications major) increased student participation in the program to a projected 3,000 this school year, a school record. For Wilson, introducing students to the benefits of the intramural program is not only his job, it’s his mission. “This place has helped me find out who I am as a person and adult, and it’s only fair that I try to help share that with as many people as possible.” With Wilson leading the program, participation in intramural sports at URI jumped 20% thanks to his creative outreach methods, such as planned “dorm storms” and driving around campus in a golf car with a megaphone. Thanks to Wilson’s hard work and enthusiasm, more than 6,000 URI students have created memories, experiences and friendships that will last long after graduation.
URI iSTAND, Team Excellence Award
The URI Bystander Intervention Program is a group of 12 trained iSTAND team members operating under the guidance of Keith Labelle, deputy Title IX coordinator of outreach education and training. As students, they play a distinct role that faculty or staff cannot. Students take a full-semester 300-level course on sexual violence prevention, acquiring the skills and information they need to spread awareness and educate the campus community on sexual and gender-based violence, with a focus on teaching others how to be “active bystanders.” Says Jasper LaFreniere, lead intern for the program, “We want to ensure that all students know there is help available if they witness, experience or are survivors of sexual violence. We teach students to become part of the solution.” The group attracts students from widely differing backgrounds who hope to effect meaningful change at URI and beyond. They have also hosted a training session for South Kingstown High School students and a table at a URI women’s basketball game, to share their message with the broader community. Joyce Leven of the Domestic Violence Resource Center of South County calls them a dynamic group. “Their interactive interventions serve as a model to reduce domestic, partner and sexual violence on and off campus,” she says.